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10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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266 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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275 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
276 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
279 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
280 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
281 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
282 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
283 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
284 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
285 License'' in the Emacs manual.
287 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
288 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
289 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
291 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
292 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
293 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
294 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
302 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
304 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
306 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
307 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
308 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
309 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
310 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
311 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
312 License'' in the Emacs manual.
314 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
315 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
316 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
318 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
319 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
320 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
321 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
329 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
332 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
333 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
335 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
336 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
337 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
338 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
339 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
340 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
341 License'' in the Emacs manual.
343 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
344 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
345 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
347 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
348 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
349 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
350 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
359 @top The Gnus Newsreader
363 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
364 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
365 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
368 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v.
379 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
380 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
382 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
383 being accused of plagiarism:
385 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
386 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
387 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
388 can even read news with it!
390 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
391 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
392 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
393 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
394 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
400 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
401 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
402 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
403 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
404 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
405 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
406 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
407 * Various:: General purpose settings.
408 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
409 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
410 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
411 * Key Index:: Key Index.
414 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
418 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
419 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
420 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
421 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
422 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
423 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
424 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
425 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
426 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
427 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
428 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
432 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
433 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
434 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
438 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
439 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
440 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
441 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
442 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
443 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
444 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
445 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
446 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
447 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
448 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
449 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
450 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
451 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
452 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
453 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
454 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
458 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
459 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
460 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
464 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
465 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
466 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
467 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
468 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
472 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
473 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
474 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
475 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
479 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
480 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
481 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
482 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
483 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
484 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
485 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
486 * Threading:: How threads are made.
487 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
488 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
489 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
490 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
491 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
492 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
493 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
494 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
495 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
496 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
497 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
498 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
499 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
500 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
501 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
502 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
503 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
504 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
505 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
506 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
507 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
509 Summary Buffer Format
511 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
512 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
513 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
514 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
518 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
519 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
521 Reply, Followup and Post
523 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
524 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
525 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
526 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
530 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
531 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
532 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
533 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
534 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
535 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
539 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
540 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
542 Customizing Threading
544 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
545 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
546 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
547 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
551 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
552 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
553 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
554 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
555 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
556 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
560 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
561 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
562 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
566 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
567 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
568 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
569 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
570 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
571 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
572 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
573 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
575 Alternative Approaches
577 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
578 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
580 Various Summary Stuff
582 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
583 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
584 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
585 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
589 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
590 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
591 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
592 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
593 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
597 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
598 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
599 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
600 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
601 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
602 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
603 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
604 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
608 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
609 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
610 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
611 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
612 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
613 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
614 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
618 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
619 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
620 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
621 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
622 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
623 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
624 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
628 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
629 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
633 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
634 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
635 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
636 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
637 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
638 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
639 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
640 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
641 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
642 * Washing Mail:: Removing cruft from the mail you get.
643 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
644 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
645 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
649 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
650 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
651 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
653 Choosing a Mail Backend
655 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
656 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
657 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
658 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
659 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
660 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
664 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
665 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
666 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
667 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
668 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
669 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
673 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
674 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
675 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
676 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
677 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
678 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
682 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
686 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
687 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
688 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
692 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
693 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
694 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
698 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
699 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
703 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
704 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
705 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
706 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
707 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
708 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
709 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
710 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
711 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
712 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
716 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
717 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
718 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
722 * Group Agent Commands::
723 * Summary Agent Commands::
724 * Server Agent Commands::
728 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
729 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
730 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
731 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
732 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
733 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
734 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
735 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
736 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
737 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
738 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
739 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
740 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
741 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
742 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
743 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
747 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
748 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
749 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
750 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
754 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
755 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
756 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
760 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
761 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
762 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
763 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
764 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
765 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
766 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
767 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
768 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
769 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
770 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
771 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
772 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
773 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
774 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
775 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
776 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
777 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
781 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
782 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
783 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
784 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
785 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
789 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
790 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
791 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
792 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
796 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
797 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
798 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
799 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
800 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
804 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
805 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
806 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
807 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
808 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
809 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
810 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
811 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
815 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
816 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
817 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
818 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
819 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
820 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
821 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
822 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
823 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
827 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
828 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
829 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
830 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
831 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
835 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
836 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
837 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
838 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
842 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
843 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
844 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
845 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
846 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
847 * Group Info:: The group info format.
848 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
849 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
850 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
854 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
855 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
856 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
857 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
858 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
859 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
863 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
864 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
868 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
869 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
875 @chapter Starting Gnus
880 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
881 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
884 @findex gnus-other-frame
885 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
886 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
887 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
889 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
890 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
891 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
893 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
894 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
897 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
898 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
899 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
900 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
901 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
902 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
903 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
904 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
905 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
906 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
907 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
911 @node Finding the News
912 @section Finding the News
915 @vindex gnus-select-method
917 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
918 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
919 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
920 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
923 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
924 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
927 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
930 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
933 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
936 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
937 certainly be much faster.
939 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
941 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
942 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
943 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
944 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
945 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
946 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
948 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
949 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
950 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
951 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
953 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
954 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
955 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
956 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
957 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
958 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
959 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
960 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
961 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
964 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
966 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
967 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
968 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
969 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
970 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
971 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
973 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
975 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
976 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
977 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
978 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
979 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
980 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
983 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
984 would typically set this variable to
987 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
992 @section The First Time
993 @cindex first time usage
995 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
996 be subscribed by default.
998 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
999 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1000 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1001 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1004 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1005 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1006 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1008 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1009 help you with most common problems.
1011 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1012 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1016 @node The Server is Down
1017 @section The Server is Down
1018 @cindex server errors
1020 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1021 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1022 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1024 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1025 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1026 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1027 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1028 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1029 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1030 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1032 @findex gnus-no-server
1033 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1035 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1036 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1037 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1038 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1039 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1040 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1041 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1045 @section Slave Gnusae
1048 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1049 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1050 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1051 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1053 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1054 @code{.newsrc} file.
1056 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1057 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1058 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1059 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1060 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1061 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1062 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1064 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1065 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1066 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1067 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1068 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1069 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1070 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1071 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1073 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1074 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1077 @node Fetching a Group
1078 @section Fetching a Group
1079 @cindex fetching a group
1081 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1082 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1083 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1084 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1085 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1086 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1092 @cindex subscription
1094 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1095 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1096 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1097 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1098 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1099 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1100 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1101 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
1102 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1105 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1106 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1107 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1111 @node Checking New Groups
1112 @subsection Checking New Groups
1114 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1115 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1116 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1117 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1118 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1119 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1120 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1121 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1122 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1123 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1125 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1126 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1127 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1128 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1129 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1130 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1131 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1132 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1133 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1134 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1135 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1137 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1138 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1139 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1140 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1141 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1142 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1145 @node Subscription Methods
1146 @subsection Subscription Methods
1148 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1149 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1150 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1152 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1153 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1155 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1159 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1160 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1161 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1162 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1163 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1165 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1166 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1167 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1168 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1170 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1171 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1172 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1174 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1175 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1176 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1177 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1178 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1179 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1180 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1181 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1182 up. Or something like that.
1184 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1185 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1186 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1187 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1188 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1190 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1191 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1192 Kill all new groups.
1194 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1195 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1196 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1197 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1198 topic parameter that looks like
1204 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1207 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1212 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1213 A closely related variable is
1214 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1215 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1216 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1217 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1220 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1221 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1222 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1223 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1226 @node Filtering New Groups
1227 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1229 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1230 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1231 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1234 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1237 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1238 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1239 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1240 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1241 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1242 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1243 subscribing these groups.
1244 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1245 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1247 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1248 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1249 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1250 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1251 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1252 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1253 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1254 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1256 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1257 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1258 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1259 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1260 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1261 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1262 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1263 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1264 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1265 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1267 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1268 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1271 @node Changing Servers
1272 @section Changing Servers
1273 @cindex changing servers
1275 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1276 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1277 very flaky and you want to use another.
1279 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1280 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1284 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1285 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1286 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1287 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1290 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1291 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1292 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1293 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1295 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1296 @findex gnus-change-server
1297 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1298 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1299 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1300 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1301 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1303 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1304 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1305 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1306 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1307 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1309 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1310 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1311 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1312 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1313 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1314 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1316 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1317 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1318 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1322 @section Startup Files
1323 @cindex startup files
1328 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1329 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1331 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1332 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1333 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1334 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1335 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1336 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1337 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1339 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1340 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1341 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1342 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1343 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1344 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1346 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1347 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1348 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1349 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1350 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1351 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1352 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1353 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1354 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1355 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1357 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1358 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1359 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1360 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1361 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1362 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1363 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1364 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1365 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1366 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1367 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1368 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1370 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1371 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1372 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1373 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1375 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1376 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1377 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1378 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1379 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1380 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1381 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1382 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1383 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1384 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1387 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1388 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1390 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1391 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1394 @vindex gnus-init-file
1395 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1396 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1397 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1398 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1399 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1400 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1401 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1402 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1403 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1409 @cindex dribble file
1412 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1413 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1414 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1415 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1416 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1419 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1420 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1423 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1424 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1425 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1427 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1428 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1429 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1430 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1431 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1432 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1434 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1435 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1436 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1439 @node The Active File
1440 @section The Active File
1442 @cindex ignored groups
1444 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1445 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1446 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1448 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1449 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1450 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1451 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1452 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1453 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1454 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1457 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1458 @c if you set it to anything else.
1460 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1462 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1463 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1464 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1466 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1467 you actually subscribe to.
1469 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1470 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1471 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1472 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1474 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1475 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1476 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1477 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1478 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1479 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1481 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1482 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1483 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1486 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1487 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1488 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1489 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1490 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1491 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1493 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1494 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1496 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1497 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1499 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1500 secondary select methods.
1503 @node Startup Variables
1504 @section Startup Variables
1508 @item gnus-load-hook
1509 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1510 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1511 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1512 times you start Gnus.
1514 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1515 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1516 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1518 @item gnus-startup-hook
1519 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1520 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1522 @item gnus-started-hook
1523 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1524 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1527 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1528 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1529 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1530 generating the group buffer.
1532 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1533 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1534 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1535 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1536 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1537 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1538 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1539 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1541 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1542 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1543 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1544 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1545 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1546 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1548 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1549 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1550 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1552 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1553 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1554 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1556 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1557 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1558 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1559 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1565 @chapter Group Buffer
1566 @cindex group buffer
1568 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1569 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1570 long as Gnus is active.
1574 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1575 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1576 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1577 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1578 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1579 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1580 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1581 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1587 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1588 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1589 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1590 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1591 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1592 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1593 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1594 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1595 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1596 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1597 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1598 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1599 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1600 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1601 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1602 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1603 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1607 @node Group Buffer Format
1608 @section Group Buffer Format
1611 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1612 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1613 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1617 @node Group Line Specification
1618 @subsection Group Line Specification
1619 @cindex group buffer format
1621 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1622 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1624 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1627 25: news.announce.newusers
1628 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1633 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1634 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1635 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1636 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1638 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1639 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1640 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1641 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1642 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1643 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1645 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1647 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1648 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1649 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1650 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1653 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1654 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1655 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1657 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1662 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1665 Whether the group is subscribed.
1668 Level of subscribedness.
1671 Number of unread articles.
1674 Number of dormant articles.
1677 Number of ticked articles.
1680 Number of read articles.
1683 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1684 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1687 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1690 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1699 Newsgroup description.
1702 @samp{m} if moderated.
1705 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1714 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1718 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1721 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1722 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1723 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1724 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1725 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1728 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1730 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1734 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1737 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1741 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1742 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1743 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1744 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1745 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1746 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1751 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1752 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1753 group, or a bogus native group.
1756 @node Group Modeline Specification
1757 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1758 @cindex group modeline
1760 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1761 The mode line can be changed by setting
1762 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1763 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1767 The native news server.
1769 The native select method.
1773 @node Group Highlighting
1774 @subsection Group Highlighting
1775 @cindex highlighting
1776 @cindex group highlighting
1778 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1779 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1780 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1781 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1782 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1784 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1788 (cond (window-system
1789 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1790 (defface my-group-face-1
1791 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1792 (defface my-group-face-2
1793 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1794 (defface my-group-face-3
1795 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1796 (defface my-group-face-4
1797 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1798 (defface my-group-face-5
1799 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1801 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1802 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1803 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1804 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1805 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1806 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1809 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1811 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1818 The number of unread articles in the group.
1822 Whether the group is a mail group.
1824 The level of the group.
1826 The score of the group.
1828 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1830 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1831 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1833 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1834 topic being inserted.
1837 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1838 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1839 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1841 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1842 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1843 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1844 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1845 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1848 @node Group Maneuvering
1849 @section Group Maneuvering
1850 @cindex group movement
1852 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1853 expected, hopefully.
1859 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1860 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1861 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1867 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1868 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1869 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1873 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1874 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1878 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1879 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1883 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1884 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1885 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1889 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1890 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1891 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1894 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1900 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1901 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1902 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1907 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1908 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1909 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1913 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1914 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1915 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1918 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1919 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1920 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1921 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1925 @node Selecting a Group
1926 @section Selecting a Group
1927 @cindex group selection
1932 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1933 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1934 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1935 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1936 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1937 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1938 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1939 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1940 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1941 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
1943 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
1944 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
1945 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
1947 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
1948 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
1953 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1954 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1955 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1956 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1957 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1961 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1962 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1963 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1964 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1965 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1966 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1967 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1968 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1969 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1970 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1973 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1974 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1975 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1976 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1977 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1980 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1981 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1982 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1983 doing any processing of its contents
1984 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1985 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1986 manner will have no permanent effects.
1990 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1991 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1992 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1993 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1994 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1995 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1996 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1997 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2000 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2001 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2002 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
2003 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2008 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
2009 full summary buffer.
2012 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
2015 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
2020 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
2021 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
2022 Useful functions include:
2025 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
2026 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
2027 don't select the article.
2029 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
2030 Select the first unread article.
2032 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
2033 Select the highest-scored unread article.
2037 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2038 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
2039 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2043 @node Subscription Commands
2044 @section Subscription Commands
2045 @cindex subscription
2053 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2054 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2055 Toggle subscription to the current group
2056 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2062 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2063 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2064 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2065 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2071 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2072 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2073 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2079 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2080 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2083 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2084 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2085 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2086 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2087 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2093 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2094 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2098 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2099 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2102 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2103 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2104 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2105 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2106 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2107 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2108 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2109 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2110 @file{.newsrc} file.
2114 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2124 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2125 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2126 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2127 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2128 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2129 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2134 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2135 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2136 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2140 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2141 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2142 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2144 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2145 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2146 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2147 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2148 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2149 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2156 @section Group Levels
2160 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2161 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2162 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2163 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2164 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2166 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2172 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2173 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2174 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2175 prompted for a level.
2178 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2179 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2180 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2181 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2182 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2183 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2184 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2185 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2186 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2187 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2188 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2189 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2190 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2191 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2192 reasons of efficiency.
2194 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2195 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2197 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2198 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2199 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2200 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2201 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2202 groups are hidden, in a way.
2204 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2205 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2206 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2207 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2208 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2209 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2211 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2212 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2213 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2214 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2215 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2216 list of killed groups.)
2218 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2219 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2220 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2222 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2223 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2224 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2225 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2226 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2227 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2228 relevant valid ranges.
2230 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2231 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2232 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2233 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2234 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2235 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2238 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2239 one with the best level.
2241 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2242 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2243 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2246 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2247 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2248 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2249 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2252 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2253 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2254 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2255 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2257 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2258 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2259 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2260 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2261 to 5. The default is 6.
2265 @section Group Score
2270 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2271 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2272 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2275 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2276 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2277 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2278 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2279 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2280 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2281 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2282 least significant part.))
2284 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2285 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2286 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2287 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2288 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2289 action after each summary exit, you can add
2290 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2291 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2292 slow things down somewhat.
2295 @node Marking Groups
2296 @section Marking Groups
2297 @cindex marking groups
2299 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2300 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2301 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2302 bidding on those groups.
2304 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2305 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2306 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2314 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2315 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2321 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2322 Remove the mark from the current group
2323 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2327 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2328 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2332 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2333 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2337 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2338 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2342 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2343 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2344 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2347 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2349 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2350 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2351 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2352 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2353 the command to be executed.
2356 @node Foreign Groups
2357 @section Foreign Groups
2358 @cindex foreign groups
2360 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2361 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2362 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2363 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2370 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2371 @cindex making groups
2372 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2373 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2374 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2378 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2379 @cindex renaming groups
2380 Rename the current group to something else
2381 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2382 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2388 @findex gnus-group-customize
2389 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2393 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2394 @cindex renaming groups
2395 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2396 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2400 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2401 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2402 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2406 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2407 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2408 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2412 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2414 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2415 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2420 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2421 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2425 @cindex (ding) archive
2426 @cindex archive group
2427 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2428 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2429 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2430 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2431 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2432 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2433 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2437 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2439 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2440 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2441 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2442 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2446 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2448 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2449 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2450 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2454 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2455 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2457 Make a group based on some file or other
2458 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2459 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2460 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
2461 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
2462 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
2463 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2464 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2468 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2469 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2470 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2471 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2475 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2480 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2481 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2482 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2483 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2484 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2485 @xref{Web Searches}.
2487 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2488 to a particular group by using a match string like
2489 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2492 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2493 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2494 This function will delete the current group
2495 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2496 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2497 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2498 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2499 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2503 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2504 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2505 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2509 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2510 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2511 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2514 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2517 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2518 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2519 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2520 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2521 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2522 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2526 @node Group Parameters
2527 @section Group Parameters
2528 @cindex group parameters
2530 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2531 Here's an example group parameter list:
2534 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2538 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2539 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2540 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2541 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2543 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2544 is an alist of regexps and values.
2546 The following group parameters can be used:
2551 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2554 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2557 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2558 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2559 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2560 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2561 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2563 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2564 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2565 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2566 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2567 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2568 list address instead.
2570 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2574 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2577 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2580 It is totally ignored
2581 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2582 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2584 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2585 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2586 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2587 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2588 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2590 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2591 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2592 sending the message.
2594 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2598 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2599 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2600 of whether it has any unread articles.
2602 @item broken-reply-to
2603 @cindex broken-reply-to
2604 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2605 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2606 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2607 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2608 broken behavior. So there!
2612 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2613 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2617 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2618 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2619 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2624 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2625 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2626 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2627 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2628 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2629 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2630 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2634 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2635 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2636 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2638 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2641 @cindex total-expire
2642 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2643 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2644 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2645 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2648 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2652 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2653 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2654 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2655 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2656 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2657 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2660 @cindex score file group parameter
2661 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2662 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2663 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2666 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2667 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2668 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2669 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2672 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2673 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2674 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2675 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2678 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2679 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2683 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2686 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2691 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2692 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2693 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2697 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2698 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2699 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2701 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2703 @item ignored-charsets
2704 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-known iso-8859-1)}
2705 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2706 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2708 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2711 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2712 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2713 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2714 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2715 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2717 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2718 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2719 like this in the group parameters:
2724 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2728 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2729 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2730 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2731 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2732 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2734 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2735 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2736 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2737 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2738 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2739 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2740 @code{eval}ed there.
2742 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2743 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2744 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2745 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2746 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2750 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2751 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2752 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2753 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2754 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2757 @node Listing Groups
2758 @section Listing Groups
2759 @cindex group listing
2761 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2769 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2770 List all groups that have unread articles
2771 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2772 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2773 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2774 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2781 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2782 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2783 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2784 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2785 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2786 unsubscribed groups).
2790 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2791 List all unread groups on a specific level
2792 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2793 with no unread articles.
2797 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2798 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2799 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2800 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2805 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2806 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2810 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2811 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2812 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2816 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2817 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2821 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2822 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2823 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2824 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2825 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2826 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2827 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2828 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2832 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2833 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2834 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2838 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2839 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2840 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2844 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
2845 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
2849 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
2850 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
2854 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
2855 List groups limited within the current selection
2856 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
2860 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
2861 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
2865 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
2866 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
2870 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2871 @cindex visible group parameter
2872 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2873 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2874 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2875 get the same effect.
2877 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2878 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2879 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2880 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2881 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2884 @node Sorting Groups
2885 @section Sorting Groups
2886 @cindex sorting groups
2888 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2889 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2890 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2891 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2892 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2893 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2898 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2899 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2900 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2902 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2903 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2904 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2906 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2907 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2908 Sort by group level.
2910 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2911 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2912 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2914 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2915 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2916 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2917 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2919 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2920 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2921 Sort by number of unread articles.
2923 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2924 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2925 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2927 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
2928 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
2929 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
2934 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2935 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2939 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2940 some sorting criteria:
2944 @kindex G S a (Group)
2945 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2946 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2947 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2950 @kindex G S u (Group)
2951 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2952 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2953 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2956 @kindex G S l (Group)
2957 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2958 Sort the group buffer by group level
2959 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2962 @kindex G S v (Group)
2963 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2964 Sort the group buffer by group score
2965 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2968 @kindex G S r (Group)
2969 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2970 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2971 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2974 @kindex G S m (Group)
2975 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2976 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2977 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2981 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
2982 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2984 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2985 commands will sort in reverse order.
2987 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2991 @kindex G P a (Group)
2992 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2993 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2994 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2997 @kindex G P u (Group)
2998 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2999 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3000 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3003 @kindex G P l (Group)
3004 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3005 Sort the groups by group level
3006 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3009 @kindex G P v (Group)
3010 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3011 Sort the groups by group score
3012 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3015 @kindex G P r (Group)
3016 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3017 Sort the groups by group rank
3018 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3021 @kindex G P m (Group)
3022 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3023 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
3024 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3028 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3032 @node Group Maintenance
3033 @section Group Maintenance
3034 @cindex bogus groups
3039 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3040 Find bogus groups and delete them
3041 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3045 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3046 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3047 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3048 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3049 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3053 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3054 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3055 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3056 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
3059 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
3060 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3061 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
3062 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3067 @node Browse Foreign Server
3068 @section Browse Foreign Server
3069 @cindex foreign servers
3070 @cindex browsing servers
3075 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3076 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3077 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3078 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3081 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3082 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3083 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3084 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3086 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3091 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3092 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3096 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3097 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3100 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3101 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3102 Enter the current group and display the first article
3103 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3106 @kindex RET (Browse)
3107 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3108 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3112 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3113 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3114 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3120 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3121 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3125 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3126 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3127 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3132 @section Exiting Gnus
3133 @cindex exiting Gnus
3135 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3140 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3141 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3142 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3143 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3147 @findex gnus-group-exit
3148 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3149 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3153 @findex gnus-group-quit
3154 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3155 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3158 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3159 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3160 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3161 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3162 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3167 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3168 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3169 trying to customize meta-variables.
3174 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3175 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3176 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3182 @section Group Topics
3185 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3186 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3187 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3188 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3189 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3190 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3194 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3195 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
3206 2: alt.religion.emacs
3209 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3211 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3212 13: comp.sources.unix
3215 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3217 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3218 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3219 is a toggling command.)
3221 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3222 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
3223 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3224 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3227 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3228 the hook for the group mode:
3231 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3235 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3236 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3237 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3238 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3239 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3243 @node Topic Variables
3244 @subsection Topic Variables
3245 @cindex topic variables
3247 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
3248 really neat, I think.
3250 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3251 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3252 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3265 Number of groups in the topic.
3267 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3269 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3272 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3273 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3274 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3277 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3278 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3280 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3281 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3282 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3285 @node Topic Commands
3286 @subsection Topic Commands
3287 @cindex topic commands
3289 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3290 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3291 definitions slightly.
3297 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3298 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3299 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3303 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3304 Move the current group to some other topic
3305 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3306 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3310 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3311 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3315 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3316 Copy the current group to some other topic
3317 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3318 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3322 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3323 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3324 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3328 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3329 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3330 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3334 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3335 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3336 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3337 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3338 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3339 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3340 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3343 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3344 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3348 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3349 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3350 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3354 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3355 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3356 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3360 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3361 Toggle hiding empty topics
3362 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3366 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3367 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3368 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3371 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3372 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3373 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3374 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3378 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3380 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3381 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3382 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3383 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3386 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3387 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3388 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3389 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3393 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3395 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3396 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3397 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3398 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3399 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3400 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3403 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3404 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3405 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
3406 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
3410 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3411 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3412 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3416 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3417 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3418 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3423 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3424 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3427 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3428 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3429 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3433 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3434 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3435 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3439 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3440 @cindex group parameters
3441 @cindex topic parameters
3443 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3444 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3450 @subsection Topic Sorting
3451 @cindex topic sorting
3453 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3459 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3460 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3461 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3462 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3465 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3466 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3467 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3468 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3471 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3472 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3473 Sort the current topic by group level
3474 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3477 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3478 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3479 Sort the current topic by group score
3480 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3483 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3484 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3485 Sort the current topic by group rank
3486 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3489 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3490 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3491 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
3492 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3496 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3499 @node Topic Topology
3500 @subsection Topic Topology
3501 @cindex topic topology
3504 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3510 2: alt.religion.emacs
3513 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3515 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3516 13: comp.sources.unix
3519 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3520 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3521 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3526 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3527 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3531 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3532 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3533 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3534 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3535 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3536 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3538 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3539 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3540 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3543 @node Topic Parameters
3544 @subsection Topic Parameters
3545 @cindex topic parameters
3547 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3548 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3549 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3551 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3556 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3557 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3558 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3563 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3564 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3565 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3566 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3572 2: alt.religion.emacs
3576 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3578 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3579 13: comp.sources.unix
3583 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3584 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3585 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3586 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3587 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3588 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3590 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3591 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3592 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3593 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3594 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3596 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3597 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3598 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3599 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3600 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3601 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3602 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3603 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3606 @node Misc Group Stuff
3607 @section Misc Group Stuff
3610 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3611 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3612 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3613 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3620 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3621 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3622 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3626 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3627 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3628 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3632 @findex gnus-group-mail
3633 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3637 Variables for the group buffer:
3641 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3642 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3643 is called after the group buffer has been
3646 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3647 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3648 is called after the group buffer is
3649 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3652 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3653 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3654 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3655 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3657 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3658 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3659 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3660 whether they are empty or not.
3662 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3663 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3664 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3665 non-ASCII group names.
3669 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3670 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3673 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3674 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3675 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names.
3676 It is used to show non-ASCII group names.
3680 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3681 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3686 @node Scanning New Messages
3687 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3688 @cindex new messages
3689 @cindex scanning new news
3695 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3696 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3697 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3698 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3699 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3700 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3705 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3706 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3707 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3708 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3709 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3710 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3711 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3713 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3714 @cindex activating groups
3716 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3717 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3722 @findex gnus-group-restart
3723 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3724 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3725 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3729 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3730 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3732 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3733 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3737 @node Group Information
3738 @subsection Group Information
3739 @cindex group information
3740 @cindex information on groups
3747 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3748 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3751 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3752 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3753 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3754 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3755 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3756 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3757 for fetching the file.
3759 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3760 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3764 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3766 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3767 @cindex describing groups
3768 @cindex group description
3769 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3770 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3771 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3775 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3776 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3777 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3784 @findex gnus-version
3785 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3789 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3790 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3793 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3796 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3797 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3801 @node Group Timestamp
3802 @subsection Group Timestamp
3804 @cindex group timestamps
3806 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3807 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3808 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3811 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3814 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3816 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3817 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3820 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3821 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3824 This will result in lines looking like:
3827 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3828 0: custom 19961002T012713
3831 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3832 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3836 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3837 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3842 @subsection File Commands
3843 @cindex file commands
3849 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3850 @vindex gnus-init-file
3851 @cindex reading init file
3852 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3853 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3857 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3858 @cindex saving .newsrc
3859 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3860 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3861 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3864 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3865 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3866 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3871 @node Summary Buffer
3872 @chapter Summary Buffer
3873 @cindex summary buffer
3875 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3876 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3878 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3879 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3881 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3884 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3885 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3886 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3887 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3888 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3889 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3890 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3891 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3892 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3893 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3894 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3895 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3896 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3897 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3898 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3899 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3900 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3901 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3902 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3903 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3904 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3905 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3906 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3907 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3908 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3909 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
3910 or reselecting the current group.
3911 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3912 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3913 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
3917 @node Summary Buffer Format
3918 @section Summary Buffer Format
3919 @cindex summary buffer format
3923 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3924 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3925 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3931 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3932 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3933 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3934 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3937 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3938 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3939 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3940 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3941 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3942 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3943 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3944 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3945 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3946 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3947 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
3950 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3951 'mail-extract-address-components)
3954 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3955 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3956 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3957 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3960 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3961 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3963 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3964 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3965 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3966 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3967 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3969 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3971 The following format specification characters are understood:
3977 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
3978 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
3980 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3981 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3982 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3984 Full @code{From} header.
3986 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3988 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3989 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3991 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3992 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3993 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3994 may be more thorough.
3996 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3999 Number of lines in the article.
4001 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported in some
4002 methods (like nnfolder).
4004 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4006 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4007 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4009 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4010 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4012 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4013 for adopted articles.
4015 One space for each thread level.
4017 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4022 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4023 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4027 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4029 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4030 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4031 default level. If the difference between
4032 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4033 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4041 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4043 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4049 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4050 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4052 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4053 article has any children.
4059 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4060 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4061 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4062 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4063 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4064 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4067 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4068 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4069 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4070 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4071 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4072 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4074 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4075 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4077 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4080 @node To From Newsgroups
4081 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4085 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4086 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4087 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4088 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4089 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4093 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4094 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4095 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4099 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4100 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4103 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4104 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4107 @findex gnus-extra-header
4108 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4109 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4110 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4113 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4117 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4118 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4119 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4120 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4121 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4122 headers are used instead.
4126 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4127 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4128 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4129 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4132 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4133 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4134 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4135 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4137 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4141 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4143 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4144 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4145 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
4146 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4150 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4151 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4158 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4159 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4162 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4163 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4165 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4166 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4167 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4168 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4170 Here are the elements you can play with:
4176 Unprefixed group name.
4178 Current article number.
4180 Current article score.
4184 Number of unread articles in this group.
4186 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4189 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4190 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4191 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4192 and no unselected ones.
4194 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4195 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4197 Subject of the current article.
4199 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4201 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4203 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4205 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4207 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4209 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4213 @node Summary Highlighting
4214 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4218 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4219 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4220 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4221 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4222 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4224 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4225 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4226 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4227 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4229 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4230 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4231 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4232 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4234 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4235 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4236 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4237 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4238 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4239 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4242 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4243 ((> score default) . bold))
4245 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4246 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4250 @node Summary Maneuvering
4251 @section Summary Maneuvering
4252 @cindex summary movement
4254 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4255 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4257 None of these commands select articles.
4262 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4263 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4264 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4265 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4266 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4270 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4271 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4272 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4273 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4274 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4277 @kindex G g (Summary)
4278 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4279 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4280 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4283 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4284 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4285 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4286 to the group buffer.
4288 Variables related to summary movement:
4292 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4293 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4294 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4295 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4296 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4297 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4298 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4299 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4300 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4301 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4302 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4303 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4304 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4305 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4307 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4308 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4309 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4310 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4311 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4312 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4313 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4315 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4317 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4318 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4319 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4320 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4321 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4323 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4324 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4325 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4326 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4327 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4328 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4329 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4330 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4333 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4334 the given number of lines from the top.
4339 @node Choosing Articles
4340 @section Choosing Articles
4341 @cindex selecting articles
4344 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4345 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4349 @node Choosing Commands
4350 @subsection Choosing Commands
4352 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4353 and they all select and display an article.
4355 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4356 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4360 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4361 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4362 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4363 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4368 @kindex G n (Summary)
4369 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4370 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4371 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4376 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4377 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4378 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4383 @kindex G N (Summary)
4384 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4385 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4390 @kindex G P (Summary)
4391 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4392 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4395 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4396 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4397 Go to the next article with the same subject
4398 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4401 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4402 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4403 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4404 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4408 @kindex G f (Summary)
4410 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4411 Go to the first unread article
4412 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4416 @kindex G b (Summary)
4418 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4419 Go to the article with the highest score
4420 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
4425 @kindex G l (Summary)
4426 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4427 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4430 @kindex G o (Summary)
4431 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4433 @cindex article history
4434 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4435 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4436 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4437 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4438 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4439 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4444 @kindex G j (Summary)
4445 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4446 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4447 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4452 @node Choosing Variables
4453 @subsection Choosing Variables
4455 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4458 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4459 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4460 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4461 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4462 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4463 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4465 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4466 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4467 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4468 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4470 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4471 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4472 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4473 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4474 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4475 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4476 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4477 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4478 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4479 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4480 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4481 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4482 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4483 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4488 @node Paging the Article
4489 @section Scrolling the Article
4490 @cindex article scrolling
4495 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4496 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4497 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4498 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4499 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4502 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4503 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4504 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4507 @kindex RET (Summary)
4508 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4509 Scroll the current article one line forward
4510 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4513 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4514 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4515 Scroll the current article one line backward
4516 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4520 @kindex A g (Summary)
4522 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4523 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4524 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4525 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4526 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4527 the way it came from the server.
4529 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4530 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4531 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4534 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4539 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4544 @kindex A < (Summary)
4545 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4546 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4547 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4552 @kindex A > (Summary)
4553 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4554 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4558 @kindex A s (Summary)
4560 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4561 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4562 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4566 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4567 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4572 @node Reply Followup and Post
4573 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4576 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4577 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4578 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4579 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
4583 @node Summary Mail Commands
4584 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4586 @cindex composing mail
4588 Commands for composing a mail message:
4594 @kindex S r (Summary)
4596 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4597 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4598 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4599 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4600 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4605 @kindex S R (Summary)
4606 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4607 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4608 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4609 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4610 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4613 @kindex S w (Summary)
4614 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4615 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4616 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4617 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4618 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4621 @kindex S W (Summary)
4622 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4623 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4624 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4625 the process/prefix convention.
4628 @kindex S v (Summary)
4629 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4630 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4631 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4632 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4633 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4634 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4637 @kindex S W (Summary)
4638 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4639 Mail a very wide reply to the current article and include the original
4640 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4641 the process/prefix convention.
4645 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4646 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4647 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4648 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4649 Forward the current article to some other person
4650 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4651 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4652 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4653 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4654 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4655 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4656 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4657 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4658 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4663 @kindex S m (Summary)
4664 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
4665 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
4666 Send a mail to some other person
4667 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
4670 @kindex S D b (Summary)
4671 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
4672 @cindex bouncing mail
4673 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4674 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4675 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4676 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4677 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4678 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
4679 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4680 very well fail, though.
4683 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4684 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4685 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4686 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4687 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4688 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4689 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4690 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4691 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4692 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4694 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4695 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4696 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4697 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4698 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4700 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4701 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4704 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4705 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4706 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4707 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4708 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4711 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4712 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4713 @cindex crossposting
4714 @cindex excessive crossposting
4715 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4716 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4718 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4719 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4720 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4721 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4722 command understands the process/prefix convention
4723 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4727 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4730 @node Summary Post Commands
4731 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4733 @cindex composing news
4735 Commands for posting a news article:
4741 @kindex S p (Summary)
4742 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4743 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4744 Post an article to the current group
4745 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4750 @kindex S f (Summary)
4751 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4752 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4753 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4757 @kindex S F (Summary)
4759 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4760 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4761 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4762 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4763 process/prefix convention.
4766 @kindex S n (Summary)
4767 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4768 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4769 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4772 @kindex S N (Summary)
4773 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4774 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4775 message through mail and include the original message
4776 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4777 the process/prefix convention.
4780 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4781 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4782 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4783 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
4784 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
4785 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
4786 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4787 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4788 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4789 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4790 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4791 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4792 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4795 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4796 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4798 @cindex making digests
4799 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4800 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4801 process/prefix convention.
4804 @kindex S u (Summary)
4805 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4806 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4807 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4808 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4811 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4814 @node Summary Message Commands
4815 @subsection Summary Message Commands
4819 @kindex S y (Summary)
4820 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
4821 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
4822 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
4823 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
4824 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4829 @node Canceling and Superseding
4830 @subsection Canceling Articles
4831 @cindex canceling articles
4832 @cindex superseding articles
4834 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4835 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4837 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4839 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4841 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4842 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4843 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4844 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4845 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4846 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4848 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4849 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4852 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4853 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4854 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4856 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4857 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4858 your original article.
4860 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4862 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4863 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4864 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4867 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4868 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4869 have posted almost the same article twice.
4871 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4872 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4873 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4874 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4875 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4876 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4877 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4878 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4879 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4880 canceled/superseded.
4882 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4885 @node Marking Articles
4886 @section Marking Articles
4887 @cindex article marking
4888 @cindex article ticking
4891 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4893 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4894 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4895 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4897 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4900 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4901 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4902 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4906 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4910 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4911 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4912 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4916 @node Unread Articles
4917 @subsection Unread Articles
4919 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4924 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4925 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4927 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4928 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4929 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4930 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
4931 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
4932 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
4933 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
4936 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4937 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4939 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4940 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4941 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4942 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
4946 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4947 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4949 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4954 @subsection Read Articles
4955 @cindex expirable mark
4957 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4962 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4963 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4964 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4967 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4968 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4971 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4972 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4973 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4976 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4977 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4980 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4981 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4984 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4985 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4988 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4989 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4992 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4993 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4996 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4997 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5000 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5001 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5005 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5006 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5007 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5011 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5012 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5014 One more special mark, though:
5018 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5019 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5021 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5022 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5023 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5024 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5030 @subsection Other Marks
5031 @cindex process mark
5034 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5040 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5041 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5042 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5043 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5044 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5047 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5048 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5049 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5050 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5052 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5053 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{O} in
5054 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5057 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5058 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5059 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5062 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5063 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5064 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5065 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5068 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5069 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5070 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5071 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5072 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5075 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5076 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5077 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5078 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5079 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5080 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5084 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5085 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5086 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5088 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5089 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5090 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5094 @subsection Setting Marks
5095 @cindex setting marks
5097 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5102 @kindex M c (Summary)
5103 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5104 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5105 @cindex mark as unread
5106 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5107 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5113 @kindex M t (Summary)
5114 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5115 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5116 @xref{Article Caching}.
5121 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5122 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5123 Mark the current article as dormant
5124 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5128 @kindex M d (Summary)
5130 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5131 Mark the current article as read
5132 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5136 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5137 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5138 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5143 @kindex M k (Summary)
5144 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5145 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5146 and then select the next unread article
5147 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5151 @kindex M K (Summary)
5152 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5153 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5154 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5155 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5158 @kindex M C (Summary)
5159 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5160 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5161 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5164 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5165 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5166 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5167 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5170 @kindex M H (Summary)
5171 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5172 Catchup the current group to point
5173 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5176 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5177 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5178 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5179 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5182 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5183 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5184 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5185 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5189 @kindex M e (Summary)
5191 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5192 Mark the current article as expirable
5193 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5196 @kindex M b (Summary)
5197 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5198 Set a bookmark in the current article
5199 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5202 @kindex M B (Summary)
5203 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5204 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5205 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5208 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5209 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5210 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5211 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5214 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5216 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5217 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5220 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5221 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5222 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5223 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5224 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5227 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5228 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5229 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5230 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5231 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5232 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5233 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5234 The default is @code{t}.
5237 @node Generic Marking Commands
5238 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5240 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5241 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5242 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5243 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5244 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5247 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5248 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5251 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5252 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5253 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5254 to list in this manual.
5256 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5257 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5258 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5259 article, you could say something like:
5262 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5263 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5264 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5270 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5271 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5275 @node Setting Process Marks
5276 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5277 @cindex setting process marks
5284 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5285 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5286 Mark the current article with the process mark
5287 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5288 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5292 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5293 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5294 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5295 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5298 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5299 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5300 Remove the process mark from all articles
5301 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5304 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5305 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5306 Invert the list of process marked articles
5307 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5310 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5311 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5312 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5313 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5316 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5317 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5318 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5319 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5322 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5323 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5324 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5327 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5328 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5329 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5330 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5333 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5334 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5335 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5336 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5339 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5340 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5341 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5342 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5345 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5346 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5347 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5350 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5351 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5352 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5353 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5356 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5357 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5358 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5361 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5362 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5363 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5364 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5367 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5368 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5369 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5370 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5373 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5374 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5375 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5376 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5379 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5380 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5381 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5382 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5386 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5387 set process marks based on article body contents.
5394 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5395 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5396 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5399 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5400 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5401 additional articles.
5407 @kindex / / (Summary)
5408 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5409 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5410 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
5413 @kindex / a (Summary)
5414 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5415 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5416 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
5419 @kindex / x (Summary)
5420 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5421 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5422 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5423 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}).
5427 @kindex / u (Summary)
5429 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5430 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5431 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5432 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5433 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5436 @kindex / m (Summary)
5437 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5438 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5439 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5442 @kindex / t (Summary)
5443 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5444 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5445 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5446 articles younger than that number of days.
5449 @kindex / n (Summary)
5450 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5451 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5452 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5453 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5456 @kindex / w (Summary)
5457 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5458 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5459 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5463 @kindex / v (Summary)
5464 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5465 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5466 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5470 @kindex M S (Summary)
5471 @kindex / E (Summary)
5472 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5473 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5474 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5477 @kindex / D (Summary)
5478 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5479 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5480 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5483 @kindex / * (Summary)
5484 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5485 Include all cached articles in the limit
5486 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5489 @kindex / d (Summary)
5490 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5491 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5492 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5495 @kindex / M (Summary)
5496 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5497 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5500 @kindex / T (Summary)
5501 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5502 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5505 @kindex / c (Summary)
5506 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
5507 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
5508 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
5511 @kindex / C (Summary)
5512 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
5513 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
5514 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
5515 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
5523 @cindex article threading
5525 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
5526 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
5527 hierarchical fashion.
5529 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
5530 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
5531 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
5532 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
5533 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
5534 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
5535 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
5537 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
5541 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
5544 A tree-like article structure.
5547 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
5550 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
5551 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
5552 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
5553 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
5554 called loose threads.
5556 @item thread gathering
5557 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
5559 @item sparse threads
5560 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
5561 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
5567 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
5568 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
5572 @node Customizing Threading
5573 @subsection Customizing Threading
5574 @cindex customizing threading
5577 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
5578 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
5579 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
5580 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
5585 @subsubsection Loose Threads
5588 @cindex loose threads
5591 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
5592 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
5593 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
5594 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
5595 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
5596 read or killed the root in a previous session.
5598 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
5599 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
5600 There are four possible values:
5604 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
5605 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
5606 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5607 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5608 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5613 @cindex adopting articles
5618 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
5619 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
5620 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
5621 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
5624 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
5625 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
5626 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
5627 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
5628 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
5629 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
5630 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
5633 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
5634 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
5635 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
5639 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
5640 display them after one another.
5643 Don't gather loose threads.
5646 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5647 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5648 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
5649 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
5650 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
5651 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
5652 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
5653 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
5654 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
5655 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
5656 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
5658 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
5659 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
5660 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
5663 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5664 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5665 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
5666 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
5667 simplification is used.
5669 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5670 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5671 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
5672 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
5674 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
5676 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5682 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
5683 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
5684 "answer" "reference" "announce"
5685 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
5690 (mapconcat 'identity
5691 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
5693 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
5696 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
5699 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5700 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5701 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
5702 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
5703 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
5704 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
5706 Useful functions to put in this list include:
5709 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
5710 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
5711 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5713 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5714 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5717 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5718 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5719 Remove excessive whitespace.
5722 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5725 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5726 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5727 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5728 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5729 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5730 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5731 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5732 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5734 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5735 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5736 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5737 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5738 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5739 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5740 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5741 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5742 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5746 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5747 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5748 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5749 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5751 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5752 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5753 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5756 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5760 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5761 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5767 @node Filling In Threads
5768 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5771 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5772 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5773 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5774 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5775 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5776 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5777 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5778 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5779 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5780 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5781 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5782 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
5784 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5785 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5786 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5788 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5789 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5790 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5791 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5792 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5793 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5794 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
5795 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5796 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
5797 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
5798 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5799 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
5800 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5801 @code{nil} by default.
5803 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
5804 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
5805 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
5806 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the backend has to fetch
5807 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
5808 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
5809 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
5811 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
5812 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
5813 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
5818 @node More Threading
5819 @subsubsection More Threading
5822 @item gnus-show-threads
5823 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5824 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5825 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5826 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5827 slower and more awkward.
5829 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5830 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5831 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5834 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5835 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5836 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5837 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5838 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5839 threads are expunged.
5841 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5842 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5843 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5846 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5847 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5848 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5849 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
5850 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
5851 result in a new thread.
5853 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5854 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5855 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5858 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5859 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5860 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
5861 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
5862 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
5863 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
5864 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
5865 Setting this variable to an alternate value
5866 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
5867 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
5868 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
5873 @node Low-Level Threading
5874 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5878 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5879 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5880 Hook run before parsing any headers.
5882 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5883 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5884 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5885 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5886 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5887 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5888 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5889 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5890 meaningful. Here's one example:
5893 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5895 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5896 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5898 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5900 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5907 @node Thread Commands
5908 @subsection Thread Commands
5909 @cindex thread commands
5915 @kindex T k (Summary)
5916 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5917 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5918 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5919 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5920 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5925 @kindex T l (Summary)
5926 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5927 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5928 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5929 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5932 @kindex T i (Summary)
5933 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5934 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5935 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5938 @kindex T # (Summary)
5939 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5940 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5941 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5944 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5945 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5946 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5947 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5950 @kindex T T (Summary)
5951 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5952 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5955 @kindex T s (Summary)
5956 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5957 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5958 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5961 @kindex T h (Summary)
5962 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5963 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5966 @kindex T S (Summary)
5967 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5968 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5971 @kindex T H (Summary)
5972 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5973 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5976 @kindex T t (Summary)
5977 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5978 Re-thread the current article's thread
5979 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5980 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5983 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5985 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5986 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5990 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5991 understand the numeric prefix.
5996 @kindex T n (Summary)
5998 @kindex M-C-n (Summary)
6000 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6001 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6002 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6005 @kindex T p (Summary)
6007 @kindex M-C-p (Summary)
6009 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6010 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6011 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6014 @kindex T d (Summary)
6015 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6016 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6019 @kindex T u (Summary)
6020 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6021 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6024 @kindex T o (Summary)
6025 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6026 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6029 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6030 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6031 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6032 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6033 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6034 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6035 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6036 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6037 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6038 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6039 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6040 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6044 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6045 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6047 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6048 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6049 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6050 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6051 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6052 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6053 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6054 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6055 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6056 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6057 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6059 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6060 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6061 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6062 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6063 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6065 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6066 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6067 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6069 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6070 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6071 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6072 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6073 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6074 ascending article order.
6076 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6077 by number, you could do something like:
6080 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6081 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6082 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6083 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6086 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6087 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6088 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6089 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6090 which the articles arrived.
6092 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6096 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6098 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6099 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6102 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6103 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6104 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6105 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6108 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6109 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6110 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6111 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6112 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6113 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6114 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6115 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6116 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6117 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6118 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6119 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6120 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6122 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6126 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6127 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6128 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6133 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6134 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6135 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6136 @cindex article pre-fetch
6139 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6140 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6141 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6142 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6143 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6145 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6146 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6148 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6149 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6150 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6151 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6152 connection is blocked.
6154 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6155 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6156 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6157 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6159 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6160 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6161 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6162 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6165 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6168 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6169 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6170 happen automatically.
6172 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6173 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6174 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6175 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
6176 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
6177 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6178 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6180 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6181 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6182 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6183 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6184 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6185 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6186 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6187 data structure as the only parameter.
6189 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6192 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6193 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6194 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6195 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6198 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6201 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6202 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6203 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6205 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6206 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6207 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6208 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6212 Remove articles when they are read.
6215 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6218 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6220 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6221 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6222 @c from the next group.
6225 @node Article Caching
6226 @section Article Caching
6227 @cindex article caching
6230 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6231 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6232 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6233 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6234 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6236 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6238 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6239 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6240 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6241 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6242 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6243 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6244 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6245 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6247 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6248 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6249 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6250 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6251 as dormant, and don't worry.
6253 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6255 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6256 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6257 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6258 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6259 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6260 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6261 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6262 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6263 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6264 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6266 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6267 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6268 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6269 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6270 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6271 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6272 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6273 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6274 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6275 not then be downloaded by this command.
6277 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6278 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6279 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6280 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6281 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6282 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6284 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6285 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6286 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6287 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6288 variables, the group is not cached.
6290 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6291 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6292 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6293 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6294 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6295 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6296 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6297 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6298 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6302 @node Persistent Articles
6303 @section Persistent Articles
6304 @cindex persistent articles
6306 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6307 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6308 useful in my opinion.
6310 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6311 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6312 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6313 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6314 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6315 the expiry going on at the news server.
6317 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6318 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6319 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6325 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6326 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6329 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6330 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6331 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6332 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6336 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6338 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6339 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6340 interested in persistent articles:
6343 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6347 @node Article Backlog
6348 @section Article Backlog
6350 @cindex article backlog
6352 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6353 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6354 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6355 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6356 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6357 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6358 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6359 increase memory usage some.
6361 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6362 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6363 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6364 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6365 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6366 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6367 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6369 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6372 @node Saving Articles
6373 @section Saving Articles
6374 @cindex saving articles
6376 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6377 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6378 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6379 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6380 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6382 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6383 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6384 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6386 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6387 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6388 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6389 deleted before saving.
6395 @kindex O o (Summary)
6397 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6398 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6399 Save the current article using the default article saver
6400 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6403 @kindex O m (Summary)
6404 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6405 Save the current article in mail format
6406 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6409 @kindex O r (Summary)
6410 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6411 Save the current article in rmail format
6412 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6415 @kindex O f (Summary)
6416 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6417 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6418 Save the current article in plain file format
6419 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6422 @kindex O F (Summary)
6423 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6424 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6425 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6428 @kindex O b (Summary)
6429 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6430 Save the current article body in plain file format
6431 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6434 @kindex O h (Summary)
6435 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6436 Save the current article in mh folder format
6437 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6440 @kindex O v (Summary)
6441 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6442 Save the current article in a VM folder
6443 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6446 @kindex O p (Summary)
6447 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6448 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6449 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6452 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6453 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6454 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6455 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6456 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6457 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6458 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6459 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6460 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6461 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6462 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6463 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6467 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6468 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6469 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6470 functions below, or you can create your own.
6474 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6475 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6476 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6477 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6478 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6479 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6480 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6482 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6483 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6484 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
6485 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
6486 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6487 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6489 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
6490 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
6491 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
6492 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6493 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
6494 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6495 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6497 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6498 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6499 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
6500 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6501 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6503 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6504 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6505 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
6506 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
6507 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
6510 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
6511 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
6512 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
6513 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
6514 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
6516 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6517 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6518 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
6519 reader to use this setting.
6522 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
6523 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
6524 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
6525 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
6528 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
6529 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
6530 available functions that generate names:
6534 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
6535 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
6536 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6538 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
6539 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6540 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6542 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
6543 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
6544 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6546 @item gnus-plain-save-name
6547 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6548 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6550 @item gnus-sender-save-name
6551 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
6552 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
6555 @vindex gnus-split-methods
6556 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
6557 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
6558 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
6559 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
6563 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
6564 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
6565 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
6566 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
6569 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
6570 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
6571 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
6572 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
6573 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
6574 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
6575 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
6576 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
6577 called returns a string or a list of strings.
6579 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
6580 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
6581 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
6582 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
6584 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
6585 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
6586 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
6589 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
6590 lots of mail groups called things like
6591 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
6592 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
6593 following will do just that:
6596 (defun my-save-name (group)
6597 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
6598 (substring group (match-end 0))))
6600 (setq gnus-split-methods
6601 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
6606 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6607 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
6608 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
6609 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
6610 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
6611 all the files in the top level directory
6612 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
6613 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
6614 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
6615 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
6617 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
6618 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
6619 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
6620 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
6621 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
6624 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
6628 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
6629 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
6632 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
6633 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
6634 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
6635 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
6638 @node Decoding Articles
6639 @section Decoding Articles
6640 @cindex decoding articles
6642 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
6643 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
6646 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
6647 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
6648 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
6649 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
6650 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
6651 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
6655 @cindex article series
6656 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
6657 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
6658 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
6659 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
6660 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
6662 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
6663 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
6664 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
6666 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
6667 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
6668 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
6670 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
6671 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
6672 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
6675 @node Uuencoded Articles
6676 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
6678 @cindex uuencoded articles
6683 @kindex X u (Summary)
6684 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
6685 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
6686 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
6689 @kindex X U (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
6691 Uudecodes and saves the current series
6692 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6695 @kindex X v u (Summary)
6696 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
6697 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
6700 @kindex X v U (Summary)
6701 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
6702 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
6703 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
6707 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
6708 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
6709 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
6710 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
6711 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6713 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
6714 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
6715 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
6716 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
6719 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
6720 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
6721 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
6722 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
6723 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
6724 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
6728 @node Shell Archives
6729 @subsection Shell Archives
6731 @cindex shell archives
6732 @cindex shared articles
6734 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
6735 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
6736 some commands to deal with these:
6741 @kindex X s (Summary)
6742 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
6743 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6746 @kindex X S (Summary)
6747 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6748 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6751 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6752 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6753 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6756 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6757 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6758 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6759 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6763 @node PostScript Files
6764 @subsection PostScript Files
6770 @kindex X p (Summary)
6771 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6772 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6775 @kindex X P (Summary)
6776 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6777 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6778 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6781 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6782 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6783 View the current PostScript series
6784 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6787 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6788 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6789 View and save the current PostScript series
6790 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6795 @subsection Other Files
6799 @kindex X o (Summary)
6800 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6801 Save the current series
6802 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6805 @kindex X b (Summary)
6806 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6807 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6808 doesn't really work yet.
6812 @node Decoding Variables
6813 @subsection Decoding Variables
6815 Adjective, not verb.
6818 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6819 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6820 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6824 @node Rule Variables
6825 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6826 @cindex rule variables
6828 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6829 variables are of the form
6832 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6839 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6840 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6842 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6843 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6846 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6847 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6850 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6851 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6852 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6853 user and default view rules.
6855 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6856 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6857 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6862 @node Other Decode Variables
6863 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6866 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6868 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6869 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6870 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6871 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6872 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6876 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6877 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6880 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6881 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6882 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6885 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6886 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6887 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6888 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6889 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6892 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6893 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6894 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6896 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6897 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6898 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6899 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6900 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6903 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6904 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6905 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6907 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6908 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6909 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6910 looking for files to display.
6912 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6913 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6914 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6917 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6918 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6919 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6922 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6923 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6924 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6927 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6928 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6929 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6932 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6933 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6934 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6935 decoded articles as unread.
6937 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6938 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6939 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6940 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6942 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6943 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6944 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6946 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6947 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6949 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6950 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6951 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6952 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6954 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6955 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6956 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6957 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6958 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6959 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
6960 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6961 simply dropped them.
6966 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6967 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6971 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6972 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6973 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6974 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6975 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6976 for you when you post the article.
6978 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6979 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6980 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6981 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6983 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6984 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6985 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6986 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6987 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6988 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6989 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6991 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6992 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6993 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6994 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6995 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6996 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6997 Default is @code{t}.
7003 @subsection Viewing Files
7004 @cindex viewing files
7005 @cindex pseudo-articles
7007 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7008 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7009 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7010 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7011 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7012 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7013 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7015 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7016 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7017 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7018 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7020 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7021 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7022 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7024 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7025 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7026 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7027 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7028 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7030 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7031 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7032 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7033 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7034 a list of parameters to that command.
7036 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7037 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7038 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7040 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7041 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7042 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7045 @node Article Treatment
7046 @section Article Treatment
7048 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7049 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7050 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7051 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7052 these articles easier.
7055 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7056 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7057 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7058 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7059 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7060 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7061 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7062 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7066 @node Article Highlighting
7067 @subsection Article Highlighting
7068 @cindex highlighting
7070 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7071 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7076 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7077 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7078 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7079 Do much highlighting of the current article
7080 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7081 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7084 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7085 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7086 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7087 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7088 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7089 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7090 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7091 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7092 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7093 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7094 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7095 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7098 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7099 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7100 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7102 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7105 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7107 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7108 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7109 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7111 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7112 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7113 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7115 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7116 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7117 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7118 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7119 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7120 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7122 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7123 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7124 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7126 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7127 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7128 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7130 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7131 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7132 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7133 that it's a citation.
7135 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7136 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7137 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7139 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7140 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7141 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7143 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7144 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7145 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7146 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7152 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7153 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7154 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7155 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7156 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7157 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7158 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7159 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7164 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7167 @node Article Fontisizing
7168 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7170 @cindex article emphasis
7172 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7173 @kindex W e (Summary)
7174 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7175 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7176 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7177 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7179 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7180 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7181 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7182 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7183 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7184 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7185 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7186 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7190 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7191 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7192 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7201 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7202 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7203 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7204 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7205 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7206 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7207 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7208 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7209 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7210 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7211 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7212 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7213 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7215 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7216 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7217 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7221 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7224 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7226 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7227 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7228 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7229 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7231 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7234 @node Article Hiding
7235 @subsection Article Hiding
7236 @cindex article hiding
7238 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7239 too much cruft in most articles.
7244 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7245 @findex gnus-article-hide
7246 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7247 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7248 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7251 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7252 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7253 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7257 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7258 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7259 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7260 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7263 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7264 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7265 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7269 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7270 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7271 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7272 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7273 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7274 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7275 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7276 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7280 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7281 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7282 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7283 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7288 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7289 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7290 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7291 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7292 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7293 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7294 articles that have signatures in them do:
7296 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7298 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7300 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7301 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7303 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7306 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7311 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7312 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7313 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7314 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7317 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7318 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7321 @cindex stripping advertisements
7322 @cindex advertisements
7323 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7324 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7325 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7326 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7327 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7328 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7329 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7330 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7331 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7332 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7336 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7337 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7338 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7339 customizing the hiding:
7343 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7344 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7345 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7346 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7347 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7348 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7349 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7354 Starting point of the hidden text.
7356 Ending point of the hidden text.
7358 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7360 Number of lines of hidden text.
7363 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7364 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7365 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7366 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7367 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7372 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7373 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7375 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7376 following two variables:
7379 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7380 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7381 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7382 50), hide the cited text.
7384 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7385 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7386 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7391 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7392 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7393 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7394 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7395 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7396 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7400 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7401 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7402 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7404 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7405 citation customization.
7407 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7411 @node Article Washing
7412 @subsection Article Washing
7414 @cindex article washing
7416 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7417 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7419 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7420 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7423 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7424 articles by default.
7429 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7430 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7434 @kindex W l (Summary)
7435 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7436 Remove page breaks from the current article
7437 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7441 @kindex W r (Summary)
7442 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7443 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7444 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7445 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7446 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7447 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7449 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7450 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7451 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7452 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7456 @kindex W t (Summary)
7458 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7459 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7460 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7463 @kindex W v (Summary)
7464 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7465 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7466 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7469 @kindex W o (Summary)
7470 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
7471 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
7474 @kindex W d (Summary)
7475 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
7476 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
7478 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
7480 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
7481 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
7482 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
7483 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
7486 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
7487 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
7488 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
7489 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
7492 @kindex W w (Summary)
7493 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
7494 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
7496 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
7500 @kindex W Q (Summary)
7501 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
7502 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
7505 @kindex W C (Summary)
7506 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
7507 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
7508 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
7511 @kindex W c (Summary)
7512 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
7513 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
7514 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
7515 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
7516 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
7519 @kindex W q (Summary)
7520 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
7521 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
7522 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
7523 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
7524 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
7525 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
7526 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
7527 header that says that this encoding has been done.
7530 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
7531 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
7532 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
7533 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
7534 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
7535 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
7536 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
7540 @kindex W Z (Summary)
7541 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
7542 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
7543 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
7544 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
7547 @kindex W h (Summary)
7548 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
7549 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
7550 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
7551 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
7555 @kindex W f (Summary)
7557 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
7558 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
7559 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
7560 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
7567 Look for and display any X-Face headers
7568 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
7569 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
7570 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
7571 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
7572 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
7573 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
7574 The default action under Emacs is to fork off the @code{display}
7575 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For the
7576 @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
7577 like `compface' or `faces-xface' on a GNU/Linux system.}
7578 to view the face. Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image
7579 support, the default action is to display the face before the
7580 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
7581 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
7582 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
7583 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
7584 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
7585 like @code{netpbm} or @code{libgr-progs}.}) If you
7586 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
7590 @kindex W b (Summary)
7591 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
7592 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
7593 @xref{Article Buttons}.
7596 @kindex W B (Summary)
7597 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
7598 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
7599 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
7602 @kindex W W H (Summary)
7603 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
7604 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
7605 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
7608 @kindex W E l (Summary)
7609 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
7610 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
7611 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
7614 @kindex W E m (Summary)
7615 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
7616 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
7617 lines with a single empty line.
7618 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
7621 @kindex W E t (Summary)
7622 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
7623 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
7624 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
7627 @kindex W E a (Summary)
7628 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
7629 Do all the three commands above
7630 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
7633 @kindex W E A (Summary)
7634 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
7635 Remove all blank lines
7636 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
7639 @kindex W E s (Summary)
7640 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
7641 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
7642 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
7645 @kindex W E e (Summary)
7646 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
7647 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
7648 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
7652 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
7655 @node Article Buttons
7656 @subsection Article Buttons
7659 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
7660 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
7661 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
7662 button on these references.
7664 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
7665 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
7666 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
7671 @item gnus-button-alist
7672 @vindex gnus-button-alist
7673 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
7676 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7682 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
7683 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
7684 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
7687 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
7688 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
7689 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
7692 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
7693 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
7694 avoid false matches.
7697 This function will be called when you click on this button.
7700 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
7701 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
7705 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
7708 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
7711 @item gnus-header-button-alist
7712 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
7713 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
7714 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
7715 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
7718 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7721 @var{header} is a regular expression.
7723 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
7724 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
7725 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
7726 default values of the variables above.
7728 @item gnus-article-button-face
7729 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
7730 Face used on buttons.
7732 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
7733 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
7734 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
7738 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
7742 @subsection Article Date
7744 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
7745 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
7746 when the article was sent.
7751 @kindex W T u (Summary)
7752 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
7753 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
7754 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
7757 @kindex W T i (Summary)
7758 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
7760 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
7761 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
7764 @kindex W T l (Summary)
7765 @findex gnus-article-date-local
7766 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
7769 @kindex W T p (Summary)
7770 @findex gnus-article-date-english
7771 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
7772 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
7775 @kindex W T s (Summary)
7776 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
7777 @findex gnus-article-date-user
7778 @findex format-time-string
7779 Display the date using a user-defined format
7780 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
7781 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
7782 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
7783 for a list of possible format specs.
7786 @kindex W T e (Summary)
7787 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
7788 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
7789 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
7790 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
7791 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
7794 X-Sent: 9 years, 6 weeks, 4 days, 9 hours, 3 minutes, 28 seconds ago
7797 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
7798 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
7801 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
7802 into wonderful absurdities.
7804 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
7807 (gnus-start-date-timer)
7810 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
7811 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
7815 @kindex W T o (Summary)
7816 @findex gnus-article-date-original
7817 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
7818 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
7819 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
7820 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
7821 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
7825 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
7826 preferred format automatically.
7829 @node Article Signature
7830 @subsection Article Signature
7832 @cindex article signature
7834 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7835 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
7836 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
7837 that says what is to be considered a signature is
7838 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
7839 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
7840 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7841 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7842 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7845 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7846 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7847 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7848 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7849 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7850 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7851 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7852 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7855 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7858 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7859 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7860 signature when displaying articles.
7864 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7867 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7870 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7871 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7873 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7874 in question is not a signature.
7877 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7878 listed above. Here's an example:
7881 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7882 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7885 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7886 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7887 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7888 signature after all.
7891 @node Article Miscellania
7892 @subsection Article Miscellania
7896 @kindex A t (Summary)
7897 @findex gnus-article-babel
7898 Translate the article from one language to another
7899 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
7905 @section @sc{mime} Commands
7906 @cindex MIME decoding
7908 @cindex viewing attachments
7910 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
7911 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
7917 @kindex K v (Summary)
7918 View the @sc{mime} part.
7921 @kindex K o (Summary)
7922 Save the @sc{mime} part.
7925 @kindex K c (Summary)
7926 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
7929 @kindex K e (Summary)
7930 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
7933 @kindex K i (Summary)
7934 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
7937 @kindex K | (Summary)
7938 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
7941 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
7946 @kindex K b (Summary)
7947 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
7948 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
7952 @kindex K m (Summary)
7953 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
7954 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
7955 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
7956 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
7957 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
7960 @kindex X m (Summary)
7961 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
7962 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
7963 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
7964 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7967 @kindex M-t (Summary)
7968 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
7969 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
7970 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
7973 @kindex W M w (Summary)
7974 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
7975 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
7978 @kindex W M c (Summary)
7979 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
7980 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
7982 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
7983 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
7984 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
7985 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
7986 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
7987 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
7990 @kindex W M v (Summary)
7991 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
7992 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7999 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8000 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8001 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8002 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8005 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8008 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8012 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8013 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8014 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8015 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8016 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
8018 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8019 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8020 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8021 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8022 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8023 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8024 save all jpegs into some directory).
8026 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8029 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8030 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8032 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8033 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8034 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8035 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8036 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8039 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8040 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8041 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8050 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8051 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8052 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8053 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8054 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8055 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8056 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8058 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8059 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8060 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match full group names) and
8061 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8063 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8064 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
8065 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8066 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8067 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
8068 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8069 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
8070 something some agents insist on having in there.
8072 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8073 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8074 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8075 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8076 quoted-printable header encoding.
8078 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8079 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8080 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8084 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8087 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8088 means encode all charsets),
8090 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8091 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8092 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8099 @cindex coding system aliases
8100 @cindex preferred charset
8102 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8104 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8105 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8108 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8109 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8112 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8113 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8115 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8118 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8121 This will almost do the right thing.
8123 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8127 (codepage-setup 1251)
8128 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8132 @node Article Commands
8133 @section Article Commands
8140 @kindex A P (Summary)
8141 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8142 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8143 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8144 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
8145 run just before printing the buffer.
8150 @node Summary Sorting
8151 @section Summary Sorting
8152 @cindex summary sorting
8154 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8155 can't really see why you'd want that.
8160 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8161 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8162 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8165 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8166 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8167 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8170 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8171 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8172 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8175 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8176 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8177 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8180 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8181 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8182 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8185 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8186 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8187 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8190 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8191 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8192 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8195 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8196 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8197 Sort using the default sorting method
8198 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8201 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8202 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8203 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8204 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8205 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8209 @node Finding the Parent
8210 @section Finding the Parent
8211 @cindex parent articles
8212 @cindex referring articles
8217 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8218 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8219 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8220 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8221 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8222 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8223 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8224 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8225 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8227 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8228 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8229 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8230 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8231 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8235 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8236 @kindex A R (Summary)
8237 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8238 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8241 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8242 @kindex A T (Summary)
8243 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8244 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8245 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8246 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8247 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8248 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8249 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8251 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8252 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8253 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8254 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8255 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8256 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8259 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8260 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8262 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8263 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8264 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8265 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8266 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8267 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8268 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8271 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8272 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8273 by giving this command a prefix.
8275 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8276 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
8277 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8278 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8279 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8280 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8283 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8284 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8285 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8288 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8289 then ask Deja if that fails:
8292 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8294 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8297 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
8298 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
8299 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8300 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
8301 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
8302 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
8305 @node Alternative Approaches
8306 @section Alternative Approaches
8308 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8309 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8312 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8313 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8318 @subsection Pick and Read
8319 @cindex pick and read
8321 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8322 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8323 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8324 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8326 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8327 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8328 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8329 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8330 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8331 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8333 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8338 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8339 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8340 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8341 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8342 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8343 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8344 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8345 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8348 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
8349 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
8350 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
8351 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
8355 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
8356 Unpick the thread or article
8357 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8358 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
8359 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
8360 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
8361 the thread or article at that line.
8365 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
8366 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
8367 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
8368 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
8369 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
8370 will still be visible when you are reading.
8374 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
8375 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
8376 which is mapped to the same function
8377 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
8379 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
8382 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
8385 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
8386 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
8388 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
8389 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
8390 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
8392 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
8393 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
8394 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
8395 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
8396 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
8397 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
8398 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
8402 @subsection Binary Groups
8403 @cindex binary groups
8405 @findex gnus-binary-mode
8406 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
8407 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
8408 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
8409 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
8410 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
8411 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
8414 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
8415 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
8416 command, when you have turned on this mode
8417 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
8419 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
8420 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
8424 @section Tree Display
8427 @vindex gnus-use-trees
8428 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
8429 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
8430 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
8433 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
8436 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
8437 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
8438 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
8440 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8441 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8442 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
8443 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
8444 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
8446 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
8447 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
8448 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
8449 default is @code{modeline}.
8451 @item gnus-tree-line-format
8452 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
8453 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
8454 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
8455 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
8456 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
8457 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
8463 The name of the poster.
8465 The @code{From} header.
8467 The number of the article.
8469 The opening bracket.
8471 The closing bracket.
8476 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
8478 Variables related to the display are:
8481 @item gnus-tree-brackets
8482 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
8483 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
8484 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
8485 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
8486 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
8488 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8489 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8490 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
8491 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
8495 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
8496 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
8497 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
8498 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
8499 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
8500 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
8501 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
8502 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
8503 other windows displayed next to it.
8505 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
8506 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
8507 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8508 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
8509 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
8510 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
8511 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
8515 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
8518 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
8528 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
8532 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
8533 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
8535 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
8537 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
8542 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
8543 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
8544 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
8547 (setq gnus-use-trees t
8548 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8549 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
8550 (gnus-add-configuration
8554 (summary 0.75 point)
8559 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
8562 @node Mail Group Commands
8563 @section Mail Group Commands
8564 @cindex mail group commands
8566 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
8567 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
8569 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
8570 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8575 @kindex B e (Summary)
8576 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
8577 Expire all expirable articles in the group
8578 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
8581 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
8582 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
8583 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
8584 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
8585 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
8586 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
8589 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
8590 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
8591 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
8592 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
8593 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
8594 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
8597 @kindex B m (Summary)
8599 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
8600 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
8601 Move the article from one mail group to another
8602 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8603 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8606 @kindex B c (Summary)
8608 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
8609 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
8610 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
8611 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8612 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8615 @kindex B B (Summary)
8616 @cindex crosspost mail
8617 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
8618 Crosspost the current article to some other group
8619 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
8620 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
8621 be properly updated.
8624 @kindex B i (Summary)
8625 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
8626 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
8627 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
8628 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
8631 @kindex B r (Summary)
8632 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
8633 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
8634 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
8635 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
8636 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
8637 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
8638 (which is the default).
8642 @kindex B w (Summary)
8644 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
8645 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
8646 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
8647 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
8648 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
8649 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
8652 @kindex B q (Summary)
8653 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
8654 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
8655 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
8656 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
8659 @kindex B t (Summary)
8660 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
8661 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
8662 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
8665 @kindex B p (Summary)
8666 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
8667 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
8668 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
8669 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
8670 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
8671 article from your news server (or rather, from
8672 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
8673 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
8674 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
8675 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
8676 just not have arrived yet.
8680 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
8681 @cindex moving articles
8682 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
8683 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
8684 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
8685 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
8686 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
8687 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
8688 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
8691 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
8692 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
8693 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
8694 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
8698 @node Various Summary Stuff
8699 @section Various Summary Stuff
8702 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
8703 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
8704 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
8705 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
8709 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
8710 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
8711 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
8713 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
8714 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
8715 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
8716 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
8717 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
8718 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
8721 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8722 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8723 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
8724 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
8725 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
8727 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8728 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8729 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
8732 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8733 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8734 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
8735 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
8736 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
8737 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
8738 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
8739 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
8740 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
8741 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
8743 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8744 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8745 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
8746 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
8747 list of articles to be selected.
8749 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
8750 the list in one particular group:
8753 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
8754 (if (string= group "some.group")
8755 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
8762 @node Summary Group Information
8763 @subsection Summary Group Information
8768 @kindex H f (Summary)
8769 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
8770 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
8771 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
8772 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
8773 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
8774 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
8775 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
8776 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
8777 be used for fetching the file.
8780 @kindex H d (Summary)
8781 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
8782 Give a brief description of the current group
8783 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
8784 rereading the description from the server.
8787 @kindex H h (Summary)
8788 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
8789 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
8790 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
8793 @kindex H i (Summary)
8794 @findex gnus-info-find-node
8795 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
8799 @node Searching for Articles
8800 @subsection Searching for Articles
8805 @kindex M-s (Summary)
8806 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
8807 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
8808 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
8811 @kindex M-r (Summary)
8812 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
8813 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
8814 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
8818 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
8819 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
8820 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
8821 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
8822 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
8823 search backward instead.
8825 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
8826 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
8829 @kindex M-& (Summary)
8830 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
8831 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
8832 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
8835 @node Summary Generation Commands
8836 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
8841 @kindex Y g (Summary)
8842 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
8843 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
8846 @kindex Y c (Summary)
8847 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
8848 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
8849 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
8854 @node Really Various Summary Commands
8855 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
8861 @kindex C-d (Summary)
8862 @kindex A D (Summary)
8863 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
8864 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
8865 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
8866 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
8867 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
8868 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
8869 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
8870 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
8874 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
8875 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
8876 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
8877 several documents into one biiig group
8878 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
8879 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
8880 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
8881 command understands the process/prefix convention
8882 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8885 @kindex C-t (Summary)
8886 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
8887 Toggle truncation of summary lines
8888 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
8889 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
8890 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
8894 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
8895 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
8896 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
8899 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
8900 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
8901 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8902 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
8905 @kindex M-C-a (Summary)
8906 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
8907 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
8908 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
8913 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
8914 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
8915 @cindex summary exit
8916 @cindex exiting groups
8918 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
8919 group and return you to the group buffer.
8925 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
8927 @findex gnus-summary-exit
8928 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
8929 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
8930 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
8931 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
8932 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
8933 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
8934 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
8935 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
8936 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
8937 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
8941 @kindex Z E (Summary)
8943 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
8944 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
8945 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
8949 @kindex Z c (Summary)
8951 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
8952 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
8953 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
8954 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
8957 @kindex Z C (Summary)
8958 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
8959 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
8960 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
8963 @kindex Z n (Summary)
8964 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
8965 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
8966 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
8969 @kindex Z R (Summary)
8970 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
8971 Exit this group, and then enter it again
8972 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
8973 all articles, both read and unread.
8977 @kindex Z G (Summary)
8978 @kindex M-g (Summary)
8979 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
8980 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
8981 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
8982 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
8983 articles, both read and unread.
8986 @kindex Z N (Summary)
8987 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
8988 Exit the group and go to the next group
8989 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
8992 @kindex Z P (Summary)
8993 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
8994 Exit the group and go to the previous group
8995 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
8998 @kindex Z s (Summary)
8999 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9000 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9001 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9002 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9003 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9006 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9007 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9008 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9009 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9011 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9012 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9013 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9014 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9015 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9016 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9017 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9018 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9019 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9020 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9021 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9022 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9024 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9026 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9027 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9028 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9029 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9030 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9031 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9032 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9033 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9034 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9037 @node Crosspost Handling
9038 @section Crosspost Handling
9042 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9043 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9044 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9045 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9046 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9047 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9050 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9051 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9052 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9053 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9054 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9056 @cindex cross-posting
9059 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9060 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9061 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9062 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9063 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9064 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9065 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9066 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9067 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9068 the cross reference mechanism.
9070 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9071 @cindex overview.fmt
9072 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9073 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9074 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9075 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9076 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9077 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9080 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9081 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9082 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9087 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9090 @node Duplicate Suppression
9091 @section Duplicate Suppression
9093 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9094 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9095 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9096 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9101 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9102 is evil and not very common.
9105 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9106 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9109 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9110 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9113 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9116 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9117 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9119 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9120 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9121 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9122 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9123 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9124 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9125 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9128 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9129 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9130 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9131 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9132 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9136 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9137 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9138 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9140 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9141 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9142 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9143 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9144 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9145 session are suppressed.
9147 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9148 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9149 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9150 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9152 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9153 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9154 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9155 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9158 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9159 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9160 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9161 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9162 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9163 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9164 to you to figure out, I think.
9169 Gnus is able to verify PGP or S/MIME signed messages or decrypt PGP
9174 To verify or decrypt PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or
9180 @item mm-verify-option
9181 @vindex mm-verify-option
9182 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9183 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9184 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9186 @item mm-decrypt-option
9187 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9188 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9189 @code{always}, always decrypt @code{known}, only decrypt known
9190 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9194 @node Article Buffer
9195 @chapter Article Buffer
9196 @cindex article buffer
9198 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9199 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9200 tell Gnus otherwise.
9203 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9204 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9205 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9206 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9207 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9211 @node Hiding Headers
9212 @section Hiding Headers
9213 @cindex hiding headers
9214 @cindex deleting headers
9216 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9217 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9219 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9220 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9221 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9222 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9223 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9224 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9225 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9226 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9227 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9229 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9233 @item gnus-visible-headers
9234 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9235 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9236 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9237 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9239 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9240 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9243 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9246 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9249 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9250 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9251 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9252 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9253 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9254 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9256 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9257 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9260 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9263 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9266 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
9267 variable will have no effect.
9271 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
9272 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
9273 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
9274 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
9275 the headers are to be displayed.
9277 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
9278 and then the subject, you might say something like:
9281 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
9284 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
9285 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
9287 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
9288 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
9289 You can hide further boring headers by setting
9290 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
9291 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
9292 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
9293 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
9296 These conditions are:
9299 Remove all empty headers.
9301 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
9302 @code{Newsgroups} header.
9304 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
9307 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
9310 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
9311 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
9313 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
9316 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
9318 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
9321 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
9324 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
9325 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
9328 This is also the default value for this variable.
9332 @section Using @sc{mime}
9335 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
9336 while people stand around yawning.
9338 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
9339 while all newsreaders die of fear.
9341 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
9342 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
9343 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
9345 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
9346 @findex gnus-display-mime
9347 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
9348 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
9349 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
9350 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
9352 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
9356 @findex gnus-article-press-button
9358 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
9359 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
9360 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
9362 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
9363 @item M-RET (Article)
9365 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9366 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
9368 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
9370 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
9371 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
9373 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
9375 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
9376 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
9378 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
9380 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
9381 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
9383 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
9385 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
9387 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
9389 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
9390 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
9391 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
9392 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
9393 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
9396 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
9398 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
9399 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
9403 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
9404 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
9407 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
9408 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
9409 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
9410 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
9411 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
9412 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
9413 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
9414 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
9415 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
9417 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
9419 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
9422 @node Customizing Articles
9423 @section Customizing Articles
9424 @cindex article customization
9426 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
9427 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
9428 called automatically when you select the articles.
9430 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
9431 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
9432 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
9433 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
9435 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
9436 for sensible values.
9440 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
9443 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
9446 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
9449 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
9452 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
9456 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
9457 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
9458 regexps in the list.
9461 A list where the first element is not a string:
9463 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
9464 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
9465 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
9469 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
9474 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
9475 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
9476 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
9477 considered to contain just a single part.
9479 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
9480 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
9481 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
9482 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
9483 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
9484 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
9485 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
9487 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
9488 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
9489 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
9490 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
9493 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last)
9494 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
9495 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
9496 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
9497 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
9498 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
9499 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
9500 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
9501 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
9502 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
9503 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
9504 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
9505 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
9506 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
9507 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
9508 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
9509 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
9510 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
9511 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
9512 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
9513 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
9514 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
9515 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
9516 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
9517 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
9518 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
9519 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
9520 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
9521 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
9522 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
9523 @item gnus-treat-display-picons (head)
9524 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
9525 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
9526 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
9527 @item gnus-treat-translate
9530 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
9531 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
9532 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
9533 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
9534 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
9538 @node Article Keymap
9539 @section Article Keymap
9541 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
9542 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
9543 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
9544 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
9547 A few additional keystrokes are available:
9552 @kindex SPACE (Article)
9553 @findex gnus-article-next-page
9554 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
9557 @kindex DEL (Article)
9558 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
9559 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
9562 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
9563 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
9564 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
9565 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
9566 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
9569 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
9570 @findex gnus-article-mail
9571 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
9572 given a prefix, include the mail.
9576 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
9577 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
9578 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
9582 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
9583 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
9584 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
9587 @kindex TAB (Article)
9588 @findex gnus-article-next-button
9589 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
9590 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
9593 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
9594 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
9595 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
9601 @section Misc Article
9605 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
9606 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
9607 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
9608 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
9611 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
9612 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
9614 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
9615 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
9617 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
9618 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
9619 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
9620 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
9621 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
9622 the contents of the article buffer.
9624 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
9625 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
9626 Hook called in article mode buffers.
9628 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9629 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9630 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
9631 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
9633 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
9634 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
9635 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
9636 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
9637 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
9642 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
9643 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
9646 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
9649 @vindex gnus-break-pages
9651 @item gnus-break-pages
9652 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
9653 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
9654 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
9655 paging will not be done.
9657 @item gnus-page-delimiter
9658 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
9659 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
9664 @node Composing Messages
9665 @chapter Composing Messages
9666 @cindex composing messages
9669 @cindex sending mail
9675 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
9676 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
9677 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
9678 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The
9679 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
9680 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
9683 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
9684 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
9685 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
9686 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
9687 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
9688 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
9689 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
9690 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
9693 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
9694 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
9700 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
9703 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
9704 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
9705 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
9706 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
9708 @item gnus-add-to-list
9709 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
9710 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
9711 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
9716 @node Posting Server
9717 @section Posting Server
9719 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
9720 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
9722 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
9724 @vindex gnus-post-method
9726 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
9727 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
9728 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
9729 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
9730 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
9731 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
9732 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
9735 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
9738 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
9739 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
9740 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
9741 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behaviour, for posting.
9743 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
9744 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
9746 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
9747 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
9750 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
9751 you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
9755 @section Mail and Post
9757 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
9761 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
9762 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
9763 @cindex mailing lists
9765 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
9766 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
9767 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
9768 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
9769 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
9770 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
9771 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
9772 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
9773 still a pain, though.
9777 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
9778 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
9779 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
9782 @findex ispell-message
9784 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
9787 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
9788 you're in, you could say something like the following:
9791 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
9795 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
9796 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
9798 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
9801 Modify to suit your needs.
9804 @node Archived Messages
9805 @section Archived Messages
9806 @cindex archived messages
9807 @cindex sent messages
9809 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
9810 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
9811 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
9812 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
9815 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
9816 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
9817 use to store sent messages. The default is:
9821 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
9822 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
9823 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
9824 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
9827 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
9828 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
9829 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
9830 directory chosen, you could say something like:
9833 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
9834 '(nnfolder "archive"
9835 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
9836 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
9837 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
9840 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
9842 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
9843 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
9844 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
9846 This variable can be used to do the following:
9850 Messages will be saved in that group.
9852 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
9853 message will not be stored in the select method given by
9854 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
9855 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
9856 has the default value shown above. Then setting
9857 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
9858 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
9859 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
9861 @item a list of strings
9862 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
9863 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
9864 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
9866 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
9871 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
9873 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
9876 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
9878 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
9881 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
9883 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9884 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
9885 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
9886 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
9891 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9892 '((if (message-news-p)
9897 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
9898 messages in one file per month:
9901 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
9902 '((if (message-news-p)
9904 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
9907 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
9908 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
9910 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
9911 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
9912 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
9913 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
9914 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
9915 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
9916 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
9917 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
9918 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
9919 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
9921 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
9922 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
9923 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
9924 this will disable archiving.
9927 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
9928 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
9929 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
9930 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
9931 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
9934 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
9935 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
9936 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
9939 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
9940 but the latter is the preferred method.
9942 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
9943 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
9944 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
9949 @node Posting Styles
9950 @section Posting Styles
9951 @cindex posting styles
9954 All them variables, they make my head swim.
9956 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
9957 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
9958 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
9961 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
9962 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
9963 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
9964 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
9965 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
9970 (signature "Peace and happiness")
9971 (organization "What me?"))
9973 (signature "Death to everybody"))
9974 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
9975 (organization "Emacs is it")))
9978 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
9979 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
9980 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
9981 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
9982 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
9983 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
9984 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
9985 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
9987 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
9988 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
9989 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
9990 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
9991 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
9992 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
9993 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
9994 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
9995 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
9997 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
9998 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
9999 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10000 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
10001 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
10002 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
10003 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
10004 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
10005 result is thrown away.
10007 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10008 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10009 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10010 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10011 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10012 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
10014 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10015 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10016 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10018 @findex message-mail-p
10019 @findex message-news-p
10021 So here's a new example:
10024 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10026 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10028 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10029 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10031 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10032 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10033 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10035 (signature my-news-signature))
10036 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10037 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10038 ((posting-from-work-p)
10039 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10040 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10041 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10042 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10044 (From (save-excursion
10045 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10046 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10048 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10051 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10052 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10053 if you fill many roles.
10060 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10061 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10062 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10063 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10064 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10066 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10067 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10068 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10069 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10070 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10074 @vindex nndraft-directory
10075 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10076 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10077 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10078 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10079 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10080 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10082 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10083 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10086 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10087 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10088 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10089 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10090 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10091 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10092 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10093 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10094 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10095 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10096 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10097 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10098 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10099 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10101 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10102 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10103 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10105 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10106 @kindex D e (Draft)
10107 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10108 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10109 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10111 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10114 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10115 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10116 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10117 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10118 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10119 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10120 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10123 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10124 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10125 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10128 @node Rejected Articles
10129 @section Rejected Articles
10130 @cindex rejected articles
10132 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10133 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
10134 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
10135 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
10137 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
10138 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
10139 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
10140 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
10141 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
10143 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
10144 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
10145 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
10151 Gnus has an ALPHA support to GPG that's provided by @file{gpg.el}. See
10152 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} to enable Gnus to
10153 verify or decrypt messages accordingly.
10155 To use this correctly with GPG, you'll need the following lisp code in your
10156 @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10160 (setq mml2015-use 'gpg)
10161 (setq gpg-temp-directory (expand-file-name "~/.gnupg/tmp"))
10164 The @code{gpg-temp-directory} need to point to a directory with permissions set
10165 to 700, for your own safety.
10167 If you want to benefit of PGP2.6 compatibility, you might create a script named
10168 @file{gpg-2comp} with these instructions:
10172 exec gpg --rfc1991 "$@@"
10175 If you don't want to use such compatibility, you can add the following line to
10176 your @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10179 (setq gpg-command-default-alist (quote ((gpg . "gpg") (gpg-2comp . "gpg"))))
10182 To sign or encrypt your message you may choose to use the MML Security
10183 menu or @kbd{C-c C-m s p} to sign your message using PGP/MIME, @kbd{C-c
10184 C-m s s} to sign your message using S/MIME. There's also @kbd{C-c C-m c
10185 p} to encrypt your message with PGP/MIME and @kbd{C-c C-m c s} to
10186 encrypt using S/MIME.
10188 Gnus will ask for your passphrase and then it will send your message, if
10189 you've typed it correctly.
10191 @node Select Methods
10192 @chapter Select Methods
10193 @cindex foreign groups
10194 @cindex select methods
10196 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
10197 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
10198 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
10199 personal mail group.
10201 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
10202 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
10203 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
10204 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
10205 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
10206 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
10208 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
10209 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
10211 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
10214 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
10215 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
10216 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
10217 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
10218 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
10220 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
10223 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
10224 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
10225 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
10226 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
10227 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
10228 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
10229 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
10233 @node Server Buffer
10234 @section Server Buffer
10236 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
10237 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
10238 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
10239 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
10240 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
10241 backend represents a virtual server.
10243 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
10244 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
10245 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
10246 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
10248 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
10249 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
10250 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
10251 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
10252 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
10253 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
10254 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
10256 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
10257 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
10260 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
10261 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
10262 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
10263 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
10264 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
10265 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
10266 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
10269 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
10270 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
10273 @node Server Buffer Format
10274 @subsection Server Buffer Format
10275 @cindex server buffer format
10277 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
10278 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
10279 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
10280 variable, with some simple extensions:
10285 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
10288 The name of this server.
10291 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
10294 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
10297 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
10298 The mode line can also be customized by using the
10299 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
10300 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
10310 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
10313 @node Server Commands
10314 @subsection Server Commands
10315 @cindex server commands
10321 @findex gnus-server-add-server
10322 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
10326 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
10327 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
10330 @kindex SPACE (Server)
10331 @findex gnus-server-read-server
10332 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
10336 @findex gnus-server-exit
10337 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
10341 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
10342 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
10346 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
10347 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
10351 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
10352 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
10356 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
10357 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
10361 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
10362 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
10363 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
10368 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
10369 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
10370 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
10371 a mail backend that has gotten out of sync.
10376 @node Example Methods
10377 @subsection Example Methods
10379 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
10382 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
10385 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
10391 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
10392 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
10395 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
10396 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
10398 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
10399 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
10403 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
10406 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
10407 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
10409 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
10410 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
10411 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
10415 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
10418 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
10421 Here's the method for a public spool:
10425 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
10426 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
10432 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
10433 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
10434 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
10435 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
10436 should probably look something like this:
10440 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
10441 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10442 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10443 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10444 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
10447 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
10448 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
10449 server that would look something like this:
10453 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
10454 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
10455 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
10456 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
10457 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
10458 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
10461 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
10462 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
10463 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
10464 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
10467 @node Creating a Virtual Server
10468 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
10470 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
10471 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
10473 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
10474 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
10475 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
10477 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
10479 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
10480 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
10481 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
10482 will contain the following:
10492 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
10493 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
10494 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
10497 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
10498 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
10499 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
10502 @node Server Variables
10503 @subsection Server Variables
10505 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
10506 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
10507 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
10508 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
10509 won't change the "derived" variables.
10511 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
10512 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
10513 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
10514 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
10515 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
10516 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
10517 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
10518 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
10519 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
10523 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
10524 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
10525 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
10529 @node Servers and Methods
10530 @subsection Servers and Methods
10532 Wherever you would normally use a select method
10533 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
10534 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
10535 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
10539 @node Unavailable Servers
10540 @subsection Unavailable Servers
10542 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
10543 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
10544 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
10545 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
10546 actually the case or not.
10548 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
10549 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
10550 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
10551 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
10552 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
10553 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
10554 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
10555 it will regard that server as ``down''.
10557 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
10558 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
10560 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
10561 with the following commands:
10567 @findex gnus-server-open-server
10568 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
10569 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
10573 @findex gnus-server-close-server
10574 Close the connection (if any) to the server
10575 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
10579 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
10580 Mark the current server as unreachable
10581 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
10584 @kindex M-o (Server)
10585 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
10586 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
10587 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
10590 @kindex M-c (Server)
10591 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
10592 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
10593 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
10597 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
10598 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
10599 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
10605 @section Getting News
10606 @cindex reading news
10607 @cindex news backends
10609 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
10610 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
10611 or it can read from a local spool.
10614 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
10615 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
10620 @subsection @sc{nntp}
10623 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
10624 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
10625 server as the, uhm, address.
10627 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
10628 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
10629 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
10630 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10632 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
10633 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
10634 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
10636 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
10641 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
10642 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
10643 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
10645 @cindex authentification
10646 @cindex nntp authentification
10647 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10648 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
10649 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
10650 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
10651 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
10652 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
10653 present in this hook.
10655 @item nntp-authinfo-function
10656 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
10657 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10658 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
10659 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
10660 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
10661 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
10662 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
10663 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
10664 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
10665 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
10666 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
10670 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
10673 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
10675 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
10676 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
10677 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
10678 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
10679 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
10680 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
10681 @samp{force} is explained below.
10685 Here's an example file:
10688 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
10689 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
10692 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
10693 have to be first, for instance.
10695 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
10696 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
10697 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
10698 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
10699 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
10700 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
10701 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
10703 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
10704 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
10710 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
10711 previously mentioned.
10713 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
10715 @item nntp-server-action-alist
10716 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
10717 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
10718 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
10719 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
10722 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
10723 '(("innd" (ding))))
10726 You probably don't want to do that, though.
10728 The default value is
10731 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
10732 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
10735 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
10736 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
10738 @item nntp-maximum-request
10739 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
10740 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
10741 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
10742 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
10743 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
10744 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
10745 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
10747 @item nntp-connection-timeout
10748 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
10749 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
10750 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
10751 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
10752 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
10753 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
10754 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
10755 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
10756 no timeouts are done.
10758 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
10759 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
10760 @c @cindex PPP connections
10761 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
10762 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
10763 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
10764 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
10765 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
10766 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
10767 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
10768 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
10769 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
10770 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
10772 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
10773 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
10774 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
10775 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
10776 @c described above.
10778 @item nntp-server-hook
10779 @vindex nntp-server-hook
10780 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
10783 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
10784 @findex nntp-open-telnet
10785 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
10786 @item nntp-open-connection-function
10787 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
10788 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
10789 functions are supplied:
10792 @item nntp-open-network-stream
10793 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
10796 @item nntp-open-rlogin
10797 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
10798 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
10801 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
10805 @item nntp-rlogin-program
10806 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
10807 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
10808 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
10810 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
10811 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
10812 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
10814 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10815 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10816 User name on the remote system.
10820 @item nntp-open-telnet
10821 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
10822 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
10824 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
10827 @item nntp-telnet-command
10828 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
10829 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
10831 @item nntp-telnet-switches
10832 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
10833 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
10835 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
10836 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
10837 User name for log in on the remote system.
10839 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
10840 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
10841 Password to use when logging in.
10843 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
10844 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
10845 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
10848 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10849 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
10850 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
10851 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
10853 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10854 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
10855 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
10856 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
10857 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
10861 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
10862 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
10863 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
10864 you must have SSLay installed
10865 (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
10866 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
10867 define a server as follows:
10870 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
10872 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
10874 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
10875 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
10876 (nntp-port-number "snews")
10877 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
10882 @item nntp-end-of-line
10883 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
10884 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
10885 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
10886 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
10888 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
10889 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
10890 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
10894 @vindex nntp-address
10895 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
10897 @item nntp-port-number
10898 @vindex nntp-port-number
10899 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
10902 @item nntp-buggy-select
10903 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
10904 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
10906 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
10907 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
10908 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
10909 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
10912 @item nntp-xover-commands
10913 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
10916 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
10917 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
10921 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
10922 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
10923 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
10924 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
10925 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
10926 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
10927 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
10928 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
10929 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
10930 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
10931 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
10933 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
10934 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
10935 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
10937 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10938 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
10939 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
10940 server closes connection.
10942 @item nntp-record-commands
10943 @vindex nntp-record-commands
10944 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
10945 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
10946 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
10947 that doesn't seem to work.
10953 @subsection News Spool
10957 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
10958 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
10959 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
10962 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
10963 anything else) as the address.
10965 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
10966 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
10967 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
10968 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
10972 @item nnspool-inews-program
10973 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
10974 Program used to post an article.
10976 @item nnspool-inews-switches
10977 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
10978 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
10980 @item nnspool-spool-directory
10981 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
10982 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
10983 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
10985 @item nnspool-nov-directory
10986 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
10987 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
10988 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
10990 @item nnspool-lib-dir
10991 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
10992 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
10994 @item nnspool-active-file
10995 @vindex nnspool-active-file
10996 The path to the active file.
10998 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
10999 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
11000 The path to the group descriptions file.
11002 @item nnspool-history-file
11003 @vindex nnspool-history-file
11004 The path to the news history file.
11006 @item nnspool-active-times-file
11007 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
11008 The path to the active date file.
11010 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
11011 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
11012 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
11015 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11016 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11018 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11019 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
11020 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
11026 @section Getting Mail
11027 @cindex reading mail
11030 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
11034 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
11035 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
11036 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
11037 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
11038 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
11039 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
11040 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
11041 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
11042 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
11043 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
11044 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
11045 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
11046 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
11050 @node Mail in a Newsreader
11051 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
11053 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
11054 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
11055 of a culture shock.
11057 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
11058 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
11060 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
11061 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
11062 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
11063 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
11065 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
11067 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
11068 deleted? How awful!
11070 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
11071 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
11072 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
11073 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
11076 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
11077 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
11078 they want to treat a message.
11080 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
11081 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
11082 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
11083 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
11084 archived somewhere else.
11086 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
11087 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
11088 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
11089 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
11090 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
11092 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
11093 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
11094 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
11096 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
11097 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
11100 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
11101 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
11102 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
11103 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
11104 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
11106 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
11107 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
11108 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
11109 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
11110 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
11111 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
11115 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
11116 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
11118 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
11119 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
11120 and things will happen automatically.
11122 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
11123 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
11126 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
11127 '((nnml "private")))
11130 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
11131 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
11132 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
11133 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
11134 like any other group.
11136 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
11139 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11140 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11141 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11145 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
11146 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
11147 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
11150 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
11151 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
11152 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
11155 @node Splitting Mail
11156 @subsection Splitting Mail
11157 @cindex splitting mail
11158 @cindex mail splitting
11160 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
11161 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
11162 to be split into groups.
11165 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11166 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11167 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11168 ("mail.other" "")))
11171 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
11172 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
11173 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
11174 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
11175 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
11176 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
11177 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
11180 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
11183 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
11184 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
11185 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
11186 mail belongs in that group.
11188 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
11189 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
11190 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
11191 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
11192 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
11193 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
11195 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
11196 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
11197 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
11198 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
11199 thinks should carry this mail message.
11201 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
11202 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
11203 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
11204 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
11206 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
11207 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
11208 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
11209 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
11210 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
11212 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
11215 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
11216 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
11217 links. If that's the case for you, set
11218 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
11219 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
11221 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
11222 @kindex nnmail-split-history
11223 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
11224 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
11225 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
11226 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
11229 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
11230 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
11231 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
11232 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
11233 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
11234 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
11235 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
11236 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
11237 month's rent money.
11241 @subsection Mail Sources
11243 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
11244 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
11248 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
11249 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
11250 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
11254 @node Mail Source Specifiers
11255 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
11257 @cindex mail server
11260 @cindex mail source
11262 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
11263 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
11268 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
11271 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
11272 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
11273 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
11276 The following mail source types are available:
11280 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
11286 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
11287 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
11290 An example file mail source:
11293 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
11296 Or using the default path:
11302 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
11303 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
11304 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
11307 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
11311 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
11314 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
11318 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
11321 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
11323 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
11326 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
11330 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
11331 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. Setting
11332 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
11333 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
11334 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
11340 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
11344 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
11348 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
11349 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
11350 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
11351 predicate are considered.
11355 Script run before/after fetching mail.
11359 An example directory mail source:
11362 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
11367 Get mail from a POP server.
11373 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
11374 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11377 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
11378 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
11379 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
11380 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
11381 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
11384 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
11388 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
11392 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
11393 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
11396 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
11399 The valid format specifier characters are:
11403 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
11404 included in this string.
11407 The name of the server.
11410 The port number of the server.
11413 The user name to use.
11416 The password to use.
11419 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11420 corresponding keywords.
11423 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11424 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11427 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11428 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11431 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
11432 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
11435 @item :authentication
11436 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
11437 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
11442 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
11443 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
11445 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
11446 default user name, and default fetcher:
11452 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
11455 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
11456 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11459 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
11462 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
11466 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
11467 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
11468 contains exactly one mail.
11474 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
11475 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
11478 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
11479 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
11481 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
11482 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
11483 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
11486 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
11487 from locking problems).
11491 Two example maildir mail sources:
11494 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/" :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
11498 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/" :subdirs ("new"))
11502 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
11503 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
11504 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
11505 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
11512 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
11513 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11516 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
11517 @samp{993} for SSL connections.
11520 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
11524 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
11528 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
11529 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
11530 @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{ssl} or the default @samp{network}.
11532 @item :authentication
11533 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is one
11534 of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now, this
11535 means @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default
11539 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
11540 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
11541 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
11547 The valid format specifier characters are:
11551 The name of the server.
11554 User name from `imap-default-user'.
11557 The port number of the server.
11560 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11561 corresponding keywords.
11564 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
11565 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
11568 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
11569 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
11570 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
11571 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
11572 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
11573 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
11576 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
11577 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
11578 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
11579 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
11582 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
11583 after finishing the fetch.
11587 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
11590 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com" :stream kerberos4 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
11594 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
11595 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
11597 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
11600 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
11601 required for url "4.0pre.46".
11603 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
11609 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
11610 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
11613 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
11617 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
11621 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
11622 folder after finishing the fetch.
11626 An example webmail source:
11629 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11634 @item Common Keywords
11635 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
11641 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
11642 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
11646 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
11651 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
11652 useful when you use local mail and news.
11657 @subsubsection Function Interface
11659 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
11660 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
11661 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
11662 consider the following mail-source setting:
11665 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
11666 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
11669 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
11670 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
11671 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
11672 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
11673 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
11675 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
11678 @node Mail Source Customization
11679 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
11681 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
11682 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
11686 @item mail-source-crash-box
11687 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
11688 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
11689 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
11691 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
11692 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
11693 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
11695 @item mail-source-directory
11696 @vindex mail-source-directory
11697 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
11698 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
11699 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
11702 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11703 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
11704 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
11705 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
11706 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
11707 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
11709 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
11710 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
11711 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
11716 @node Fetching Mail
11717 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
11719 @vindex mail-sources
11720 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
11721 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
11722 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
11723 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
11725 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
11726 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
11729 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
11730 mail server, you'd say something like:
11735 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11736 :password "secret")))
11739 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
11743 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
11744 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
11747 :password "secret")))
11751 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
11752 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
11753 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
11754 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
11755 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
11756 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
11760 @node Mail Backend Variables
11761 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
11763 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
11767 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11768 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
11769 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
11770 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
11772 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
11773 @item nnmail-split-hook
11774 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
11775 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
11776 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
11777 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
11778 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
11779 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
11780 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
11781 in the buffer will show up in any files.
11782 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
11785 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11786 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11787 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11788 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
11789 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
11790 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
11791 starting to handle the new mail) and
11792 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
11793 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
11794 default file modes the new mail files get:
11797 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
11798 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
11800 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
11801 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
11804 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
11805 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
11806 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
11807 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
11808 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
11809 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
11810 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
11812 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
11813 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
11814 @findex delete-file
11815 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
11817 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11818 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
11819 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
11820 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
11821 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
11826 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
11827 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
11828 @cindex mail splitting
11829 @cindex fancy mail splitting
11831 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
11832 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
11833 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
11834 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
11835 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
11836 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
11838 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
11841 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
11842 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
11843 ;; from real errors.
11844 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
11846 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
11847 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
11848 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
11849 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
11850 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
11851 ;; Other mailing lists...
11852 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
11853 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
11854 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
11855 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
11856 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
11857 ;; message was really cross-posted.
11858 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
11859 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
11861 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
11862 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
11866 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
11867 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
11868 the five possible split syntaxes:
11873 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
11874 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
11878 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
11879 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
11880 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
11881 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
11882 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
11883 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
11884 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
11885 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
11888 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11889 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
11890 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
11891 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
11894 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11895 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
11898 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
11899 this message. Use with extreme caution.
11902 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
11903 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
11904 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
11905 function should return a @var{split}.
11908 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
11909 body of the messages:
11912 (defun split-on-body ()
11914 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
11915 (goto-char (point-min))
11916 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
11920 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
11921 when the @code{:} function is run.
11924 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
11925 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
11926 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
11930 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
11934 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
11935 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
11936 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
11937 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
11938 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
11940 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
11941 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
11942 are expanded as specified by the variable
11943 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
11944 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
11947 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
11948 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
11949 when all this splitting is performed.
11951 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
11952 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
11953 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
11956 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
11959 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
11960 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
11962 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
11963 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
11964 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
11965 groupings 1 through 9.
11967 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
11968 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
11969 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
11970 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
11971 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
11972 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
11973 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
11974 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
11975 it once per thread.
11977 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to a
11978 non-nil value. And then you can include
11979 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon feature, like so:
11981 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
11982 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
11983 ;; other splits go here
11987 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
11988 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
11989 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
11990 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
11991 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
11992 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
11993 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
11994 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
11995 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name. It
11996 is recommended that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a
11997 somewhat higher number than the default so that the message ids are
11998 still in the cache. (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300
12000 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12001 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
12002 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
12003 messages goes into the new group.
12006 @node Group Mail Splitting
12007 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
12008 @cindex mail splitting
12009 @cindex group mail splitting
12011 @findex gnus-group-split
12012 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
12013 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
12014 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
12015 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
12016 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
12017 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
12018 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
12019 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
12021 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
12022 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
12023 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
12024 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
12026 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
12027 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
12028 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
12029 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
12030 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
12031 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
12032 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
12034 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
12035 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
12036 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
12037 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
12038 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
12039 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
12040 @code{gnus-group-split}.
12042 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
12043 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
12044 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
12045 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
12046 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
12047 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
12048 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
12049 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
12050 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
12051 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
12052 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
12053 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
12054 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
12056 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
12061 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
12062 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
12064 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
12065 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
12066 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
12067 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
12069 ((split-spec . catch-all))
12072 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
12073 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
12074 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
12077 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
12078 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
12079 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
12083 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
12084 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
12085 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
12089 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
12092 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
12093 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
12094 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
12095 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
12096 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
12097 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
12098 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
12099 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
12100 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
12102 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
12103 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
12104 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
12105 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
12106 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
12107 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
12108 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
12109 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
12110 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
12112 @findex gnus-group-split-update
12113 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
12114 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
12115 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
12116 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
12117 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
12120 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
12123 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
12124 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
12125 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
12126 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
12127 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
12130 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
12131 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
12132 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
12133 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
12135 @node Incorporating Old Mail
12136 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
12138 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
12139 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
12140 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
12143 Doing so can be quite easy.
12145 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
12146 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
12147 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
12148 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
12149 your @code{nnml} groups.
12155 Go to the group buffer.
12158 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
12159 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12162 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
12165 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
12166 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12169 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
12170 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
12173 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
12174 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
12175 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
12176 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
12177 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
12179 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
12180 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
12181 using the new mail backend.
12184 @node Expiring Mail
12185 @subsection Expiring Mail
12186 @cindex article expiry
12188 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
12189 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
12190 different approach to mail reading.
12192 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
12193 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
12194 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
12195 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
12196 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
12197 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
12200 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
12201 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
12202 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
12203 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
12204 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
12205 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
12206 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
12207 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
12209 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12210 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
12211 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
12212 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
12213 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
12214 column in the summary buffer.
12216 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
12217 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
12218 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
12219 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
12222 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
12224 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
12225 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
12226 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
12229 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
12230 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
12231 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
12232 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
12233 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
12235 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
12236 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
12239 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12240 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
12243 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
12244 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
12246 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
12247 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
12248 don't really mix very well.
12250 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
12251 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
12252 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
12253 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
12256 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
12257 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
12258 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
12259 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
12262 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12264 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12266 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
12268 ((string= group "mail.junk")
12270 ((string= group "important")
12276 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
12277 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
12279 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
12280 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
12281 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
12284 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
12285 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
12287 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
12288 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
12289 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them to
12290 other groups instead of deleting them. The variable @code{nnmail-expiry-target}
12291 (and the @code{expiry-target} group parameter) controls this. The
12292 variable supplies a default value for all groups, which can be
12293 overridden for specific groups by the group parameter.
12294 default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a string (which
12295 should be the name of the group the message should be moved to), or a
12296 function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to the message in
12297 question, and with the name of the group being moved from as its
12298 parameter) which should return a target -- either a group name or
12301 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
12303 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
12307 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
12308 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
12309 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
12310 easier for procmail users.
12312 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
12313 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
12314 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
12315 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
12316 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
12317 caution. Even more dangerous is the
12318 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
12319 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
12320 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
12321 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
12322 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
12323 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
12324 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
12327 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
12329 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
12330 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
12331 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
12332 auto-expire turned on.
12336 @subsection Washing Mail
12337 @cindex mail washing
12338 @cindex list server brain damage
12339 @cindex incoming mail treatment
12341 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
12342 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
12343 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
12344 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
12345 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
12346 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
12348 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
12349 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
12350 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
12353 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
12354 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
12355 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
12356 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
12359 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12360 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12361 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
12362 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
12363 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
12366 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12367 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12368 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
12369 Emacs running on MS machines.
12373 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12374 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12375 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
12376 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
12379 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12380 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12381 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
12382 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
12384 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12385 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12386 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
12387 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
12388 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
12389 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
12390 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
12393 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
12394 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
12397 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
12398 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
12401 This can also be done non-destructively with
12402 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
12404 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
12405 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
12406 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
12408 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12409 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12411 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
12412 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
12413 @code{References} headers.
12417 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12418 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12419 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
12423 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
12424 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
12425 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
12432 @subsection Duplicates
12434 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
12435 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
12436 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
12437 @cindex duplicate mails
12438 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
12439 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
12440 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
12441 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
12442 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
12443 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
12444 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
12445 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
12446 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
12447 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
12448 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
12449 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
12450 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
12452 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
12453 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
12454 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
12455 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
12457 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
12460 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
12461 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
12465 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12466 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
12467 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
12468 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
12469 (any mail "mail.misc")
12476 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12477 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
12482 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
12483 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
12484 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
12485 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
12486 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
12489 @node Not Reading Mail
12490 @subsection Not Reading Mail
12492 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
12493 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
12494 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
12496 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
12497 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
12498 mail, which should help.
12500 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12501 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12502 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12503 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12504 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12505 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
12506 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
12507 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
12508 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
12509 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
12510 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
12512 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
12513 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
12517 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
12518 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
12520 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
12521 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
12522 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
12524 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
12525 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
12526 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
12527 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
12530 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
12531 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
12532 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
12533 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
12534 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
12535 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
12539 @node Unix Mail Box
12540 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
12542 @cindex unix mail box
12544 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12545 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12546 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
12547 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
12548 which group it belongs in.
12550 Virtual server settings:
12553 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
12554 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12555 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
12557 @item nnmbox-active-file
12558 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12559 The name of the active file for the mail box.
12561 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
12562 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12563 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
12569 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
12573 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12574 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12575 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
12576 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
12577 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
12579 Virtual server settings:
12582 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
12583 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12584 The name of the rmail mbox file.
12586 @item nnbabyl-active-file
12587 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12588 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
12590 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12591 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12592 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
12597 @subsubsection Mail Spool
12599 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
12601 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
12602 format. It should be used with some caution.
12604 @vindex nnml-directory
12605 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
12606 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
12607 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
12608 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
12610 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
12613 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
12614 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
12615 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
12616 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
12617 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
12618 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
12619 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
12620 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
12622 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
12623 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
12624 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
12625 backend when it comes to reading mail.
12627 Virtual server settings:
12630 @item nnml-directory
12631 @vindex nnml-directory
12632 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
12634 @item nnml-active-file
12635 @vindex nnml-active-file
12636 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
12638 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
12639 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
12640 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
12643 @item nnml-get-new-mail
12644 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12645 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
12647 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
12648 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
12649 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
12651 @item nnml-nov-file-name
12652 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
12653 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
12655 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12656 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12657 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
12661 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
12662 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
12663 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
12664 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
12665 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
12666 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
12667 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
12672 @subsubsection MH Spool
12674 @cindex mh-e mail spool
12676 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
12677 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
12678 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
12679 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
12681 Virtual server settings:
12684 @item nnmh-directory
12685 @vindex nnmh-directory
12686 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
12688 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
12689 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12690 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
12693 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
12694 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
12695 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
12696 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
12697 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
12698 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
12699 to set this variable to @code{t}.
12704 @subsubsection Mail Folders
12706 @cindex mbox folders
12707 @cindex mail folders
12709 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
12710 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
12711 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
12714 Virtual server settings:
12717 @item nnfolder-directory
12718 @vindex nnfolder-directory
12719 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
12721 @item nnfolder-active-file
12722 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
12723 The name of the active file.
12725 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12726 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
12727 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
12729 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
12730 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12731 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
12733 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12734 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
12735 @cindex backup files
12736 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
12737 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
12738 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
12739 your @file{.emacs} file:
12742 (defun turn-off-backup ()
12743 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
12745 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
12748 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12749 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
12750 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
12751 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
12752 extract some information from it before removing it.
12754 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
12755 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
12756 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
12761 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
12762 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
12763 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
12764 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
12765 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
12766 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
12769 @node Comparing Mail Backends
12770 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
12772 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
12773 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
12774 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
12775 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
12776 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
12778 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
12779 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
12780 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
12781 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
12782 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
12783 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
12784 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
12785 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
12788 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
12789 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
12790 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
12791 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
12796 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
12797 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
12798 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
12799 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
12800 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
12801 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
12802 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
12803 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
12804 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
12805 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
12806 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
12807 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
12808 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
12813 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
12814 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
12815 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
12816 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
12817 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
12818 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
12819 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
12820 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
12821 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
12822 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
12823 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
12824 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
12825 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
12826 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
12828 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
12829 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
12834 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
12835 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
12836 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
12837 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
12838 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
12839 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
12840 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
12841 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
12842 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
12843 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
12844 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
12845 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
12846 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
12847 provided by the active file and overviews.
12849 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
12850 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
12851 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
12852 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
12853 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
12856 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
12857 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
12862 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
12863 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
12864 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
12865 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
12866 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
12867 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
12868 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
12872 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
12873 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
12874 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
12875 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
12876 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
12877 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
12878 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
12879 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
12880 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
12882 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
12883 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
12884 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
12885 friendly mail backend all over.
12890 @node Browsing the Web
12891 @section Browsing the Web
12893 @cindex browsing the web
12897 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
12898 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
12899 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
12900 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
12901 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
12902 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
12903 even know what a news group is.
12905 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
12906 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
12907 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
12908 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
12909 you mad in the end.
12911 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
12914 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of backends for providing
12915 interfaces to these sources.
12918 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
12919 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
12920 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
12921 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
12922 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
12923 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
12926 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
12928 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
12929 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
12930 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus backend
12931 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these backends,
12932 though, you should be ok.
12934 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
12935 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
12936 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
12937 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
12938 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
12942 @subsection Web Searches
12946 @cindex InReference
12947 @cindex Usenet searches
12948 @cindex searching the Usenet
12950 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
12951 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
12952 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
12953 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
12954 searches without having to use a browser.
12956 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
12957 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
12958 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
12959 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
12960 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
12962 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
12963 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
12964 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
12965 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
12966 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
12967 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
12968 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
12969 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
12970 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
12971 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
12974 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
12975 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
12976 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
12977 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
12978 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
12979 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
12981 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
12982 to use @code{nnweb}.
12984 Virtual server variables:
12989 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
12990 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
12994 @vindex nnweb-search
12995 The search string to feed to the search engine.
12997 @item nnweb-max-hits
12998 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
12999 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
13002 @item nnweb-type-definition
13003 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
13004 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
13005 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
13010 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
13014 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
13017 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
13020 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
13024 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
13031 @subsection Slashdot
13035 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
13036 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
13037 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
13039 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
13040 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
13043 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13044 '((nnslashdot "")))
13047 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} backend for new comments
13048 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
13049 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
13050 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
13051 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
13054 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
13055 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13057 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
13058 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
13059 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
13060 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
13061 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
13062 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
13065 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
13068 @item nnslashdot-threaded
13069 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
13070 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
13071 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
13072 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
13073 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
13074 but much, much slower than untreaded.
13076 @item nnslashdot-login-name
13077 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
13078 The login name to use when posting.
13080 @item nnslashdot-password
13081 @vindex nnslashdot-password
13082 The password to use when posting.
13084 @item nnslashdot-directory
13085 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
13086 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default value is
13087 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
13089 @item nnslashdot-active-url
13090 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
13091 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
13092 news articles and comments. The default is
13093 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
13095 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
13096 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
13097 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
13099 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
13101 @item nnslashdot-article-url
13102 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
13103 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
13105 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
13107 @item nnslashdot-threshold
13108 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
13109 The score threshold. The default is -1.
13111 @item nnslashdot-group-number
13112 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
13113 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
13114 updated. The default is 0.
13121 @subsection Ultimate
13123 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
13125 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
13126 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
13127 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
13128 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
13130 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
13131 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
13132 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
13133 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
13134 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
13135 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
13136 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
13138 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
13141 @item nnultimate-directory
13142 @vindex nnultimate-directory
13143 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
13144 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
13149 @subsection Web Archive
13151 @cindex Web Archive
13153 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
13154 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
13155 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
13156 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13159 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
13160 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
13161 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
13162 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
13163 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
13164 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
13165 backend by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
13167 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
13170 @item nnwarchive-directory
13171 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
13172 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
13173 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
13175 @item nnwarchive-login
13176 @vindex nnwarchive-login
13177 The account name on the web server.
13179 @item nnwarchive-passwd
13180 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
13181 The password for your account on the web server.
13189 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
13190 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
13191 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13194 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
13195 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
13198 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
13201 @item nnrss-directory
13202 @vindex nnrss-directory
13203 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
13204 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
13208 @node Customizing w3
13209 @subsection Customizing w3
13215 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
13216 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
13217 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
13219 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
13220 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
13221 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
13224 (eval-after-load "w3"
13226 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
13227 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
13228 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
13229 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
13231 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
13234 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
13235 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
13239 @node Other Sources
13240 @section Other Sources
13242 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
13243 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
13247 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
13248 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
13249 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
13250 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
13251 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
13252 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
13256 @node Directory Groups
13257 @subsection Directory Groups
13259 @cindex directory groups
13261 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
13262 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
13265 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
13266 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
13267 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
13268 backend to read directories. Big deal.
13270 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
13271 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
13272 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
13273 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
13274 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
13276 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
13278 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
13279 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
13280 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
13281 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
13284 @node Anything Groups
13285 @subsection Anything Groups
13288 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
13289 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
13290 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
13293 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
13294 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
13295 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
13296 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
13297 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
13298 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
13299 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
13300 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
13301 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
13302 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
13305 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
13306 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
13307 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
13308 in the article buffer, just as usual.
13310 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
13311 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
13312 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
13313 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
13315 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
13316 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
13317 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
13318 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
13319 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
13320 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
13321 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
13322 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
13327 @item nneething-map-file-directory
13328 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
13329 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
13330 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
13332 @item nneething-exclude-files
13333 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
13334 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
13335 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
13337 @item nneething-include-files
13338 @vindex nneething-include-files
13339 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
13340 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
13342 @item nneething-map-file
13343 @vindex nneething-map-file
13344 Name of the map files.
13348 @node Document Groups
13349 @subsection Document Groups
13351 @cindex documentation group
13354 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
13355 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
13362 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
13367 The standard Unix mbox file.
13369 @cindex MMDF mail box
13371 The MMDF mail box format.
13374 Several news articles appended into a file.
13377 @cindex rnews batch files
13378 The rnews batch transport format.
13379 @cindex forwarded messages
13382 Forwarded articles.
13385 Netscape mail boxes.
13388 MIME multipart messages.
13390 @item standard-digest
13391 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
13394 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
13397 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
13398 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
13399 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
13402 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
13403 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
13404 group. And that's it.
13406 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
13407 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
13408 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
13409 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
13410 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
13411 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
13412 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
13413 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
13414 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
13415 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
13417 Virtual server variables:
13420 @item nndoc-article-type
13421 @vindex nndoc-article-type
13422 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
13423 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
13424 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
13425 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
13427 @item nndoc-post-type
13428 @vindex nndoc-post-type
13429 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
13430 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
13435 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
13439 @node Document Server Internals
13440 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
13442 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
13443 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
13444 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
13445 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
13447 First, here's an example document type definition:
13451 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
13452 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
13455 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
13456 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
13457 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
13458 types can be defined with very few settings:
13461 @item first-article
13462 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
13463 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
13466 @item article-begin
13467 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
13468 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
13470 @item head-begin-function
13471 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
13474 @item nndoc-head-begin
13475 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
13478 @item nndoc-head-end
13479 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
13480 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
13482 @item body-begin-function
13483 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
13487 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
13490 @item body-end-function
13491 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
13495 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
13498 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
13499 regexp will be totally ignored.
13503 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
13504 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
13505 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
13506 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
13507 something that's palatable for Gnus:
13510 @item prepare-body-function
13511 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
13512 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
13513 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
13515 @item article-transform-function
13516 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
13517 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
13518 body of the article.
13520 @item generate-head-function
13521 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
13522 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
13523 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
13524 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
13528 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
13533 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13534 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13535 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
13536 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
13537 (head-end . "^ ?$")
13538 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
13539 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
13540 (subtype digest guess))
13543 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
13544 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
13545 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
13546 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
13547 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
13549 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
13550 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
13551 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
13552 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
13553 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
13554 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
13555 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
13556 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
13557 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
13558 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
13566 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
13567 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
13568 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
13570 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
13571 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
13572 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
13575 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
13576 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
13577 that interested in doing things properly.
13579 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
13580 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
13583 First some terminology:
13588 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
13589 get news and/or mail from.
13592 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
13593 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
13596 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
13600 @item message packets
13601 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
13602 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
13603 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13605 @item response packets
13606 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
13607 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
13608 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13618 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
13619 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
13620 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
13621 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
13624 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
13627 You put the packet in your home directory.
13630 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
13631 the native or secondary server.
13634 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
13635 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
13638 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
13642 You transfer this packet to the server.
13645 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
13648 You then repeat until you die.
13652 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
13653 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
13656 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
13657 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
13658 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
13662 @node SOUP Commands
13663 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
13665 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
13669 @kindex G s b (Group)
13670 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
13671 Pack all unread articles in the current group
13672 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
13673 process/prefix convention.
13676 @kindex G s w (Group)
13677 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
13678 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
13681 @kindex G s s (Group)
13682 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
13683 Send all replies from the replies packet
13684 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
13687 @kindex G s p (Group)
13688 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
13689 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
13692 @kindex G s r (Group)
13693 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
13694 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
13697 @kindex O s (Summary)
13698 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
13699 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
13700 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
13701 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
13706 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
13711 @item gnus-soup-directory
13712 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
13713 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
13714 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
13716 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
13717 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
13718 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
13719 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
13721 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
13722 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
13723 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
13724 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
13726 @item gnus-soup-packer
13727 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
13728 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13729 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
13731 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
13732 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
13733 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
13734 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13736 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
13737 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
13738 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
13740 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13741 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
13742 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
13743 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
13749 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
13752 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
13753 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
13754 you can read them at leisure.
13756 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
13760 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
13761 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
13762 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
13763 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
13765 @item nnsoup-directory
13766 @vindex nnsoup-directory
13767 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
13768 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
13770 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
13771 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
13772 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
13773 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
13775 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
13776 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
13777 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
13778 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
13779 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
13781 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
13782 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
13783 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
13784 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
13786 @item nnsoup-active-file
13787 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
13788 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
13789 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
13790 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
13791 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
13793 @item nnsoup-packer
13794 @vindex nnsoup-packer
13795 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
13796 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
13798 @item nnsoup-unpacker
13799 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
13800 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
13801 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
13803 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
13804 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
13805 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
13808 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
13809 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
13810 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
13813 @item nnsoup-always-save
13814 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
13815 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
13821 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
13823 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
13824 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
13825 more for that to happen.
13827 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
13828 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
13829 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
13832 In specific, this is what it does:
13835 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
13836 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
13839 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
13840 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
13841 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
13844 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
13845 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
13846 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
13849 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
13850 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
13851 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
13853 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
13859 @item nngateway-address
13860 @vindex nngateway-address
13861 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
13863 @item nngateway-header-transformation
13864 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
13865 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
13866 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
13867 transformation should be called, and defaults to
13868 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
13869 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
13872 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
13873 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
13874 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
13877 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
13880 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
13883 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
13886 The following pre-defined functions exist:
13888 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13891 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
13892 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13893 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
13895 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13897 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
13898 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
13899 @code{nngateway-address}.
13904 (setq gnus-post-method
13905 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
13906 (nngateway-header-transformation
13907 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
13915 So, to use this, simply say something like:
13918 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
13924 @subsection @sc{imap}
13928 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
13929 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
13930 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
13931 specify the network address of the server.
13933 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
13934 POP can, it can hence be viewed as POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
13935 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
13936 protocol. (@sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp} because news
13937 is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.)
13939 If you want to use @sc{imap} as POP++, use an imap entry in
13940 mail-sources. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the @sc{imap}
13941 server and store them on the local disk. This is not the usage
13942 described in this section. @xref{Mail Sources}.
13944 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
13945 entry in gnus-secondary-select-methods. With this, Gnus will
13946 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
13947 usage explained in this section.
13949 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
13950 might look something like this:
13953 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13954 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
13955 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
13957 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13958 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
13959 ; a UW server running on localhost
13961 (nnimap-server-port 143)
13962 (nnimap-address "localhost")
13963 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
13964 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
13965 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
13966 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
13967 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
13968 (nnimap-stream network))
13969 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
13971 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
13972 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
13973 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
13976 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
13981 @item nnimap-address
13982 @vindex nnimap-address
13984 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
13985 server name if not specified.
13987 @item nnimap-server-port
13988 @vindex nnimap-server-port
13989 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
13991 Note that this should be a integer, example server specification:
13994 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
13995 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
13998 @item nnimap-list-pattern
13999 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14000 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14001 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14002 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14003 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14004 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14006 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14007 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14008 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14011 Example server specification:
14014 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14015 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14016 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14019 @item nnimap-stream
14020 @vindex nnimap-stream
14021 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14022 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14023 of SSL. (SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which can be automatically
14024 detected, but it's not widely deployed yet).
14026 Example server specification:
14029 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14030 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14033 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14037 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5). Require the
14038 @samp{imtest} program.
14040 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with kerberos 4. Require the @samp{imtest} program.
14042 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14043 SSL). Require the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14046 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Require OpenSSL (the
14047 program @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
14049 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14051 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14054 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14055 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD, nnimap support
14056 both @samp{imtest} version 1.5.x and version 1.6.x. The variable
14057 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14060 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14061 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14062 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14063 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14064 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14065 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14066 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14069 @vindex imap-shell-program
14070 @vindex imap-shell-host
14071 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14072 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14074 @item nnimap-authenticator
14075 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14077 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14078 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14080 Example server specification:
14083 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14084 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14087 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14091 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Require
14092 external program @code{imtest}.
14094 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos authentication. Require external program
14097 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Require
14098 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14100 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14102 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14104 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14107 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14109 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14110 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14111 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14112 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14113 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14114 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14117 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14118 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14119 running in circles yet?
14121 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14122 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14125 The possible options are:
14130 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14133 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14134 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14135 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14136 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14138 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14143 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14144 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14146 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format
14147 is (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See
14148 `nntp-authinfo-file' for exact syntax.
14150 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14151 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14152 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14158 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14159 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14160 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14165 @node Splitting in IMAP
14166 @subsubsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14167 @cindex splitting imap mail
14169 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14170 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14171 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14172 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14173 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14177 Here are the variables of interest:
14181 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14182 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14184 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14186 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14187 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14189 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14191 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14192 @cindex splitting, inbox
14194 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14196 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14197 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14201 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14202 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14205 No nnmail equivalent.
14207 @item nnimap-split-rule
14208 @cindex Splitting, rules
14209 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14211 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14214 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14215 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14216 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14217 Neither did I, we need examples.
14220 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14221 '(("INBOX.nnimap" "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14222 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14223 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14226 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14227 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14228 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14230 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14231 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14235 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14238 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14239 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14240 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14241 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14243 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14244 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14245 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14246 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14247 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14248 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14250 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14251 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14252 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14254 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14255 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14256 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14258 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it need too.
14260 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14261 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14262 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14265 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14266 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14267 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14268 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14269 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14270 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14273 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14274 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14275 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14276 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14277 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14278 group/function elements.
14280 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14282 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14284 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14286 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14287 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14289 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14290 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14291 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14294 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14295 @cindex splitting, fancy
14296 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14297 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14299 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14300 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14301 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14303 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14304 nnimap backends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14305 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14306 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14311 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14312 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14315 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14319 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14320 @subsubsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14321 @cindex editing imap acls
14322 @cindex Access Control Lists
14323 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14325 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14327 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14328 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14329 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14332 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14333 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14334 editing window with detailed instructions.
14336 Some possible uses:
14340 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14341 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14342 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14344 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14345 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14346 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14350 @node Expunging mailboxes
14351 @subsubsection Expunging mailboxes
14355 @cindex Manual expunging
14357 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14359 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-close},
14360 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14361 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14363 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14368 @node Combined Groups
14369 @section Combined Groups
14371 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
14375 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
14376 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
14380 @node Virtual Groups
14381 @subsection Virtual Groups
14383 @cindex virtual groups
14384 @cindex merging groups
14386 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
14389 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
14390 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
14391 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
14393 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
14394 regexp to match component groups.
14396 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
14397 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
14398 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
14399 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
14400 the virtual group.)
14402 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
14403 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
14406 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
14409 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
14410 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
14412 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
14413 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
14414 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
14415 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
14418 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
14421 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
14422 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
14423 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
14425 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
14426 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
14427 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
14428 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
14429 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
14431 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
14432 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
14433 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
14435 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
14436 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
14437 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
14438 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14439 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
14440 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
14441 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
14442 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
14443 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
14444 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
14445 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
14447 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
14448 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
14449 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
14450 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
14451 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
14452 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
14453 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
14455 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
14456 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
14460 @node Kibozed Groups
14461 @subsection Kibozed Groups
14465 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
14466 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
14467 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
14468 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
14470 @kindex G k (Group)
14471 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
14474 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
14475 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
14476 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
14477 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
14479 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
14480 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
14481 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
14483 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
14484 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
14485 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
14486 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
14487 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
14488 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
14489 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
14490 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
14492 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
14493 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
14494 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
14495 Stranger things have happened.
14497 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
14498 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
14500 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
14501 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
14502 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
14503 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
14504 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
14505 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
14507 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
14508 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
14511 @node Gnus Unplugged
14512 @section Gnus Unplugged
14517 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
14519 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
14520 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
14521 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
14522 read news. Believe it or not.
14524 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
14525 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
14526 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
14527 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
14528 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
14530 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
14531 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
14532 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
14533 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
14534 reading news on a machine.
14536 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
14540 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
14541 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
14545 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
14546 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14553 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
14555 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
14558 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
14559 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
14560 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
14561 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
14562 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
14563 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
14564 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
14565 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
14566 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
14567 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
14572 @subsection Agent Basics
14574 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
14576 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
14577 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
14578 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
14579 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
14581 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
14582 connected to the net continuously.
14584 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
14585 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
14587 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
14592 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
14593 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
14594 already fetched while in this mode.
14597 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
14598 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
14599 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
14600 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
14601 Source Specifiers}).
14604 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
14605 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
14606 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
14607 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
14608 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
14611 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
14612 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
14613 then you read the news offline.
14616 And then you go to step 2.
14619 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
14625 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
14626 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
14627 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
14628 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
14629 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
14630 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
14633 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
14640 @node Agent Categories
14641 @subsection Agent Categories
14643 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
14644 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
14645 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
14646 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
14647 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
14648 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
14649 you're interested in the articles anyway.
14651 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
14652 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
14653 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
14654 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
14655 managing categories.
14658 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
14659 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
14660 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
14664 @node Category Syntax
14665 @subsubsection Category Syntax
14667 A category consists of two things.
14671 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
14672 are eligible for downloading; and
14675 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
14676 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
14677 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
14680 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
14681 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
14682 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
14683 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
14685 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
14686 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
14687 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
14689 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
14690 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
14691 operators sprinkled in between.
14693 Perhaps some examples are in order.
14695 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
14696 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
14702 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
14703 short (for some value of ``short'').
14705 Here's a more complex predicate:
14714 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
14715 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
14718 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
14719 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
14720 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
14722 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
14723 you want to do, you can write your own.
14727 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
14728 lines; default 100.
14731 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
14732 lines; default 200.
14735 True iff the article has a download score less than
14736 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
14739 True iff the article has a download score greater than
14740 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
14743 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
14744 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
14745 checksum and sees whether articles match.
14754 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
14755 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
14756 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
14759 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
14760 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
14761 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
14762 something along the lines of the following:
14765 (defun my-article-old-p ()
14766 "Say whether an article is old."
14767 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
14768 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
14771 with the predicate then defined as:
14774 (not my-article-old-p)
14777 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
14778 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
14779 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
14780 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
14783 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
14784 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
14785 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
14788 and simply specify your predicate as:
14794 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
14795 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
14796 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
14797 just don't give a damn.
14799 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
14800 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
14801 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
14802 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
14803 parameters like so:
14806 (agent-predicate . short)
14809 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
14810 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
14811 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
14813 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
14816 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
14819 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
14820 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
14821 predicate is assumed to be a list.
14824 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
14825 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
14826 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
14827 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
14828 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
14829 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
14831 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
14832 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
14833 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
14834 if it's to be specific to that group.
14836 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
14843 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
14844 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
14850 Category specification
14854 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14860 Group Parameter specification
14863 (agent-score ("from"
14864 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
14869 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
14875 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
14882 Category specification
14885 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
14891 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
14895 Group Parameter specification
14898 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
14901 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
14906 Use @code{normal} score files
14908 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
14909 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
14910 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
14911 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
14913 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
14914 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
14915 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
14916 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
14920 Category Specification
14927 Group Parameter specification
14930 (agent-score . file)
14935 @node Category Buffer
14936 @subsubsection Category Buffer
14938 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
14939 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
14940 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
14942 The following commands are available in this buffer:
14946 @kindex q (Category)
14947 @findex gnus-category-exit
14948 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
14951 @kindex k (Category)
14952 @findex gnus-category-kill
14953 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
14956 @kindex c (Category)
14957 @findex gnus-category-copy
14958 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
14961 @kindex a (Category)
14962 @findex gnus-category-add
14963 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
14966 @kindex p (Category)
14967 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
14968 Edit the predicate of the current category
14969 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
14972 @kindex g (Category)
14973 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
14974 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
14975 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
14978 @kindex s (Category)
14979 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
14980 Edit the download score rule of the current category
14981 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
14984 @kindex l (Category)
14985 @findex gnus-category-list
14986 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
14990 @node Category Variables
14991 @subsubsection Category Variables
14994 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
14995 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
14996 Hook run in category buffers.
14998 @item gnus-category-line-format
14999 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
15000 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
15001 Variables}). Valid elements are:
15005 The name of the category.
15008 The number of groups in the category.
15011 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
15012 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
15013 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
15015 @item gnus-agent-short-article
15016 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
15017 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
15019 @item gnus-agent-long-article
15020 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
15021 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
15023 @item gnus-agent-low-score
15024 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
15025 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
15028 @item gnus-agent-high-score
15029 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
15030 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
15036 @node Agent Commands
15037 @subsection Agent Commands
15039 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
15040 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
15041 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
15045 * Group Agent Commands::
15046 * Summary Agent Commands::
15047 * Server Agent Commands::
15050 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
15051 following incantation:
15053 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15055 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15060 @node Group Agent Commands
15061 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
15065 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
15066 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
15067 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
15068 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
15071 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
15072 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
15073 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
15076 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
15077 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
15078 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
15079 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
15082 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
15083 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
15084 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
15085 (@code{gnus-group-send-drafts}). @xref{Drafts}.
15088 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
15089 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
15090 Add the current group to an Agent category
15091 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
15092 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15095 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
15096 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
15097 Remove the current group from its category, if any
15098 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
15099 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15102 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
15103 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15104 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
15110 @node Summary Agent Commands
15111 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
15115 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
15116 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
15117 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
15120 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
15121 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
15122 Remove the downloading mark from the article
15123 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
15126 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
15127 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
15128 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
15131 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
15132 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
15133 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
15138 @node Server Agent Commands
15139 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
15143 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
15144 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
15145 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
15146 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
15149 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
15150 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
15151 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
15152 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
15158 @subsection Agent Expiry
15160 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
15161 @findex gnus-agent-expire
15162 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
15163 @cindex Agent expiry
15164 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
15167 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
15168 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
15169 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
15170 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
15171 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
15172 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
15174 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
15175 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
15176 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
15177 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
15178 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
15181 @node Agent and IMAP
15182 @subsection Agent and IMAP
15184 The Agent work with any Gnus backend, including nnimap. However,
15185 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
15186 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
15187 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
15189 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
15190 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
15191 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
15192 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
15194 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
15195 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
15196 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
15197 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
15198 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
15200 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15201 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
15202 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
15203 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
15204 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
15205 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
15207 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
15208 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
15209 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
15210 in the group buffer by default.
15212 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
15213 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
15218 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
15221 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
15225 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
15226 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
15227 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
15228 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
15229 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
15230 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
15231 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
15232 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
15235 @node Outgoing Messages
15236 @subsection Outgoing Messages
15238 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
15239 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
15240 after posting, and edit them at will.
15242 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
15243 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
15244 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
15245 messages in the draft group.
15249 @node Agent Variables
15250 @subsection Agent Variables
15253 @item gnus-agent-directory
15254 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
15255 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
15256 @file{~/News/agent/}.
15258 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
15259 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
15260 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
15261 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
15262 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
15265 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15266 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15267 Hook run when connecting to the network.
15269 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15270 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15271 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
15276 @node Example Setup
15277 @subsection Example Setup
15279 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
15280 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
15281 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
15284 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
15285 ;;; from your ISP's server.
15286 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
15288 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
15289 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
15290 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
15292 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
15293 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
15295 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
15299 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
15300 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
15303 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
15304 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
15305 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
15306 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
15307 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
15310 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
15311 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
15312 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
15313 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
15314 back all the killed groups.)
15316 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
15317 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
15318 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
15321 @node Batching Agents
15322 @subsection Batching Agents
15324 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
15325 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
15326 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
15330 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
15334 @node Agent Caveats
15335 @subsection Agent Caveats
15337 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
15338 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
15342 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
15347 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
15348 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
15354 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
15355 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
15362 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
15363 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
15364 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
15367 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
15368 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
15369 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
15370 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
15371 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
15373 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
15374 before generating the summary buffer.
15376 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
15377 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
15378 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
15380 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
15381 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
15382 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
15383 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
15386 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
15387 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
15388 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
15389 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
15390 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
15391 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
15392 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
15393 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
15394 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
15395 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
15396 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
15397 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
15398 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
15399 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
15400 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
15401 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
15405 @node Summary Score Commands
15406 @section Summary Score Commands
15407 @cindex score commands
15409 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
15410 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
15411 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
15412 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
15413 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
15415 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
15416 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
15417 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
15418 score file the current one.
15420 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
15425 @kindex V s (Summary)
15426 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
15427 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
15430 @kindex V S (Summary)
15431 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
15432 Display the score of the current article
15433 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
15436 @kindex V t (Summary)
15437 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
15438 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
15439 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
15442 @kindex V R (Summary)
15443 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
15444 Run the current summary through the scoring process
15445 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
15446 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
15447 effect you're having.
15450 @kindex V c (Summary)
15451 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
15452 Make a different score file the current
15453 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
15456 @kindex V e (Summary)
15457 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
15458 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
15459 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
15463 @kindex V f (Summary)
15464 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
15465 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
15466 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
15469 @kindex V F (Summary)
15470 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15471 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
15472 after editing score files.
15475 @kindex V C (Summary)
15476 @findex gnus-score-customize
15477 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
15478 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
15482 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
15487 @kindex V m (Summary)
15488 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
15489 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
15490 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
15493 @kindex V x (Summary)
15494 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
15495 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
15496 expunge all articles below this score
15497 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
15500 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
15501 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
15504 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
15505 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
15509 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
15510 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
15512 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
15513 keys are available:
15517 Score on the author name.
15520 Score on the subject line.
15523 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
15526 Score on the @code{References} line.
15532 Score on the number of lines.
15535 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
15538 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
15539 the followups to this author.
15553 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
15554 what headers you are scoring on.
15566 Substring matching.
15569 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
15598 Greater than number.
15603 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
15604 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
15605 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
15609 Temporary score entry.
15612 Permanent score entry.
15615 Immediately scoring.
15620 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
15621 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
15622 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
15623 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
15625 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
15626 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
15627 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
15628 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
15629 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
15631 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
15632 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
15633 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
15634 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
15635 current score file.
15637 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
15638 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
15639 pretend they are keymaps or not.
15642 @node Group Score Commands
15643 @section Group Score Commands
15644 @cindex group score commands
15646 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
15651 @kindex W f (Group)
15652 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15653 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
15654 all the time. This command will flush the cache
15655 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
15659 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
15661 @findex gnus-batch-score
15662 @cindex batch scoring
15664 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
15668 @node Score Variables
15669 @section Score Variables
15670 @cindex score variables
15674 @item gnus-use-scoring
15675 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
15676 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
15677 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
15679 @item gnus-kill-killed
15680 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
15681 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
15682 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
15683 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
15684 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
15685 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
15686 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
15688 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
15689 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
15690 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
15691 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
15692 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
15694 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
15695 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
15696 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
15697 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
15699 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15700 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
15701 @cindex score cache
15702 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
15703 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
15704 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
15705 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
15706 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
15707 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
15710 @item gnus-save-score
15711 @vindex gnus-save-score
15712 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
15713 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
15714 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
15716 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
15717 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
15718 across group visits.
15720 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15721 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
15722 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
15723 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
15724 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
15725 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
15726 manually entered data.
15728 @item gnus-summary-default-score
15729 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
15730 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
15732 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
15733 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
15734 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
15735 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
15736 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
15737 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
15739 @item gnus-score-over-mark
15740 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
15741 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
15742 default. Default is @samp{+}.
15744 @item gnus-score-below-mark
15745 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
15746 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
15747 default. Default is @samp{-}.
15749 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15750 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
15751 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
15752 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
15754 Predefined functions available are:
15757 @item gnus-score-find-single
15758 @findex gnus-score-find-single
15759 Only apply the group's own score file.
15761 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
15762 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
15763 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
15764 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
15765 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
15766 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
15767 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
15768 then a regexp match is done.
15770 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
15771 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
15773 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
15774 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
15775 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
15776 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
15778 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15779 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
15780 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
15781 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
15782 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
15786 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
15787 functions will be called with the group name as argument, and all the
15788 returned lists of score files will be applied. These functions can also
15789 return lists of score alists directly. In that case, the functions that
15790 return these non-file score alists should probably be placed before the
15791 ``real'' score file functions, to ensure that the last score file
15792 returned is the local score file. Phu.
15794 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
15795 overall score file, you could use the value
15797 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE")) 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
15800 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
15801 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
15802 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
15803 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
15804 are expired. It's 7 by default.
15806 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15807 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
15808 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
15809 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
15810 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
15811 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
15812 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
15815 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15816 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
15817 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
15819 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
15820 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
15821 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
15822 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
15823 threading---according to the current value of
15824 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
15825 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
15826 simplified in this manner.
15831 @node Score File Format
15832 @section Score File Format
15833 @cindex score file format
15835 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
15836 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
15837 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
15839 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
15843 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
15845 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
15847 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
15849 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
15854 (mark-and-expunge -10)
15858 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
15859 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
15860 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
15861 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
15865 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
15866 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
15868 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
15869 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
15870 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
15872 Six keys are supported by this alist:
15877 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
15878 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
15879 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
15880 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
15881 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
15882 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
15883 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
15884 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
15885 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
15886 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
15887 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
15888 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
15889 to articles that matches these score entries.
15891 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
15892 score entry has one to four elements.
15896 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
15897 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
15901 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
15902 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
15903 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
15904 is successful. If this element is not present, the
15905 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
15906 instead. This is 1000 by default.
15909 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
15910 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
15911 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
15912 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
15913 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
15916 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
15917 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
15918 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
15919 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
15922 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
15923 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
15924 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
15925 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
15926 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
15927 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
15928 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
15929 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
15930 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
15931 instead, if you feel like.
15934 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
15935 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
15937 These predicates are true if
15940 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
15943 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
15944 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
15951 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
15952 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
15953 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
15954 it's not. I think.)
15956 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
15957 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
15958 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
15959 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
15962 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
15963 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
15964 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
15965 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
15966 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
15967 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
15968 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
15972 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
15973 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
15974 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
15975 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
15976 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
15977 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
15978 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
15979 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
15982 @item Head, Body, All
15983 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
15987 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
15988 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
15989 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
15990 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
15991 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
15992 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
15993 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
15997 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
15998 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
15999 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
16000 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
16001 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
16002 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
16003 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
16004 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
16005 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
16006 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
16007 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
16011 @cindex Score File Atoms
16013 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16014 lower than this number will be marked as read.
16017 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16018 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
16020 @item mark-and-expunge
16021 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16022 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
16025 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
16026 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
16027 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
16028 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
16029 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
16032 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
16033 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
16036 @item exclude-files
16037 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
16038 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
16042 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
16043 ignored when handling global score files.
16046 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
16047 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
16048 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
16049 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
16052 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
16053 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
16054 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
16055 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
16057 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
16061 (mark-and-expunge -100)
16064 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
16065 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
16066 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
16067 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
16068 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
16070 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
16071 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
16072 scoring rules exist.
16075 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
16076 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
16077 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
16078 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
16079 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
16080 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
16081 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16082 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
16083 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
16084 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
16085 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
16089 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
16090 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
16091 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
16092 file for a number of groups.
16095 @cindex local variables
16096 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
16097 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
16098 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
16099 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
16100 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
16104 @node Score File Editing
16105 @section Score File Editing
16107 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
16108 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
16109 with a mode for that.
16111 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
16112 additional commands:
16117 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
16118 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
16119 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
16120 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
16123 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
16124 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
16125 Insert the current date in numerical format
16126 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
16127 you were wondering.
16130 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
16131 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
16132 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
16133 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
16134 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
16139 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
16141 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
16142 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
16144 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
16145 e} to begin editing score files.
16148 @node Adaptive Scoring
16149 @section Adaptive Scoring
16150 @cindex adaptive scoring
16152 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
16153 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
16154 stupidity, to be precise.
16156 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
16157 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
16158 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
16159 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
16160 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16161 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
16162 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
16163 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
16164 variable to @code{(word line)}.
16166 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16167 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
16168 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
16169 might look something like this:
16172 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16173 '((gnus-unread-mark)
16174 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
16175 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
16176 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
16177 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
16178 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
16179 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
16180 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
16181 (gnus-ancient-mark)
16182 (gnus-low-score-mark)
16183 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
16186 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
16187 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
16188 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
16189 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
16190 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
16191 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
16194 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
16195 will be applied to each article.
16197 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
16198 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
16199 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
16200 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
16202 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
16203 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
16204 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
16205 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
16207 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
16208 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
16209 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
16210 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
16212 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
16213 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
16214 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
16215 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
16216 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
16217 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
16219 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
16220 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
16221 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
16222 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
16223 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
16224 aspirins afterwards.)
16226 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
16227 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
16228 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
16230 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
16231 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
16232 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
16234 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
16235 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
16236 let you use different rules in different groups.
16238 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
16239 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
16240 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
16243 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
16244 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
16245 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
16246 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
16247 the length of the match is less than
16248 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
16249 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
16252 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16253 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
16254 headers. If you adapt on words, the
16255 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
16256 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
16259 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16260 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
16261 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
16262 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
16263 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
16266 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
16267 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
16268 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
16269 score with 30 points.
16271 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
16272 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
16273 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
16274 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
16275 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
16277 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
16278 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
16279 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
16280 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
16281 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
16283 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
16284 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
16285 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
16286 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
16288 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
16289 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
16290 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
16291 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
16293 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
16294 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
16295 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
16296 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
16297 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
16299 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
16300 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
16301 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
16303 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
16304 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
16305 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
16306 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
16309 @node Home Score File
16310 @section Home Score File
16312 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
16313 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
16314 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
16315 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
16317 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
16318 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
16319 could perhaps use the same home score file.
16321 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
16322 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
16327 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
16331 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
16332 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
16336 A list. The elements in this list can be:
16340 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
16341 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
16344 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
16345 the home score file.
16348 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
16351 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
16356 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
16359 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16360 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
16363 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
16364 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
16366 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
16368 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16369 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
16372 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
16373 Other functions include
16376 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
16377 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
16378 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
16379 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
16383 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
16384 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
16385 their own home score files:
16388 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16389 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
16390 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
16391 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
16392 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
16395 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
16396 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
16397 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
16398 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
16399 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
16401 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
16402 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
16403 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
16404 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
16405 precedence over this variable.
16408 @node Followups To Yourself
16409 @section Followups To Yourself
16411 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
16412 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
16413 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
16414 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
16415 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
16416 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
16420 @item gnus-score-followup-article
16421 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
16422 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
16425 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
16426 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
16427 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
16431 @vindex message-sent-hook
16432 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
16433 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
16435 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
16439 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
16440 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
16444 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16445 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16448 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
16449 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
16454 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
16458 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
16459 is system-dependent.
16463 @section Scoring Tips
16464 @cindex scoring tips
16470 @cindex scoring crossposts
16471 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
16472 the @code{Xref} header.
16474 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
16477 @item Multiple crossposts
16478 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
16479 more than, say, 3 groups:
16481 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
16484 @item Matching on the body
16485 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
16486 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
16487 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
16488 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
16489 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
16490 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
16491 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
16494 @item Marking as read
16495 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
16496 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
16497 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
16501 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
16503 @item Negated character classes
16504 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
16505 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
16506 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
16510 @node Reverse Scoring
16511 @section Reverse Scoring
16512 @cindex reverse scoring
16514 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
16515 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
16516 like this in your score file:
16520 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
16525 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
16526 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
16529 @node Global Score Files
16530 @section Global Score Files
16531 @cindex global score files
16533 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
16534 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
16535 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
16537 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
16538 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
16539 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
16541 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
16542 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
16543 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
16544 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
16545 files are applicable to which group.
16547 Say you want to use the score file
16548 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
16549 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
16552 (setq gnus-global-score-files
16553 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
16554 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
16557 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
16558 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
16559 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
16560 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
16561 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
16563 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
16564 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
16566 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
16567 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
16568 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
16569 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
16570 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
16571 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
16573 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
16579 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
16581 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
16583 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
16585 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
16586 lowered out of existence.
16588 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
16589 articles completely.
16592 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
16593 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
16594 old articles for a long time.
16597 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
16598 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
16599 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
16600 holding our breath yet?
16604 @section Kill Files
16607 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
16608 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
16609 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
16611 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
16612 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
16613 files into score files.
16615 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
16616 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
16617 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
16618 that isn't a very good idea.
16620 Normal kill files look like this:
16623 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16624 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
16628 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
16629 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
16631 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
16632 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
16635 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
16640 @kindex M-k (Summary)
16641 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
16642 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
16645 @kindex M-K (Summary)
16646 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
16647 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
16650 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
16655 @kindex M-k (Group)
16656 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
16657 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
16660 @kindex M-K (Group)
16661 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
16662 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
16665 Kill file variables:
16668 @item gnus-kill-file-name
16669 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
16670 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
16671 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
16672 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
16673 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
16674 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
16676 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16677 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
16678 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
16679 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
16682 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
16683 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
16684 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
16685 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
16686 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
16687 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
16688 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
16689 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
16690 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
16692 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16693 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
16694 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
16699 @node Converting Kill Files
16700 @section Converting Kill Files
16702 @cindex converting kill files
16704 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
16705 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
16706 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
16709 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
16710 You can fetch it from
16711 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
16713 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
16714 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
16715 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
16723 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
16724 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
16725 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
16727 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
16728 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
16729 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
16730 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
16731 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
16732 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
16733 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
16734 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
16738 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
16739 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
16740 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
16741 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
16745 @node Using GroupLens
16746 @subsection Using GroupLens
16748 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
16750 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
16751 better bit in town at the moment.
16753 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
16757 @item gnus-use-grouplens
16758 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
16759 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
16760 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
16762 @item grouplens-pseudonym
16763 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
16764 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
16765 with the Better Bit Bureau.
16767 @item grouplens-newsgroups
16768 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
16769 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
16773 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
16774 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
16775 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
16776 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
16777 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
16778 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
16781 @node Rating Articles
16782 @subsection Rating Articles
16784 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
16785 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
16786 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
16787 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
16790 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
16795 @kindex r (GroupLens)
16796 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
16797 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
16800 @kindex k (GroupLens)
16801 @findex grouplens-score-thread
16802 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
16803 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
16804 threads in rec.humor.
16808 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
16809 the score of the article you're reading.
16814 @kindex n (GroupLens)
16815 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
16816 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
16819 @kindex , (GroupLens)
16820 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
16821 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
16825 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
16826 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
16829 @node Displaying Predictions
16830 @subsection Displaying Predictions
16832 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
16833 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
16834 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
16835 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
16836 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
16838 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
16839 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
16840 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
16841 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
16842 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
16843 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
16844 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
16845 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
16846 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
16847 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
16848 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
16849 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
16850 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
16852 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
16853 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
16854 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
16855 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
16857 The following are valid values for that variable.
16860 @item prediction-spot
16861 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
16864 @item confidence-interval
16865 A numeric confidence interval.
16867 @item prediction-bar
16868 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
16870 @item confidence-bar
16871 Numerical confidence.
16873 @item confidence-spot
16874 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
16876 @item prediction-num
16877 Plain-old numeric value.
16879 @item confidence-plus-minus
16880 Prediction +/- confidence.
16885 @node GroupLens Variables
16886 @subsection GroupLens Variables
16890 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
16891 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
16892 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
16893 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
16896 @item grouplens-bbb-host
16897 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
16900 @item grouplens-bbb-port
16901 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
16903 @item grouplens-score-offset
16904 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
16905 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
16908 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
16909 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
16910 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
16915 @node Advanced Scoring
16916 @section Advanced Scoring
16918 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
16919 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
16920 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
16921 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
16922 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
16924 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
16928 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
16929 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
16930 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
16934 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
16935 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
16937 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
16938 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
16939 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
16940 non-@code{nil} value.
16942 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
16943 operator, and various match operators.
16950 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16951 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
16952 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
16957 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
16958 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
16959 then this operator will return @code{false}.
16964 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
16965 logical negation of the value of its argument.
16969 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
16970 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
16971 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
16972 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
16973 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
16974 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
16975 the ancestry you want to go.
16977 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
16978 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
16979 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
16980 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
16981 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
16984 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
16985 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
16987 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
16988 when he's talking about Gnus:
16992 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
16993 ("subject" "Gnus"))
16999 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
17003 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17010 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
17011 really don't want to read what he's written:
17015 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17016 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
17020 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
17021 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
17022 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
17029 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
17030 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
17031 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
17032 ("body" "white.*socks"))
17036 The possibilities are endless.
17039 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
17040 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
17042 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
17043 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
17044 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
17045 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
17046 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
17047 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
17048 @samp{subject}) first.
17050 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
17051 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
17062 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
17063 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
17069 ("subject" "Gnus")))
17076 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
17077 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
17082 @section Score Decays
17083 @cindex score decays
17086 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
17087 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
17088 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
17089 use them in any sensible way.
17091 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
17092 @findex gnus-decay-score
17093 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
17094 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
17095 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
17096 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
17097 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
17098 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
17099 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
17100 definition of that function:
17103 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
17105 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
17106 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
17109 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
17111 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
17113 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
17116 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
17117 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
17118 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
17119 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
17123 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
17126 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
17129 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
17133 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
17134 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
17135 the new score, which should be an integer.
17137 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
17138 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
17145 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
17146 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
17147 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
17148 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
17149 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
17150 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
17151 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
17152 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
17153 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
17154 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
17155 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
17156 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
17157 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
17158 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
17159 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
17160 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
17161 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
17162 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
17166 @node Process/Prefix
17167 @section Process/Prefix
17168 @cindex process/prefix convention
17170 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
17171 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
17173 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
17174 command to be performed on.
17178 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
17179 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
17180 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
17181 with the current one.
17183 @vindex transient-mark-mode
17184 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
17185 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
17187 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
17188 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
17191 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
17192 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
17194 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
17197 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
17198 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
17199 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
17200 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17202 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
17203 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
17204 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
17205 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
17206 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
17207 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
17208 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
17209 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
17211 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
17212 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
17213 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
17214 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
17215 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
17219 @section Interactive
17220 @cindex interaction
17224 @item gnus-novice-user
17225 @vindex gnus-novice-user
17226 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
17227 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
17228 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
17229 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
17232 @item gnus-expert-user
17233 @vindex gnus-expert-user
17234 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
17235 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
17236 matter how strange.
17238 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
17239 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
17240 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
17241 is @code{t} by default.
17243 @item gnus-interactive-exit
17244 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
17245 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
17250 @node Symbolic Prefixes
17251 @section Symbolic Prefixes
17252 @cindex symbolic prefixes
17254 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
17255 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
17256 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
17257 rule of 900 to the current article.
17259 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
17260 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
17261 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
17262 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
17263 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
17264 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
17265 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
17267 @kindex M-i (Summary)
17268 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
17269 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
17270 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
17271 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
17272 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
17273 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
17274 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
17275 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
17277 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
17278 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
17279 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
17281 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
17285 @node Formatting Variables
17286 @section Formatting Variables
17287 @cindex formatting variables
17289 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
17290 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
17291 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
17292 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
17293 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
17296 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
17297 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
17298 lots of percentages everywhere.
17301 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
17302 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
17303 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
17304 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
17305 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
17308 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
17309 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
17310 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
17311 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
17312 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
17313 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
17314 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
17315 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
17317 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
17318 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
17320 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
17321 @findex gnus-update-format
17322 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
17323 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
17324 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
17325 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
17329 @node Formatting Basics
17330 @subsection Formatting Basics
17332 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
17333 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
17334 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
17336 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
17337 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
17338 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
17339 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
17340 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
17343 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
17344 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
17345 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
17346 less than 4 characters wide.
17349 @node Mode Line Formatting
17350 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
17352 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
17353 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
17354 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
17355 with the following two differences:
17360 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
17363 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
17364 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
17365 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
17366 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
17367 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
17368 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
17369 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
17374 @node Advanced Formatting
17375 @subsection Advanced Formatting
17377 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
17378 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
17379 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
17380 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
17382 These are the valid modifiers:
17387 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
17391 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
17396 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
17399 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
17404 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
17407 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
17410 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
17413 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
17417 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
17418 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
17419 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
17420 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
17421 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
17422 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
17423 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
17425 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
17426 last operation, padding.
17428 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
17429 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
17430 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
17431 @xref{Compilation}.
17434 @node User-Defined Specs
17435 @subsection User-Defined Specs
17437 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
17438 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
17439 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
17440 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
17441 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
17442 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
17443 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
17444 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
17445 should protect against that.
17447 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
17448 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
17449 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
17450 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
17454 @node Formatting Fonts
17455 @subsection Formatting Fonts
17457 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
17458 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
17459 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
17460 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
17463 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
17464 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
17465 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
17466 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
17467 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
17468 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
17470 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
17471 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
17472 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
17473 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
17474 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
17475 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
17476 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
17477 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
17479 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
17482 ;; Create three face types.
17483 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
17484 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
17486 ;; We want the article count to be in
17487 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
17488 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
17489 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
17491 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
17492 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
17494 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
17495 (setq gnus-group-line-format
17496 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
17499 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
17500 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
17502 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
17503 mode-line variables.
17506 @node Windows Configuration
17507 @section Windows Configuration
17508 @cindex windows configuration
17510 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
17512 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
17513 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
17514 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
17515 @code{t} by default.
17517 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
17518 glitches. Use at your own peril.
17520 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
17521 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
17522 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
17525 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
17526 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
17527 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17531 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
17532 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
17533 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
17534 possible names is listed below.
17536 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
17537 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
17540 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17544 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
17545 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
17546 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
17547 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
17548 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
17549 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
17550 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
17551 size spec per split.
17553 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
17554 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
17555 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
17556 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
17557 present) gets focus.
17559 Here's a more complicated example:
17562 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
17563 (summary 0.25 point)
17564 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
17568 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
17569 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
17570 occupy, not a percentage.
17572 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
17573 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
17574 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
17575 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
17576 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
17579 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
17582 (article (horizontal 1.0
17587 (summary 0.25 point)
17592 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
17593 @code{horizontal} thingie?
17595 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
17596 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
17597 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
17598 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
17599 the screen is to be given to this strip.
17601 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
17602 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
17603 lines from the splits.
17605 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
17609 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
17610 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
17611 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
17612 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
17613 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
17614 size = number | frame-params
17615 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
17618 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
17619 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
17620 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
17621 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
17623 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
17624 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
17625 @cindex window height
17626 @cindex window width
17627 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
17628 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
17629 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
17630 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
17631 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
17632 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
17634 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
17635 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
17636 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
17637 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
17639 @findex gnus-configure-frame
17640 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
17641 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
17642 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
17643 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
17644 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
17645 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
17646 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
17647 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
17648 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
17649 configuration list.
17652 (gnus-configure-frame
17656 (article 0.3 point))
17664 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
17665 @code{frame} split:
17668 (gnus-configure-frame
17671 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
17673 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
17674 (user-position . t)
17675 (left . -1) (top . 1))
17680 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
17681 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
17682 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
17683 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
17684 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
17685 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
17686 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
17687 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
17689 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
17690 be found in its default value.
17692 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
17693 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
17694 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
17698 (message (horizontal 1.0
17699 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
17701 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
17706 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
17707 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
17708 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
17711 (message (frame 1.0
17712 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
17713 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
17714 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
17715 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
17716 (name . "Message"))
17717 (message 1.0 point))))
17720 @findex gnus-add-configuration
17721 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
17722 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
17723 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
17724 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
17727 (gnus-add-configuration
17728 '(article (vertical 1.0
17730 (summary .25 point)
17734 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
17735 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
17736 Gnus has been loaded.
17738 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
17739 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
17740 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
17741 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
17742 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
17744 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
17745 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
17746 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
17749 @subsection Example Window Configurations
17753 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
17754 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
17769 (gnus-add-configuration
17772 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17774 (summary 0.16 point)
17777 (gnus-add-configuration
17780 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
17781 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
17787 @node Faces and Fonts
17788 @section Faces and Fonts
17793 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
17794 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
17795 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
17800 @section Compilation
17801 @cindex compilation
17802 @cindex byte-compilation
17804 @findex gnus-compile
17806 Remember all those line format specification variables?
17807 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
17808 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
17809 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
17810 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
17811 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
17814 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
17815 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
17816 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
17817 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
17818 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
17819 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
17820 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
17824 @section Mode Lines
17827 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
17828 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
17829 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
17830 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
17831 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
17832 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
17833 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
17836 @cindex display-time
17838 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
17839 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
17840 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
17841 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
17842 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
17843 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
17844 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
17845 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
17848 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
17850 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
17851 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
17853 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
17854 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
17855 (length display-time-string)))))
17858 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
17859 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
17860 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
17861 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
17862 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
17865 @node Highlighting and Menus
17866 @section Highlighting and Menus
17868 @cindex highlighting
17871 @vindex gnus-visual
17872 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
17873 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
17874 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
17877 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
17878 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
17881 @item group-highlight
17882 Do highlights in the group buffer.
17883 @item summary-highlight
17884 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
17885 @item article-highlight
17886 Do highlights in the article buffer.
17888 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
17890 Create menus in the group buffer.
17892 Create menus in the summary buffers.
17894 Create menus in the article buffer.
17896 Create menus in the browse buffer.
17898 Create menus in the server buffer.
17900 Create menus in the score buffers.
17902 Create menus in all buffers.
17905 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
17906 buffers, you could say something like:
17909 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
17912 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
17915 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
17918 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
17919 in all Gnus buffers.
17921 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
17924 @item gnus-mouse-face
17925 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
17926 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
17927 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
17931 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
17935 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
17936 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
17937 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
17939 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
17940 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
17941 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
17943 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
17944 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
17945 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
17947 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
17948 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
17949 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
17951 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
17952 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
17953 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
17955 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
17956 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
17957 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
17968 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
17969 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
17970 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
17971 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
17972 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
17976 @vindex gnus-carpal
17977 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
17978 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
17979 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
17984 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17985 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
17986 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
17988 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
17989 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
17990 Face used on buttons.
17992 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
17993 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
17994 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
17996 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17997 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
17998 Buttons in the group buffer.
18000 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18001 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18002 Buttons in the summary buffer.
18004 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18005 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18006 Buttons in the server buffer.
18008 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18009 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18010 Buttons in the browse buffer.
18013 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
18014 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
18015 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
18023 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
18024 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
18025 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
18026 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
18027 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
18029 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
18030 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
18031 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
18033 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
18034 been idle for thirty minutes:
18037 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
18040 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
18044 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
18047 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
18048 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
18049 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18051 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
18052 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
18053 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
18054 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18056 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
18057 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
18058 @var{idle} minutes.
18060 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
18061 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
18064 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
18065 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
18066 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
18068 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
18069 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
18070 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
18071 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
18073 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
18074 your @file{.gnus} file:
18076 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
18078 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
18081 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
18082 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
18083 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
18084 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
18085 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
18086 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
18087 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
18088 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
18089 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
18090 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
18091 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
18093 @findex gnus-demon-init
18094 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
18095 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
18096 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
18097 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
18098 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
18100 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
18101 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
18102 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
18111 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
18112 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
18114 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
18115 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
18116 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
18117 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
18120 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
18121 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
18122 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
18123 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
18125 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
18126 this will make spam disappear.
18128 There are some variables to customize, of course:
18131 @item gnus-use-nocem
18132 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
18133 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
18136 @item gnus-nocem-groups
18137 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
18138 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
18139 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
18140 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
18142 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
18143 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
18144 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
18145 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
18146 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
18147 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
18149 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
18150 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
18152 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
18153 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
18154 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
18155 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
18156 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
18157 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
18158 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
18159 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
18160 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
18161 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
18163 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
18164 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
18167 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
18170 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
18171 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
18174 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
18177 The specs are applied left-to-right.
18180 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
18181 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
18183 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
18184 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
18185 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
18186 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
18188 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
18189 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
18192 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
18194 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
18202 This might be dangerous, though.
18204 @item gnus-nocem-directory
18205 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
18206 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
18207 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
18209 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18210 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18211 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
18212 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
18213 might then see old spam.
18215 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
18216 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
18217 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
18218 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
18219 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
18222 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18223 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18224 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
18225 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
18229 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
18230 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
18231 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
18232 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
18239 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
18240 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
18241 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
18243 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
18244 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
18245 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
18246 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
18247 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
18248 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
18249 @code{undo} function.
18251 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
18252 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
18253 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
18254 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
18255 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
18256 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
18257 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
18258 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
18259 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
18260 never be totally undoable.
18262 @findex gnus-undo-mode
18263 @vindex gnus-use-undo
18265 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
18266 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
18267 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
18268 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
18273 @section Moderation
18276 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
18277 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
18278 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
18281 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
18285 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
18288 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18290 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
18295 You split your incoming mail by matching on
18296 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
18297 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
18300 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
18301 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
18304 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
18305 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
18309 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
18312 (setq gnus-moderated-list
18313 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
18317 @node XEmacs Enhancements
18318 @section XEmacs Enhancements
18321 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
18325 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
18326 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
18327 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
18328 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
18341 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
18342 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
18343 over your shoulder as you read news.
18346 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
18347 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
18348 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
18349 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
18350 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
18355 @subsubsection Picon Basics
18357 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
18366 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
18367 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
18368 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
18369 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
18370 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
18371 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
18372 @code{GIF} formats.
18375 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18376 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
18377 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
18378 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
18379 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
18381 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18382 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
18383 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
18384 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
18385 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
18386 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18389 @node Picon Requirements
18390 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
18392 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
18393 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
18396 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
18397 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
18398 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
18400 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18401 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
18402 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
18403 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
18404 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
18408 @subsubsection Easy Picons
18410 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
18411 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
18414 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
18415 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
18418 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
18419 containing the Picons databases.
18421 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
18424 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18425 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
18430 @subsubsection Hard Picons
18438 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
18439 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
18440 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
18441 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
18442 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
18447 @item gnus-picons-database
18448 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18449 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
18450 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
18451 subdirectories. This is only useful if
18452 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
18453 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
18455 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18456 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18457 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
18458 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
18459 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
18460 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
18461 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18463 @item gnus-picons-display-where
18464 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18465 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
18466 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
18467 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
18468 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
18469 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
18470 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
18472 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18473 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18474 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
18479 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
18480 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
18482 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
18483 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
18486 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18488 @item gnus-article-display-picons
18489 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18490 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
18491 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
18493 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
18494 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18495 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
18501 @node Picon Useless Configuration
18502 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
18510 The following variables offer further control over how things are
18511 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
18512 don't need to worry about.
18516 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
18517 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
18518 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18519 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
18521 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
18522 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
18523 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
18524 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
18526 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
18527 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
18528 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18529 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
18530 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
18532 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18533 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18534 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
18535 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
18536 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
18537 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
18538 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
18540 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18541 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18542 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
18543 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
18545 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18546 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
18547 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
18548 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
18549 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
18550 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
18551 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
18553 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18554 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
18555 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
18556 Defaults to @code{nil}.
18558 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
18559 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
18560 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
18561 Defaults to @code{t}.
18563 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18564 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
18565 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
18566 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
18568 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
18569 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
18570 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
18572 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18573 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
18574 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
18575 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
18577 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
18578 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
18580 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18581 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
18582 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
18583 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
18584 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
18585 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
18586 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
18587 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
18598 @subsection Smileys
18603 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
18608 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
18609 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
18611 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
18612 @file{.gnus.el} file:
18615 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
18618 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
18619 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
18620 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
18621 text and maps that to file names.
18623 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
18624 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
18625 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
18626 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
18627 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
18628 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
18630 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
18631 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
18633 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
18634 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
18635 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
18637 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
18638 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
18642 @item smiley-data-directory
18643 @vindex smiley-data-directory
18644 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
18646 @item smiley-flesh-color
18647 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
18648 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
18650 @item smiley-features-color
18651 @vindex smiley-features-color
18652 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18654 @item smiley-tongue-color
18655 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
18656 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
18658 @item smiley-circle-color
18659 @vindex smiley-circle-color
18660 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
18662 @item smiley-mouse-face
18663 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
18664 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
18670 @subsection Toolbar
18680 @item gnus-use-toolbar
18681 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
18682 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
18683 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
18684 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
18686 @item gnus-group-toolbar
18687 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
18688 The toolbar in the group buffer.
18690 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
18691 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
18692 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
18694 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18695 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
18696 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
18702 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
18705 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18706 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
18707 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
18708 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
18709 unusual directory structure.
18711 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18712 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
18713 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
18714 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
18716 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18717 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
18718 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
18719 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
18720 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
18721 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
18723 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18724 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
18725 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
18739 @node Fuzzy Matching
18740 @section Fuzzy Matching
18741 @cindex fuzzy matching
18743 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
18744 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
18746 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
18747 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
18748 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
18750 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
18751 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
18752 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
18753 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
18754 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
18757 @node Thwarting Email Spam
18758 @section Thwarting Email Spam
18762 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
18764 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
18765 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
18766 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
18767 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
18768 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
18769 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
18770 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
18771 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
18774 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
18775 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
18776 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
18777 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
18778 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
18779 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
18783 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
18784 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
18786 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
18787 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
18788 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
18789 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
18790 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
18791 part of the mail address.)
18794 (setq message-default-news-headers
18795 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
18798 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
18799 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
18804 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
18805 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
18806 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
18812 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
18813 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
18814 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
18815 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
18817 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
18818 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
18819 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
18820 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
18821 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
18822 your fancy split rule in this way:
18827 (to "larsi" "misc")
18831 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
18832 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
18833 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
18834 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
18835 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
18837 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
18838 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
18839 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
18840 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
18841 cosmic balance somewhat.
18843 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
18844 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
18845 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
18846 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
18849 @node Various Various
18850 @section Various Various
18856 @item gnus-home-directory
18857 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
18858 defaults to @file{~/}.
18860 @item gnus-directory
18861 @vindex gnus-directory
18862 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
18863 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
18864 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
18866 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
18867 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
18868 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
18869 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
18871 @item gnus-default-directory
18872 @vindex gnus-default-directory
18873 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
18874 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
18875 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
18876 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
18877 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
18878 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
18881 @vindex gnus-verbose
18882 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
18883 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
18884 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
18885 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
18886 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
18888 @item gnus-verbose-backends
18889 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
18890 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
18891 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
18893 @item nnheader-max-head-length
18894 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
18895 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
18896 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
18897 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
18898 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
18899 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
18900 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
18901 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
18902 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
18904 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
18905 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
18906 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
18907 read when doing the operation described above.
18909 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18910 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18912 @cindex invalid characters in file names
18913 @cindex characters in file names
18914 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
18915 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
18916 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
18919 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
18923 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
18924 Windows (phooey) systems.
18926 @item gnus-hidden-properties
18927 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
18928 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
18929 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
18930 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
18932 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
18933 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
18934 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
18935 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
18936 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
18938 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
18939 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
18940 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
18942 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18943 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
18945 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
18946 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
18947 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
18948 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
18951 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
18960 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
18961 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
18963 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
18965 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
18971 Not because of victories @*
18974 but for the common sunshine,@*
18976 the largess of the spring.
18980 but for the day's work done@*
18981 as well as I was able;@*
18982 not for a seat upon the dais@*
18983 but at the common table.@*
18988 @chapter Appendices
18991 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
18992 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
18993 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
18994 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
18995 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
18996 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
18997 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
18998 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
19006 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
19007 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
19009 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
19010 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
19011 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
19012 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
19013 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
19015 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
19016 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
19017 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
19018 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
19019 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
19020 appropriate name, don't you think?)
19022 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
19023 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
19024 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
19025 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
19028 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
19029 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
19030 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
19031 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
19032 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
19033 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
19034 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
19035 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
19036 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
19040 @node Gnus Versions
19041 @subsection Gnus Versions
19042 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
19044 @cindex September Gnus
19045 @cindex Quassia Gnus
19047 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
19048 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
19049 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
19051 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
19052 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
19054 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
19055 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
19057 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
19058 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
19060 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
19061 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
19064 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
19066 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
19067 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
19068 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
19069 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
19070 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
19071 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
19074 @node Other Gnus Versions
19075 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
19078 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
19079 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
19080 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
19081 @sc{mime} capabilities.
19083 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
19084 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
19085 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
19086 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
19093 What's the point of Gnus?
19095 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
19096 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
19097 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
19098 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
19099 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
19100 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
19101 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
19102 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
19103 keep track of millions of people who post?
19105 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
19106 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
19107 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
19108 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
19109 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
19110 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
19111 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
19112 every one of you to explore and invent.
19114 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
19115 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
19118 @node Compatibility
19119 @subsection Compatibility
19121 @cindex compatibility
19122 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
19123 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
19124 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
19129 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
19133 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
19136 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
19139 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
19140 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
19141 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
19142 important variables have their values copied into their global
19143 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
19144 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
19146 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
19147 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
19148 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
19149 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
19150 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
19154 @cindex highlighting
19155 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
19156 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
19157 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
19158 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
19159 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
19160 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
19163 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
19164 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
19165 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
19166 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
19168 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
19169 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
19170 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
19171 to stop doing it the old way.
19173 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
19175 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19177 @cindex reporting bugs
19179 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
19180 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
19181 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
19183 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
19184 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
19185 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
19186 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
19191 @subsection Conformity
19193 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
19194 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
19201 There are no known breaches of this standard.
19205 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
19207 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
19208 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
19209 We do have some breaches to this one.
19215 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
19216 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
19217 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
19218 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
19219 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
19224 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
19225 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
19226 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
19227 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
19231 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
19232 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
19237 @subsection Emacsen
19243 Gnus should work on :
19251 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
19255 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
19256 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
19259 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
19260 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
19261 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
19265 @node Gnus Development
19266 @subsection Gnus Development
19268 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
19269 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
19270 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
19271 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
19272 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
19273 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
19274 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
19275 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
19277 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
19278 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
19279 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
19280 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
19281 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
19284 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
19285 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
19286 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
19287 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
19288 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
19290 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
19291 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
19292 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
19293 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
19294 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
19295 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
19296 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
19297 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
19298 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
19299 can't be assumed to do so.
19304 @subsection Contributors
19305 @cindex contributors
19307 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
19308 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
19309 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
19310 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
19311 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
19312 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
19313 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
19314 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
19315 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
19316 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
19318 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
19324 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
19327 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
19328 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
19329 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
19330 functionality and stuff.
19333 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
19334 well as numerous other things).
19337 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
19340 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
19343 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
19346 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
19347 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
19350 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
19353 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
19354 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19357 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
19360 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
19363 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
19366 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
19369 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
19370 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
19373 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
19376 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
19379 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
19382 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
19386 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
19389 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
19392 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
19395 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
19396 well as autoconf support.
19400 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
19401 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
19403 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
19412 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
19416 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
19426 Alexei V. Barantsev,
19441 Massimo Campostrini,
19446 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
19447 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
19451 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
19454 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
19460 Michael Welsh Duggan,
19465 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
19469 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
19477 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
19479 Michelangelo Grigni,
19483 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
19485 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
19487 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
19494 François Felix Ingrand,
19495 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
19496 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
19498 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
19509 Peter Skov Knudsen,
19510 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
19512 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
19513 Thor Kristoffersen,
19516 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
19534 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
19535 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
19542 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
19547 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
19551 John McClary Prevost,
19557 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
19562 Christian von Roques,
19565 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
19572 Philippe Schnoebelen,
19574 Randal L. Schwartz,
19588 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
19593 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
19609 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
19614 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
19615 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
19616 (550kB and counting).
19618 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
19621 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
19622 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
19626 @subsection New Features
19627 @cindex new features
19630 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
19631 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
19632 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
19633 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
19634 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
19637 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
19638 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
19639 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
19642 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
19644 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
19649 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
19650 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
19653 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
19654 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
19657 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
19660 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
19661 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
19662 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
19665 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
19666 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
19667 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
19668 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19671 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
19672 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19675 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
19676 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
19677 (@pxref{The Active File}).
19680 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
19681 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
19684 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
19685 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
19686 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
19689 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
19690 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
19691 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
19694 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
19695 the @file{.emacs} file.
19698 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
19699 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
19702 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
19703 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
19706 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
19707 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19710 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
19711 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
19714 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
19715 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
19718 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
19721 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
19722 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
19725 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
19726 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
19729 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
19730 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
19733 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
19736 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
19737 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19740 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
19744 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
19748 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
19749 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
19752 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
19758 @node September Gnus
19759 @subsubsection September Gnus
19763 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
19767 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
19772 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
19773 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
19777 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
19778 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
19782 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
19786 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
19787 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
19790 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
19794 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19797 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
19800 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
19803 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
19807 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
19808 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
19811 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
19815 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
19819 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
19823 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
19827 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
19830 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
19831 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
19834 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
19838 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
19839 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
19842 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
19845 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
19846 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
19847 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
19850 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
19854 The Gnus cache is much faster.
19857 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
19861 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
19862 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
19865 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
19866 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
19869 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
19870 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
19873 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
19874 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
19875 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
19878 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
19879 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
19882 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
19885 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19888 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
19891 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
19894 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
19895 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
19898 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
19902 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
19905 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
19910 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
19913 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
19917 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
19920 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
19924 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
19927 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
19930 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
19931 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
19934 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
19935 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
19939 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
19940 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
19943 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
19947 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
19948 buffer to allow easier treatment.
19951 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
19954 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
19958 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
19962 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
19963 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
19966 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
19970 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
19971 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
19974 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
19975 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19978 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
19982 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
19985 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
19988 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
19994 @subsubsection Red Gnus
19996 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
20000 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
20007 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
20010 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
20011 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
20014 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
20015 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
20019 Article washing status can be displayed in the
20020 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
20023 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
20026 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
20027 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
20030 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
20034 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
20035 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
20039 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
20040 Server Internals}).
20043 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
20047 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
20050 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
20051 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
20054 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
20055 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
20056 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
20059 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
20060 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20063 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
20064 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
20067 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
20071 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
20072 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20075 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
20076 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20079 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
20083 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
20086 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
20090 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
20091 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20094 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
20095 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20098 A new command for reading collections of documents
20099 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
20100 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
20103 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
20107 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
20108 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
20111 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
20112 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
20113 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
20116 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
20117 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
20121 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
20125 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
20129 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
20134 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
20138 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
20142 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
20143 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
20146 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
20152 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
20154 New features in Gnus 5.6:
20159 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
20160 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
20161 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
20164 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
20165 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
20166 group, which is created automatically.
20169 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
20173 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
20176 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
20177 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
20180 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
20184 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
20187 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
20188 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
20191 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
20194 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
20195 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
20198 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
20199 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
20202 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
20203 control over simplification.
20206 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
20209 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
20213 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
20216 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
20219 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
20220 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
20221 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
20224 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
20225 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
20228 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
20232 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
20233 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
20236 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
20237 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
20240 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
20244 A history of where mails have been split is available.
20247 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
20250 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
20251 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
20254 A new function for citing in Message has been
20255 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
20258 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
20261 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
20265 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
20266 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
20269 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
20270 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
20273 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
20276 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
20280 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
20281 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
20283 New features in Gnus 5.8:
20287 @item The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
20288 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
20290 If you used procmail like in
20293 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
20294 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
20295 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
20296 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
20299 this now has changed to
20303 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
20307 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
20308 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
20310 @item Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
20311 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
20313 @item Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
20314 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
20316 @item @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
20317 called to position point.
20319 @item The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
20320 summary buffers and NOV files.
20322 @item @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
20323 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
20325 @item The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
20326 subtly different manner.
20328 @item New web-based backends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
20329 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
20330 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
20332 @item Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
20340 @section The Manual
20344 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
20345 either @code{texi2dvi}
20347 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
20348 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
20350 to get what you hold in your hands now.
20352 The following conventions have been used:
20357 This is a @samp{string}
20360 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
20363 This is a @file{file}
20366 This is a @code{symbol}
20370 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
20374 (setq flargnoze "yes")
20377 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
20380 (setq flumphel 'yes)
20383 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
20384 ever get them confused.
20388 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
20389 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
20390 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
20391 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
20392 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
20393 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
20394 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
20400 @node On Writing Manuals
20401 @section On Writing Manuals
20403 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
20404 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
20405 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
20406 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
20407 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
20408 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
20411 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
20412 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
20413 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
20416 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
20417 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
20422 @section Terminology
20424 @cindex terminology
20429 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
20430 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
20431 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
20432 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
20433 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
20437 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
20438 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
20439 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
20440 not posting, and replying is not following up.
20444 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
20448 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
20453 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
20454 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
20455 is all done by the backends.
20459 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
20460 default, way of getting news.
20464 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
20465 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
20470 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
20471 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
20475 A message that has been posted as news.
20478 @cindex mail message
20479 A message that has been mailed.
20483 A mail message or news article
20487 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
20492 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
20497 A line from the head of an article.
20501 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
20502 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
20506 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
20507 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
20508 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
20509 normal @sc{head} format.
20513 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
20514 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
20515 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
20516 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
20517 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
20518 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
20520 @item killed groups
20521 @cindex killed groups
20522 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
20523 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
20525 @item zombie groups
20526 @cindex zombie groups
20527 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
20530 @cindex active file
20531 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
20532 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
20533 is rather large, as you might surmise.
20536 @cindex bogus groups
20537 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
20538 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
20539 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
20542 @cindex activating groups
20543 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
20544 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
20545 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
20549 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
20551 @item select method
20552 @cindex select method
20553 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
20556 @item virtual server
20557 @cindex virtual server
20558 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
20559 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
20560 whole is a virtual server.
20564 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
20565 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
20568 @item ephemeral groups
20569 @cindex ephemeral groups
20570 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
20571 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
20572 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
20575 @cindex solid groups
20576 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
20577 group buffer are solid groups.
20579 @item sparse articles
20580 @cindex sparse articles
20581 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
20582 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
20586 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
20587 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
20591 @cindex thread root
20592 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
20593 articles in the thread.
20597 An article that has responses.
20601 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
20605 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
20606 specified by RFC 1153.
20612 @node Customization
20613 @section Customization
20614 @cindex general customization
20616 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
20617 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
20618 for some quite common situations.
20621 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
20622 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
20623 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
20624 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
20628 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
20629 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
20631 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
20632 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
20633 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
20637 @item gnus-read-active-file
20638 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
20639 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
20640 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
20641 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
20642 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
20644 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
20645 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
20646 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
20647 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
20651 @node Slow Terminal Connection
20652 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
20654 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
20655 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
20656 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
20660 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
20661 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
20662 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
20663 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
20664 horizontal and vertical recentering.
20666 @item gnus-visible-headers
20667 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
20668 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
20669 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
20670 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
20672 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
20674 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
20675 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
20676 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
20679 @item gnus-use-full-window
20680 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
20681 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
20682 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
20683 want to read them anyway.
20685 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
20686 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
20689 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
20690 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
20691 lines, which might save some time.
20695 @node Little Disk Space
20696 @subsection Little Disk Space
20699 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
20700 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
20704 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
20705 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
20706 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
20707 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20710 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
20711 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
20712 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
20713 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
20716 @item gnus-save-killed-list
20717 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
20718 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
20719 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
20720 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
20726 @subsection Slow Machine
20727 @cindex slow machine
20729 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
20730 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
20732 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
20733 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
20735 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
20736 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
20737 summary buffer faster.
20741 @node Troubleshooting
20742 @section Troubleshooting
20743 @cindex troubleshooting
20745 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
20753 Make sure your computer is switched on.
20756 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
20757 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
20761 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
20762 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
20763 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
20764 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
20767 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
20771 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
20772 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
20773 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
20774 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
20775 something like that.
20778 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
20781 @cindex reporting bugs
20783 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
20785 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
20786 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
20787 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
20788 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
20790 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
20791 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
20792 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
20793 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
20796 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
20797 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
20798 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
20799 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
20800 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
20801 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
20803 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
20804 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
20805 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
20808 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
20809 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
20811 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
20812 @cindex ding mailing list
20813 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
20814 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
20818 @node Gnus Reference Guide
20819 @section Gnus Reference Guide
20821 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
20822 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
20823 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
20824 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
20827 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
20828 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
20829 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
20830 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
20831 and general methods of operation.
20834 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
20835 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
20836 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
20837 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
20838 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
20839 * Group Info:: The group info format.
20840 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
20841 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
20842 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
20846 @node Gnus Utility Functions
20847 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
20848 @cindex Gnus utility functions
20849 @cindex utility functions
20851 @cindex internal variables
20853 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
20854 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
20855 Below is a list of the most common ones.
20859 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
20860 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
20861 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
20863 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
20864 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
20865 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
20867 @item gnus-group-real-name
20868 @findex gnus-group-real-name
20869 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
20872 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
20873 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
20874 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
20875 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
20877 @item gnus-get-info
20878 @findex gnus-get-info
20879 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
20881 @item gnus-group-unread
20882 @findex gnus-group-unread
20883 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
20887 @findex gnus-active
20888 The active entry for @var{group}.
20890 @item gnus-set-active
20891 @findex gnus-set-active
20892 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
20894 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
20895 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
20896 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
20899 @item gnus-continuum-version
20900 @findex gnus-continuum-version
20901 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
20902 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
20905 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
20906 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
20907 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
20909 @item gnus-news-group-p
20910 @findex gnus-news-group-p
20911 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
20913 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
20914 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
20915 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
20917 @item gnus-server-to-method
20918 @findex gnus-server-to-method
20919 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
20921 @item gnus-server-equal
20922 @findex gnus-server-equal
20923 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
20925 @item gnus-group-native-p
20926 @findex gnus-group-native-p
20927 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
20929 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
20930 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
20931 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
20933 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
20934 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
20935 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
20937 @item group-group-find-parameter
20938 @findex group-group-find-parameter
20939 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
20940 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
20942 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
20943 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
20944 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
20946 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
20947 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
20948 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
20950 @item gnus-check-backend-function
20951 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
20952 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
20953 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
20956 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
20960 @item gnus-read-method
20961 @findex gnus-read-method
20962 Prompts the user for a select method.
20967 @node Backend Interface
20968 @subsection Backend Interface
20970 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
20971 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
20972 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
20973 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
20974 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
20975 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
20977 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
20978 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
20979 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
20980 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
20981 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
20982 been opened, the function should fail.
20984 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
20985 name. Take this example:
20989 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
20990 (nntp-port-number 4324))
20993 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
20994 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
20996 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
20997 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
20998 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
21000 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
21001 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
21002 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
21004 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
21005 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
21006 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
21007 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
21008 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
21009 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
21012 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
21013 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
21014 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
21015 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
21018 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
21021 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
21024 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
21025 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
21026 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
21027 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
21028 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
21029 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
21033 @node Required Backend Functions
21034 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
21038 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
21040 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
21041 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
21042 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
21043 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
21045 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
21046 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
21047 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
21048 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
21050 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
21051 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
21052 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
21053 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
21054 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
21055 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
21056 number, do maximum fetches.
21058 Here's an example HEAD:
21061 221 1056 Article retrieved.
21062 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
21063 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
21064 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
21065 Subject: Re: Something very droll
21066 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
21067 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
21069 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
21070 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
21071 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
21075 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
21076 these in the data buffer.
21078 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
21082 head = error / valid-head
21083 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
21084 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
21085 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
21086 header = <text> eol
21089 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
21090 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
21094 nov-buffer = *nov-line
21095 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
21096 field = <text except TAB>
21099 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
21103 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
21105 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
21106 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
21108 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
21109 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
21110 server. In fact, it should do so.
21112 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
21113 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
21116 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
21118 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
21119 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
21122 There should be no data returned.
21125 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
21127 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
21128 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
21129 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
21130 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
21132 There should be no data returned.
21135 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
21137 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
21138 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
21139 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
21140 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
21142 There should be no data returned.
21145 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
21147 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
21149 There should be no data returned.
21152 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
21154 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
21155 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
21156 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
21157 it would be nice if that were possible.
21159 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
21160 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
21161 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
21162 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
21163 into its article buffer.
21165 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
21166 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
21167 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
21168 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
21169 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
21170 on successful article retrieval.
21173 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
21175 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
21176 making @var{group} the current group.
21178 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
21181 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
21184 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
21187 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
21188 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
21189 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
21190 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
21191 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
21192 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
21193 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
21194 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
21197 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
21198 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
21199 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
21203 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21205 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
21206 a no-op on most backends.
21208 There should be no data returned.
21211 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
21213 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
21216 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
21219 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
21220 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
21223 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
21224 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
21227 active-file = *active-line
21228 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
21230 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
21233 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
21234 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
21235 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
21238 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
21240 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
21241 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
21242 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
21243 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
21244 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
21245 clear if the posting could not be completed.
21247 There should be no result data from this function.
21252 @node Optional Backend Functions
21253 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
21257 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
21259 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
21260 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
21261 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
21263 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
21264 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
21265 former is in the same format as the data from
21266 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
21267 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
21270 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
21274 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
21276 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
21277 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
21278 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
21279 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
21280 should return the (altered) group info.
21282 There should be no result data from this function.
21285 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
21287 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
21288 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
21289 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
21290 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
21291 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
21292 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
21293 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
21294 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
21296 There should be no result data from this function.
21299 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
21301 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
21302 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
21303 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
21304 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
21305 propagate the mark information to the server.
21307 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
21310 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
21313 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
21314 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
21315 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
21316 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
21317 mentioned) marks. MARK is a list of marks; where each mark is a symbol.
21318 Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
21319 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
21320 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
21321 not limit itself to these.
21323 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
21324 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
21325 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
21326 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
21328 An example action list:
21331 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
21332 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
21333 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
21336 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
21337 mark on (currently not used for anything).
21339 There should be no result data from this function.
21341 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
21343 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
21344 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
21345 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
21346 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
21347 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
21349 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
21350 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
21351 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
21354 There should be no result data from this function.
21357 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
21359 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
21360 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
21361 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
21362 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
21363 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
21364 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
21365 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
21367 There should be no result data from this function.
21370 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
21372 The result data from this function should be a description of
21376 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
21378 description = <text>
21381 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
21383 The result data from this function should be the description of all
21384 groups available on the server.
21387 description-buffer = *description-line
21391 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
21393 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
21394 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
21395 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
21398 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21400 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
21402 There should be no return data.
21405 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
21407 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
21408 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
21409 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
21410 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
21411 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
21414 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
21417 There should be no result data returned.
21420 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
21423 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
21424 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
21426 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
21427 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
21428 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
21429 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
21430 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
21431 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
21433 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
21434 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
21437 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21438 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21440 There should be no data returned.
21443 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
21445 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
21446 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
21447 this function in short order.
21449 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21450 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21452 There should be no data returned.
21455 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
21457 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
21458 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
21460 There should be no data returned.
21463 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
21465 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
21466 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
21467 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
21469 There should be no data returned.
21472 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
21474 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
21475 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
21477 There should be no data returned.
21482 @node Error Messaging
21483 @subsubsection Error Messaging
21485 @findex nnheader-report
21486 @findex nnheader-get-report
21487 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
21488 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
21489 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
21490 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
21491 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
21492 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
21495 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
21497 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
21500 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
21501 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
21502 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
21503 takes one argument---the server symbol.
21505 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
21506 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
21507 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
21510 @node Writing New Backends
21511 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
21513 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
21514 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
21515 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
21516 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
21517 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
21520 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
21521 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
21522 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
21524 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
21525 package called @code{nnoo}.
21527 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
21528 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
21534 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
21535 parameters. For instance:
21538 (nnoo-declare nndir
21542 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
21543 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
21546 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
21547 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
21548 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
21550 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
21551 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
21552 a function in those backends.
21555 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
21556 "Where nndir will look for groups."
21557 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
21560 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
21561 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
21562 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
21564 @item nnoo-define-basics
21565 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
21569 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
21573 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
21574 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
21575 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
21577 @item nnoo-map-functions
21578 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
21579 functions from the parent backends.
21582 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
21583 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21584 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
21587 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
21588 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
21589 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
21590 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
21593 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
21594 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
21595 haven't already been defined.
21601 nnmh-request-newgroups)
21605 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
21606 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
21607 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
21612 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
21615 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
21616 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
21620 (require 'nnheader)
21624 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
21626 (nnoo-declare nndir
21629 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
21630 "Where nndir will look for groups."
21631 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
21633 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
21634 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
21637 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
21638 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
21639 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
21641 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
21642 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
21644 ;;; Interface functions.
21646 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
21648 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
21649 (setq nndir-directory
21650 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
21652 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
21653 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
21654 (push `(nndir-current-group
21655 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
21657 (push `(nndir-top-directory
21658 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
21660 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
21662 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
21663 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21664 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
21665 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
21666 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
21670 nnmh-status-message
21672 nnmh-request-newgroups))
21678 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
21679 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
21681 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
21682 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
21683 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
21684 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
21686 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
21687 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
21692 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
21695 The abilities can be:
21699 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
21701 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
21703 This backend supports both mail and news.
21705 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
21708 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
21709 articles and groups.
21711 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
21712 true for almost all backends.
21713 @item prompt-address
21714 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
21715 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
21716 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
21720 @node Mail-like Backends
21721 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
21723 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
21724 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
21725 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
21726 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
21729 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
21730 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
21731 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
21734 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
21735 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
21738 This function takes four parameters.
21742 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
21745 @item exit-function
21746 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
21748 @item temp-directory
21749 Where the temporary files should be stored.
21752 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
21753 performed for one group only.
21756 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
21757 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
21758 find the article number assigned to this article.
21760 The function also uses the following variables:
21761 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
21762 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
21763 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
21764 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
21768 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
21769 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
21773 @node Score File Syntax
21774 @subsection Score File Syntax
21776 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
21777 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
21778 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
21780 Here's a typical score file:
21784 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
21791 BNF definition of a score file:
21794 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
21795 element = rule / atom
21796 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
21797 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
21798 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
21799 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
21801 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
21802 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
21803 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
21804 date-header = "date"
21805 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21806 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21807 score = "nil" / <integer>
21808 date = "nil" / <natural number>
21809 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
21810 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
21811 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
21812 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
21813 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21814 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21815 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
21816 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
21817 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
21818 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
21819 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
21820 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
21821 exclude-files / read-only / touched
21822 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
21823 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
21824 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
21825 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
21826 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
21827 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
21828 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
21829 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
21830 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
21831 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
21832 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
21833 eval = "eval" space <form>
21834 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
21837 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
21840 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
21841 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
21842 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
21843 one looong line, then that's ok.
21845 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
21846 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21850 @subsection Headers
21852 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
21853 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
21854 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
21855 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
21857 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
21858 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
21859 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
21860 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
21861 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
21862 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
21863 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
21865 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
21866 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
21867 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
21868 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
21869 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
21871 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
21872 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
21878 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
21879 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
21881 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
21882 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
21883 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
21884 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
21886 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
21890 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
21893 is transformed into
21896 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
21899 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
21900 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
21903 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
21906 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
21907 is slightly tricky:
21910 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
21916 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
21919 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
21925 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
21932 and is equal to the previous range.
21934 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
21935 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
21936 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
21940 range = simple-range / normal-range
21941 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
21942 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
21943 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
21944 number *[ " " contents ]
21947 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
21948 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
21949 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
21950 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
21951 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
21956 @subsection Group Info
21958 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
21959 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
21960 describes the group.
21962 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
21963 second is a more complex one:
21966 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
21968 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
21969 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
21971 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
21974 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
21975 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
21976 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
21977 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
21978 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
21979 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
21980 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
21981 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
21982 this section is about.
21984 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
21985 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
21986 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
21988 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
21991 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
21992 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
21993 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
21994 group = quote <string> quote
21995 ralevel = rank / level
21996 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
21997 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
21998 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
22000 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
22001 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
22002 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
22003 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
22006 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
22007 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
22010 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
22011 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
22014 @item gnus-info-group
22015 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
22016 @findex gnus-info-group
22017 @findex gnus-info-set-group
22018 Get/set the group name.
22020 @item gnus-info-rank
22021 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
22022 @findex gnus-info-rank
22023 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
22024 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
22026 @item gnus-info-level
22027 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
22028 @findex gnus-info-level
22029 @findex gnus-info-set-level
22030 Get/set the group level.
22032 @item gnus-info-score
22033 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
22034 @findex gnus-info-score
22035 @findex gnus-info-set-score
22036 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
22038 @item gnus-info-read
22039 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
22040 @findex gnus-info-read
22041 @findex gnus-info-set-read
22042 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
22044 @item gnus-info-marks
22045 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
22046 @findex gnus-info-marks
22047 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
22048 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
22050 @item gnus-info-method
22051 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
22052 @findex gnus-info-method
22053 @findex gnus-info-set-method
22054 Get/set the group select method.
22056 @item gnus-info-params
22057 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
22058 @findex gnus-info-params
22059 @findex gnus-info-set-params
22060 Get/set the group parameters.
22063 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
22064 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
22066 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
22067 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
22068 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
22069 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
22072 @node Extended Interactive
22073 @subsection Extended Interactive
22074 @cindex interactive
22075 @findex gnus-interactive
22077 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
22078 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
22079 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
22082 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
22083 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
22088 The best thing to do would have been to implement
22089 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
22090 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
22091 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
22092 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
22093 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
22094 @code{interactive}.
22096 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
22101 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
22102 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
22106 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
22107 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
22108 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
22111 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
22115 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
22119 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
22125 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
22126 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
22130 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
22131 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
22132 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
22134 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
22135 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
22136 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
22137 Gnus, that's very useful.
22139 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
22140 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
22141 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
22142 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
22143 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
22144 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
22145 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
22146 following function:
22149 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
22153 (,function ,@@args))
22157 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
22158 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
22159 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
22162 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
22163 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
22164 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
22166 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
22167 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
22168 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
22171 @node Various File Formats
22172 @subsection Various File Formats
22175 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
22176 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
22180 @node Active File Format
22181 @subsubsection Active File Format
22183 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
22184 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
22187 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
22190 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
22191 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
22192 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
22193 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
22194 no.general 1000 900 y
22197 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
22200 active = *group-line
22201 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
22202 group = <non-white-space string>
22204 high-number = <non-negative integer>
22205 low-number = <positive integer>
22206 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
22209 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
22210 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
22213 @node Newsgroups File Format
22214 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
22216 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
22217 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
22218 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
22221 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
22222 Here's the definition:
22226 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
22227 group = <non-white-space string>
22229 description = <string>
22234 @node Emacs for Heathens
22235 @section Emacs for Heathens
22237 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
22238 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
22239 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
22240 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
22241 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
22242 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
22243 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
22247 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
22248 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
22253 @subsection Keystrokes
22257 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
22260 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
22263 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
22264 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
22265 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
22266 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
22267 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
22268 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
22270 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
22271 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
22272 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
22273 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
22274 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
22275 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
22276 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
22278 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
22279 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
22280 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
22281 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
22282 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
22283 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
22284 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
22286 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
22287 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
22288 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
22289 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
22290 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
22296 @subsection Emacs Lisp
22298 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
22299 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
22300 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
22301 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
22303 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
22304 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
22305 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
22306 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
22307 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
22308 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
22309 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
22312 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
22313 write the following:
22316 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
22319 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
22320 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
22321 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
22324 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
22325 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
22326 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
22327 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
22328 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
22330 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
22331 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
22332 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
22336 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
22340 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
22343 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
22344 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
22347 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
22350 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
22351 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
22354 @include gnus-faq.texi
22375 % LocalWords: Backend BNF mucho Backends backends detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
22376 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
22377 % LocalWords: nnmbox backend newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
22378 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
22379 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref