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4 @settitle Pterodactyl Gnus 0.77 Manual
9 @c * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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264 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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273 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
275 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
276 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
277 are preserved on all copies.
279 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
280 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
281 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
282 permission notice identical to this one.
284 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
285 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
294 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
296 Copyright (C) 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
298 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
299 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
300 are preserved on all copies.
303 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
304 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
305 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
306 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
309 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
310 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
311 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
312 permission notice identical to this one.
314 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
315 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
321 @title Pterodactyl Gnus 0.77 Manual
323 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
326 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
327 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97,98,99 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
329 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
330 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
331 are preserved on all copies.
333 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
334 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
335 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
336 permission notice identical to this one.
338 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
339 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
348 @top The Gnus Newsreader
352 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
353 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
354 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
357 This manual corresponds to Pterodactyl Gnus 0.77.
368 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
369 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
371 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
372 being accused of plagiarism:
374 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
375 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
376 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
377 even read news with it!
379 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
380 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
381 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
382 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
383 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
390 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
391 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
392 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
393 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
394 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
395 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
396 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
397 * Various:: General purpose settings.
398 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
399 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
400 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
401 * Key Index:: Key Index.
405 @chapter Starting Gnus
410 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
411 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
414 @findex gnus-other-frame
415 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
416 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
417 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
419 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
420 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
421 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
423 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
424 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
427 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
428 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
429 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
430 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
431 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
432 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
433 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
434 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
435 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
436 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
437 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
441 @node Finding the News
442 @section Finding the News
445 @vindex gnus-select-method
447 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
448 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
449 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
450 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
453 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
454 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
457 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
460 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
463 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
466 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
467 certainly be much faster.
469 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
471 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
472 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
473 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
474 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
475 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
476 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
478 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
479 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
480 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
481 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
483 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
484 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
485 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
486 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
487 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
488 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
489 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
490 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
491 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
494 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
496 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
497 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
498 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
499 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
500 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
501 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
503 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
505 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
506 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
507 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
508 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
509 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
510 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
513 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
514 would typically set this variable to
517 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
522 @section The First Time
523 @cindex first time usage
525 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
526 be subscribed by default.
528 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
529 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
530 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
531 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
534 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
535 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
536 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
538 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
539 help you with most common problems.
541 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
542 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
546 @node The Server is Down
547 @section The Server is Down
548 @cindex server errors
550 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
551 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
552 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
554 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
555 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
556 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
557 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
558 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
559 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
560 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
562 @findex gnus-no-server
563 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
565 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
566 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
567 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
568 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
569 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
570 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
575 @section Slave Gnusae
578 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
579 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
580 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
581 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
583 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
586 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
587 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
588 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
589 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
590 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
591 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
592 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
594 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
595 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
596 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
597 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
598 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
599 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
600 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
601 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
603 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
604 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
607 @node Fetching a Group
608 @section Fetching a Group
609 @cindex fetching a group
611 @findex gnus-fetch-group
612 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
613 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
614 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
615 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
616 It takes the group name as a parameter.
624 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
625 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
626 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
627 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
628 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
629 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
630 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
631 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
632 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
635 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
636 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
637 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
641 @node Checking New Groups
642 @subsection Checking New Groups
644 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
645 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
646 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
647 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
648 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
649 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
650 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
651 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
652 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
653 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
655 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
656 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
657 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
658 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
659 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
660 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
661 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
662 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
663 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
664 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
665 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
667 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
668 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
669 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
670 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
671 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
672 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
675 @node Subscription Methods
676 @subsection Subscription Methods
678 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
679 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
680 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
682 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
683 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
685 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
689 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
690 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
691 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
692 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
693 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
695 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
696 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
697 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
698 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
700 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
701 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
702 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
704 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
705 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
706 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
707 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
708 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
709 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
710 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
711 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
712 up. Or something like that.
714 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
715 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
716 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
717 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
718 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
720 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
721 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
726 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
727 A closely related variable is
728 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
729 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
730 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
731 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
734 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
735 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
736 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
737 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
740 @node Filtering New Groups
741 @subsection Filtering New Groups
743 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
744 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
745 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
748 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
751 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
752 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
753 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
754 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
755 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
756 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
757 subscribing these groups.
758 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
759 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
761 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
762 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
763 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
764 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
765 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
766 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
767 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
768 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
770 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
771 Yet another variable that meddles here is
772 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
773 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
774 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
775 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
776 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
777 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
778 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
779 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
781 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
782 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
785 @node Changing Servers
786 @section Changing Servers
787 @cindex changing servers
789 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
790 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
791 very flaky and you want to use another.
793 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
794 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
798 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
799 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
800 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
801 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
804 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
805 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
806 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
807 functions more than absolutely necessary.
809 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
810 @findex gnus-change-server
811 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
812 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
813 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
814 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
815 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
817 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
818 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
819 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
820 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
821 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
823 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
824 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
825 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
826 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
827 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
828 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
830 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
831 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
832 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
836 @section Startup Files
837 @cindex startup files
842 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
843 information is traditionally stored in this file.
845 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
846 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
847 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
848 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
849 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
850 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
851 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
853 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
854 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
855 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
856 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
857 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
858 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
860 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
861 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
862 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
863 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
864 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
865 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
867 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
868 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
869 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
870 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
871 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
872 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
873 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
874 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
875 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
876 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
877 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
878 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
880 @vindex gnus-startup-file
881 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
882 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
883 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
885 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
886 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
887 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
888 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
889 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
890 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
891 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
892 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
893 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
894 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
897 (defun turn-off-backup ()
898 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
900 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
901 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
904 @vindex gnus-init-file
905 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
906 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
907 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
908 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
909 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
910 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
911 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
912 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
913 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
922 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
923 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
924 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
925 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
926 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
929 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
930 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
933 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
934 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
935 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
937 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
938 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
939 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
940 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
941 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
942 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
944 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
945 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
946 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
949 @node The Active File
950 @section The Active File
952 @cindex ignored groups
954 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
955 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
956 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
958 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
959 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
960 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
961 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
962 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
963 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
964 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
967 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
968 @c if you set it to anything else.
970 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
972 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
973 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
974 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
976 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
977 you actually subscribe to.
979 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
980 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
981 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
982 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
984 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
985 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
986 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
987 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
988 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
989 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
991 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
992 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
993 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
994 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
995 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
996 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
998 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
999 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1001 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1002 secondary select methods.
1005 @node Startup Variables
1006 @section Startup Variables
1010 @item gnus-load-hook
1011 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1012 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1013 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1014 times you start Gnus.
1016 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1017 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1018 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1020 @item gnus-startup-hook
1021 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1022 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1024 @item gnus-started-hook
1025 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1026 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1029 @item gnus-started-hook
1030 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1031 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1032 generating the group buffer.
1034 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1035 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1036 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1037 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1038 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1039 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1040 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1041 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1043 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1044 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1045 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1046 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1047 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1048 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1050 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1051 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1052 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1054 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1055 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1056 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1058 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1059 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1060 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1061 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1066 @node The Group Buffer
1067 @chapter The Group Buffer
1068 @cindex group buffer
1070 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1071 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1072 long as Gnus is active.
1076 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1077 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1078 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1079 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1080 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1081 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1082 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1083 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1089 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1090 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1091 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1092 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1093 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1094 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1095 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1096 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1097 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1098 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1099 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1100 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1101 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1102 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1103 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1104 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1105 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1109 @node Group Buffer Format
1110 @section Group Buffer Format
1113 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1114 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1115 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1119 @node Group Line Specification
1120 @subsection Group Line Specification
1121 @cindex group buffer format
1123 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1124 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1126 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1129 25: news.announce.newusers
1130 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1135 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1136 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1137 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1138 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1140 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1141 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1142 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1143 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1144 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1145 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1147 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1149 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1150 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1151 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1152 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1155 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1156 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1157 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1159 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1164 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1167 Whether the group is subscribed.
1170 Level of subscribedness.
1173 Number of unread articles.
1176 Number of dormant articles.
1179 Number of ticked articles.
1182 Number of read articles.
1185 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1186 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1189 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1192 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1201 Newsgroup description.
1204 @samp{m} if moderated.
1207 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1216 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1220 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1223 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1224 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1225 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1226 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1227 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1230 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1232 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1236 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1240 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1241 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1242 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1243 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1244 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1245 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1250 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1251 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1252 group, or a bogus native group.
1255 @node Group Modeline Specification
1256 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1257 @cindex group modeline
1259 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1260 The mode line can be changed by setting
1261 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1262 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1266 The native news server.
1268 The native select method.
1272 @node Group Highlighting
1273 @subsection Group Highlighting
1274 @cindex highlighting
1275 @cindex group highlighting
1277 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1278 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1279 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1280 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1281 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1283 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1287 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1
1288 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1289 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2
1290 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1291 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3
1292 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1293 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4
1294 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1295 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5
1296 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1298 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1299 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1300 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1301 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1302 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1303 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1306 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1308 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1315 The number of unread articles in the group.
1319 Whether the group is a mail group.
1321 The level of the group.
1323 The score of the group.
1325 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1327 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1328 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1330 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1331 topic being inserted.
1334 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1335 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1336 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1338 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1339 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1340 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1341 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1342 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1345 @node Group Maneuvering
1346 @section Group Maneuvering
1347 @cindex group movement
1349 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1350 expected, hopefully.
1356 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1357 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1358 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1364 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1365 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1366 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1370 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1371 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1375 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1376 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1380 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1381 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1382 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1386 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1387 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1388 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1391 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1397 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1398 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1399 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1404 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1405 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1406 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1410 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1411 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1412 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1415 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1416 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1417 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1418 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1422 @node Selecting a Group
1423 @section Selecting a Group
1424 @cindex group selection
1429 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1430 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1431 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1432 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1433 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1434 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1435 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1436 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1437 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1438 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1442 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1443 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1444 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1445 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1446 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1450 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1451 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1452 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1453 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1454 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1455 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1456 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1457 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1458 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1459 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1462 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1463 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1464 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1465 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1466 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1469 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1470 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1471 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1472 doing any processing of its contents
1473 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1474 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1475 manner will have no permanent effects.
1479 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1480 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1481 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1482 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1483 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1484 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1485 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1486 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1489 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1490 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1491 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1492 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1497 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1498 full summary buffer.
1501 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1504 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1509 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
1510 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
1511 Useful functions include:
1514 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
1515 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
1516 don't select the article.
1518 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
1519 Select the first unread article.
1521 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
1522 Select the highest-scored unread article.
1526 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1527 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1528 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1532 @node Subscription Commands
1533 @section Subscription Commands
1534 @cindex subscription
1542 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1543 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1544 Toggle subscription to the current group
1545 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1551 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1552 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1553 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1554 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1560 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1561 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1562 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1568 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1569 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1572 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1573 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1574 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1575 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1576 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1582 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1583 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1587 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1588 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1591 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1592 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1593 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1594 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1595 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1596 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1597 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1598 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1599 @file{.newsrc} file.
1603 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1613 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1614 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1615 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1616 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1617 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1618 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1623 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1624 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1625 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1629 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1630 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1631 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1633 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1634 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1635 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1636 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1637 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1638 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1645 @section Group Levels
1649 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1650 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1651 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1652 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1653 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1655 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1661 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1662 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1663 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1664 prompted for a level.
1667 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1668 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1669 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1670 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1671 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1672 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1673 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1674 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1675 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1676 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1677 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1678 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1679 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1680 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1681 reasons of efficiency.
1683 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1684 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1686 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1687 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1688 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1690 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1691 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1692 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1693 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1694 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1695 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1696 relevant valid ranges.
1698 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1699 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1700 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1701 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1702 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1703 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1706 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1707 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1708 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1711 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1712 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1713 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1714 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1717 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1718 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1719 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1720 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1722 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1723 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1724 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1725 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1726 to 5. The default is 6.
1730 @section Group Score
1735 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1736 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1737 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1740 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1741 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1742 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1743 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1744 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1745 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1746 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1748 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1749 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1750 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1751 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1752 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1753 action after each summary exit, you can add
1754 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1755 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1756 slow things down somewhat.
1759 @node Marking Groups
1760 @section Marking Groups
1761 @cindex marking groups
1763 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1764 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1765 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1766 bidding on those groups.
1768 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1769 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1770 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1778 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1779 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1785 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1786 Remove the mark from the current group
1787 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1791 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1792 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1796 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1797 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1801 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1802 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1806 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1807 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1808 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1811 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1813 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1814 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1815 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1816 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1817 the command to be executed.
1820 @node Foreign Groups
1821 @section Foreign Groups
1822 @cindex foreign groups
1824 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1825 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1826 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1827 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1834 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1835 @cindex making groups
1836 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1837 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1838 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1842 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1843 @cindex renaming groups
1844 Rename the current group to something else
1845 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1846 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1852 @findex gnus-group-customize
1853 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1857 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1858 @cindex renaming groups
1859 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1860 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1864 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1865 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1866 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1870 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1871 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1872 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1876 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1878 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1879 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1884 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1885 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1889 @cindex (ding) archive
1890 @cindex archive group
1891 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1892 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1893 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1894 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1895 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1896 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1897 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1901 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1903 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1904 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1905 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1906 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1910 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1912 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1913 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1914 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1918 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1919 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1921 Make a group based on some file or other
1922 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1923 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1924 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1925 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1926 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1927 this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file type.
1928 @xref{Document Groups}.
1932 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
1933 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
1934 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
1935 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
1939 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1944 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1945 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1946 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1947 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1948 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1949 @xref{Web Searches}.
1951 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1952 to a particular group by using a match string like
1953 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1956 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1957 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1958 This function will delete the current group
1959 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1960 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1961 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1962 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1963 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1967 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1968 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1969 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1973 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1974 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1975 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1978 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1981 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1982 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1983 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1984 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1985 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
1986 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
1990 @node Group Parameters
1991 @section Group Parameters
1992 @cindex group parameters
1994 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
1995 Here's an example group parameter list:
1998 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2002 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2003 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2004 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2005 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2007 The following group parameters can be used:
2012 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2015 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2018 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2019 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2020 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2021 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2022 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2024 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2025 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2026 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2027 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2028 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2029 list address instead.
2033 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
2036 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2039 It is totally ignored
2040 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2041 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2043 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2044 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2045 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2046 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2047 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2049 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2050 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2051 sending the message.
2055 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2056 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2057 of whether it has any unread articles.
2059 @item broken-reply-to
2060 @cindex broken-reply-to
2061 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2062 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2063 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2064 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2065 broken behavior. So there!
2069 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2070 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2074 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2075 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2076 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2081 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2082 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2083 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2084 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2085 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2086 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2087 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2091 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2092 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2093 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2096 @cindex total-expire
2097 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2098 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2099 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2100 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2105 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2106 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2107 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2108 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2109 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2110 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2113 @cindex score file group parameter
2114 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2115 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2116 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2119 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2120 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2121 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2122 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2125 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2126 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2127 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2128 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2131 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2132 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2136 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2139 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2144 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2145 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2146 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2150 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2151 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2152 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2154 @item @var{(variable form)}
2155 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2156 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2157 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2158 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2159 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2160 @code{eval}ed there.
2162 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2163 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2164 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2165 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2166 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2169 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2170 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2171 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2172 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2173 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2175 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2176 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2177 like this in the group parameters:
2182 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2187 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2188 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2192 @node Listing Groups
2193 @section Listing Groups
2194 @cindex group listing
2196 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2204 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2205 List all groups that have unread articles
2206 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2207 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2208 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2209 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2216 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2217 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2218 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2219 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2220 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2221 unsubscribed groups).
2225 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2226 List all unread groups on a specific level
2227 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2228 with no unread articles.
2232 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2233 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2234 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2235 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2240 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2241 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2245 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2246 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2247 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2251 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2252 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2256 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2257 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2258 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2259 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2260 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2261 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2262 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2263 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2267 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2268 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2269 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2273 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2274 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2275 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2279 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2280 @cindex visible group parameter
2281 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2282 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2283 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2284 get the same effect.
2286 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2287 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2288 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2289 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2290 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2293 @node Sorting Groups
2294 @section Sorting Groups
2295 @cindex sorting groups
2297 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2298 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2299 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2300 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2301 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2302 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2307 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2308 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2309 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2311 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2312 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2313 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2315 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2316 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2317 Sort by group level.
2319 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2320 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2321 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2323 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2324 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2325 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2326 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2328 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2329 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2330 Sort by number of unread articles.
2332 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2333 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2334 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2339 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2340 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2344 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2345 some sorting criteria:
2349 @kindex G S a (Group)
2350 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2351 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2352 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2355 @kindex G S u (Group)
2356 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2357 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2358 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2361 @kindex G S l (Group)
2362 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2363 Sort the group buffer by group level
2364 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2367 @kindex G S v (Group)
2368 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2369 Sort the group buffer by group score
2370 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2373 @kindex G S r (Group)
2374 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2375 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2376 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2379 @kindex G S m (Group)
2380 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2381 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2382 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2386 All the commands below obeys the process/prefix convention
2387 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2389 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2390 commands will sort in reverse order.
2392 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2396 @kindex G P a (Group)
2397 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2398 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2399 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2402 @kindex G P u (Group)
2403 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2404 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2405 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2408 @kindex G P l (Group)
2409 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2410 Sort the groups by group level
2411 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2414 @kindex G P v (Group)
2415 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2416 Sort the groups by group score
2417 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2420 @kindex G P r (Group)
2421 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2422 Sort the groups by group rank
2423 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2426 @kindex G P m (Group)
2427 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2428 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
2429 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2435 @node Group Maintenance
2436 @section Group Maintenance
2437 @cindex bogus groups
2442 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2443 Find bogus groups and delete them
2444 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2448 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2449 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2450 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2451 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
2452 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
2456 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2457 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2458 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2459 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2462 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2463 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2464 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2465 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2470 @node Browse Foreign Server
2471 @section Browse Foreign Server
2472 @cindex foreign servers
2473 @cindex browsing servers
2478 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2479 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2480 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2481 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2484 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2485 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2486 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2487 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2489 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2494 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2495 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2499 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2500 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2503 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2504 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2505 Enter the current group and display the first article
2506 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2509 @kindex RET (Browse)
2510 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2511 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2515 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2516 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2517 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2523 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2524 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2528 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2529 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2530 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2535 @section Exiting Gnus
2536 @cindex exiting Gnus
2538 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2543 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2544 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2545 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2546 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2550 @findex gnus-group-exit
2551 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2552 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2556 @findex gnus-group-quit
2557 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2558 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2561 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2562 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2563 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2564 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2565 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2570 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2571 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2572 trying to customize meta-variables.
2577 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2578 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2579 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2585 @section Group Topics
2588 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2589 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2590 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2591 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2592 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2593 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2597 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2598 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2609 2: alt.religion.emacs
2612 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2614 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2615 13: comp.sources.unix
2618 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2620 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2621 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2622 is a toggling command.)
2624 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2625 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2626 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2627 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2630 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2631 the hook for the group mode:
2634 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2638 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2639 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2640 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2641 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2642 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2646 @node Topic Variables
2647 @subsection Topic Variables
2648 @cindex topic variables
2650 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2651 really neat, I think.
2653 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2654 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2655 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2668 Number of groups in the topic.
2670 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2672 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2675 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2676 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2677 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2680 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2681 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2683 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2684 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2685 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2688 @node Topic Commands
2689 @subsection Topic Commands
2690 @cindex topic commands
2692 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2693 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2694 definitions slightly.
2700 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2701 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2702 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2706 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2707 Move the current group to some other topic
2708 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2709 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2713 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2714 Copy the current group to some other topic
2715 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2716 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2720 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2721 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2722 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
2723 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
2724 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
2725 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
2726 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
2729 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2730 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2734 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2735 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2736 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2740 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2741 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2742 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2746 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2747 Toggle hiding empty topics
2748 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2752 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2753 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2754 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2757 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2758 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2759 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2760 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2764 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2766 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2767 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2768 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2769 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2772 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
2773 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
2774 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2775 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
2779 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2781 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2782 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2783 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2784 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2785 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2786 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2789 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
2790 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
2791 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
2792 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
2796 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2797 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2798 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2802 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2803 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2804 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2809 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2810 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2813 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2814 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2815 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2819 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2820 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2821 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2825 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2826 @cindex group parameters
2827 @cindex topic parameters
2829 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2830 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2836 @subsection Topic Sorting
2837 @cindex topic sorting
2839 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2845 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2846 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2847 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2848 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2851 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2852 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2853 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2854 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2857 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2858 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2859 Sort the current topic by group level
2860 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2863 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2864 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2865 Sort the current topic by group score
2866 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2869 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2870 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2871 Sort the current topic by group rank
2872 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2875 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2876 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2877 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2878 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2882 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2885 @node Topic Topology
2886 @subsection Topic Topology
2887 @cindex topic topology
2890 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2896 2: alt.religion.emacs
2899 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2901 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2902 13: comp.sources.unix
2905 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2906 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2907 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2912 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2913 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2917 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2918 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2919 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2920 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2921 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2922 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2924 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2925 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2926 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2929 @node Topic Parameters
2930 @subsection Topic Parameters
2931 @cindex topic parameters
2933 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2934 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2935 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2937 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2938 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2939 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2940 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2946 2: alt.religion.emacs
2950 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2952 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2953 13: comp.sources.unix
2957 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2958 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2959 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2960 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2961 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2962 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2964 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2965 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2966 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2967 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2968 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2970 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2971 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2972 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2973 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2974 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2975 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2976 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2977 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2980 @node Misc Group Stuff
2981 @section Misc Group Stuff
2984 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2985 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2986 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2987 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
2994 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2995 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2996 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
3000 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3001 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3002 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3006 @findex gnus-group-mail
3007 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3011 Variables for the group buffer:
3015 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3016 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3017 is called after the group buffer has been
3020 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3021 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3022 is called after the group buffer is
3023 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3026 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3027 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3028 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3029 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3031 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3032 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3033 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3034 whether they are empty or not.
3039 @node Scanning New Messages
3040 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3041 @cindex new messages
3042 @cindex scanning new news
3048 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3049 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3050 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3051 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3052 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3053 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3058 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3059 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3060 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3061 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3062 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3063 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3064 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3066 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3067 @cindex activating groups
3069 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3070 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3075 @findex gnus-group-restart
3076 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3077 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3078 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3082 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3083 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3085 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3086 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3090 @node Group Information
3091 @subsection Group Information
3092 @cindex group information
3093 @cindex information on groups
3100 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3101 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3104 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3105 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3106 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3107 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3108 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3109 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3110 for fetching the file.
3112 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3113 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3117 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3119 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3120 @cindex describing groups
3121 @cindex group description
3122 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3123 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3124 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3128 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3129 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3130 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3137 @findex gnus-version
3138 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3142 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3143 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3146 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3149 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3150 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3154 @node Group Timestamp
3155 @subsection Group Timestamp
3157 @cindex group timestamps
3159 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3160 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3161 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3164 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3167 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3169 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3170 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3173 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3174 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3177 This will result in lines looking like:
3180 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3181 0: custom 19961002T012713
3184 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3185 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3189 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3190 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3195 @subsection File Commands
3196 @cindex file commands
3202 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3203 @vindex gnus-init-file
3204 @cindex reading init file
3205 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3206 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3210 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3211 @cindex saving .newsrc
3212 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3213 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3214 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3217 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3218 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3219 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3224 @node The Summary Buffer
3225 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3226 @cindex summary buffer
3228 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3229 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3231 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3232 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3234 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3237 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3238 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3239 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3240 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3241 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3242 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3243 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3244 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3245 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3246 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3247 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3248 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3249 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3250 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3251 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3252 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3253 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3254 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3255 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3256 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3257 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3258 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3259 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3260 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3261 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3262 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3263 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3264 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3265 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3269 @node Summary Buffer Format
3270 @section Summary Buffer Format
3271 @cindex summary buffer format
3275 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3276 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3277 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3283 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3284 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3285 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3286 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3289 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3290 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3291 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3292 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3293 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3294 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3295 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3296 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3297 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3298 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3299 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
3302 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3303 'mail-extract-address-components)
3306 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3307 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3308 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3309 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3312 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3313 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3315 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3316 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3317 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3318 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3319 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3321 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3323 The following format specification characters are understood:
3331 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3332 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3333 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3335 Full @code{From} header.
3337 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3339 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3340 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3342 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3343 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3344 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3345 may be more thorough.
3347 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3350 Number of lines in the article.
3352 Number of characters in the article.
3354 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3356 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3357 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3359 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3360 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3362 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3363 for adopted articles.
3365 One space for each thread level.
3367 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3372 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3373 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3377 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3379 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3380 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3381 default level. If the difference between
3382 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3383 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3391 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3393 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3399 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3400 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3402 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3403 article has any children.
3409 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3410 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3411 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3412 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3413 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3414 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3417 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3418 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3419 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3420 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3421 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3422 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3424 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3425 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3427 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3430 @node To From Newsgroups
3431 @subsection To From Newsgroups
3435 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
3436 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
3437 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
3438 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
3439 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
3443 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
3444 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
3445 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
3449 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3450 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
3453 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
3454 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
3457 @findex gnus-extra-header
3458 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
3459 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
3460 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
3463 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
3467 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3468 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
3469 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
3470 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
3471 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
3472 headers are used instead.
3476 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
3477 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
3478 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
3479 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
3482 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3483 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
3484 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
3485 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
3487 In summary, you'd typically do something like the following:
3490 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3492 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
3493 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
3494 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
3495 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3499 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
3500 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
3507 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
3508 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
3511 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3512 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3514 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3515 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3516 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3517 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3519 Here are the elements you can play with:
3525 Unprefixed group name.
3527 Current article number.
3529 Current article score.
3533 Number of unread articles in this group.
3535 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3538 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3539 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3540 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3541 and no unselected ones.
3543 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3544 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3546 Subject of the current article.
3548 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3550 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3552 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3554 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3556 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3558 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3562 @node Summary Highlighting
3563 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3567 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3568 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3569 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3570 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3571 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3573 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3574 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3575 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3576 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3578 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3579 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3580 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3581 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3583 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3584 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3585 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3586 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3587 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3588 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3590 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3591 ((> score default) . bold))
3593 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3594 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3598 @node Summary Maneuvering
3599 @section Summary Maneuvering
3600 @cindex summary movement
3602 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3603 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3605 None of these commands select articles.
3610 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3611 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3612 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3613 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3614 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3618 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3619 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3620 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3621 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3622 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3627 @kindex G j (Summary)
3628 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3629 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3630 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3633 @kindex G g (Summary)
3634 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3635 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3636 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3639 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3640 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3641 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3642 to the group buffer.
3644 Variables related to summary movement:
3648 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3649 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3650 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3651 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3652 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3653 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3654 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3655 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3656 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3657 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3658 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3659 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3660 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3661 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3663 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3664 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3665 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3666 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3667 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3668 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
3669 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
3671 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3673 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3674 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3675 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3676 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3677 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3679 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3680 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3681 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3682 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3683 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3684 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3685 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3686 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3689 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
3690 the given number of lines from the top.
3695 @node Choosing Articles
3696 @section Choosing Articles
3697 @cindex selecting articles
3700 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3701 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3705 @node Choosing Commands
3706 @subsection Choosing Commands
3708 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3709 and they all select and display an article.
3713 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3714 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3715 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3716 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3721 @kindex G n (Summary)
3722 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3723 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3724 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3729 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3730 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3731 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3736 @kindex G N (Summary)
3737 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3738 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3743 @kindex G P (Summary)
3744 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3745 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3748 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3749 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3750 Go to the next article with the same subject
3751 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3754 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3755 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3756 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3757 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3761 @kindex G f (Summary)
3763 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3764 Go to the first unread article
3765 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3769 @kindex G b (Summary)
3771 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3772 Go to the article with the highest score
3773 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3778 @kindex G l (Summary)
3779 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3780 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3783 @kindex G o (Summary)
3784 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3786 @cindex article history
3787 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3788 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3789 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3790 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3791 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3792 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3796 @node Choosing Variables
3797 @subsection Choosing Variables
3799 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3802 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3803 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3804 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3805 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3806 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3807 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3809 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3810 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3811 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3812 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3814 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3815 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3816 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3817 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3818 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3819 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3820 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3821 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3822 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3823 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3824 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3825 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3826 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3827 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3832 @node Paging the Article
3833 @section Scrolling the Article
3834 @cindex article scrolling
3839 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3840 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3841 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3842 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3843 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3846 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3847 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3848 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3851 @kindex RET (Summary)
3852 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3853 Scroll the current article one line forward
3854 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3857 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
3858 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
3859 Scroll the current article one line backward
3860 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
3864 @kindex A g (Summary)
3866 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3867 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3868 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3869 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3870 the way it came from the server.
3875 @kindex A < (Summary)
3876 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3877 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3878 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3883 @kindex A > (Summary)
3884 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3885 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3889 @kindex A s (Summary)
3891 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3892 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3893 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3897 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3898 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3903 @node Reply Followup and Post
3904 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3907 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3908 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3912 @node Summary Mail Commands
3913 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3915 @cindex composing mail
3917 Commands for composing a mail message:
3923 @kindex S r (Summary)
3925 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3926 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3927 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3928 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3929 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3934 @kindex S R (Summary)
3935 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3936 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3937 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3938 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3939 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3942 @kindex S w (Summary)
3943 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3944 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3945 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3946 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3947 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3950 @kindex S W (Summary)
3951 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3952 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3953 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3954 the process/prefix convention.
3957 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3958 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3959 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3960 Forward the current article to some other person
3961 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3962 headers of the forwarded article.
3967 @kindex S m (Summary)
3968 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3969 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3970 Send a mail to some other person
3971 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3974 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3975 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3976 @cindex bouncing mail
3977 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3978 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3979 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3980 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3981 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3982 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3983 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3984 very well fail, though.
3987 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3988 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3989 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3990 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3991 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3992 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3993 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3994 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3995 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3996 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3998 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3999 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4000 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4001 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4002 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4004 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4005 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4008 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4009 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4010 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4011 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4012 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4015 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4016 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4017 @cindex crossposting
4018 @cindex excessive crossposting
4019 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4020 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4022 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4023 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4024 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4025 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4026 command understands the process/prefix convention
4027 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4031 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4034 @node Summary Post Commands
4035 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4037 @cindex composing news
4039 Commands for posting a news article:
4045 @kindex S p (Summary)
4046 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4047 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4048 Post an article to the current group
4049 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4054 @kindex S f (Summary)
4055 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4056 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4057 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4061 @kindex S F (Summary)
4063 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4064 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4065 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4066 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4067 process/prefix convention.
4070 @kindex S n (Summary)
4071 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4072 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4073 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4076 @kindex S N (Summary)
4077 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4078 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4079 message through mail and include the original message
4080 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4081 the process/prefix convention.
4084 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4085 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4086 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4087 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4088 headers of the forwarded article.
4091 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4092 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4094 @cindex making digests
4095 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4096 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4097 process/prefix convention.
4100 @kindex S u (Summary)
4101 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4102 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4103 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4104 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4107 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4110 @node Canceling and Superseding
4111 @section Canceling Articles
4112 @cindex canceling articles
4113 @cindex superseding articles
4115 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4116 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4118 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4120 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4122 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4123 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4124 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4125 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4126 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4127 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4129 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4130 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4133 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4134 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4135 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4137 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4138 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4139 your original article.
4141 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4143 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4144 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4145 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4148 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4149 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4150 have posted almost the same article twice.
4152 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4153 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4154 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4155 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4156 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4157 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4158 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4159 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4160 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4161 canceled/superseded.
4163 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4166 @node Marking Articles
4167 @section Marking Articles
4168 @cindex article marking
4169 @cindex article ticking
4172 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4174 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4175 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4176 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4178 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4181 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4182 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4183 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4187 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4191 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4192 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4196 @node Unread Articles
4197 @subsection Unread Articles
4199 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4204 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4205 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4207 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4208 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4209 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4210 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4211 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4215 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4216 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4218 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4219 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4220 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4223 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4224 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4226 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4231 @subsection Read Articles
4232 @cindex expirable mark
4234 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4239 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4240 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4241 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4244 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4245 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4248 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4249 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4250 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4253 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4254 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4257 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4258 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4261 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4262 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4265 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4266 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4269 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4270 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4273 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4274 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4277 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4278 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4282 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4283 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4284 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4288 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4289 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4291 One more special mark, though:
4295 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4296 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4298 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4299 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4300 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4301 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
4307 @subsection Other Marks
4308 @cindex process mark
4311 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4317 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4318 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4319 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4320 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4321 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
4324 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4325 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4326 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4327 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4330 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4331 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4332 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4335 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4336 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4337 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4338 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4341 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4342 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4343 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4344 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4345 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4348 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4349 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4350 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4351 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4352 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4353 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4357 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4358 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4359 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4361 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4362 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4363 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4367 @subsection Setting Marks
4368 @cindex setting marks
4370 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4375 @kindex M c (Summary)
4376 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4377 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4378 @cindex mark as unread
4379 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4380 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4386 @kindex M t (Summary)
4387 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4388 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4389 @xref{Article Caching}.
4394 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4395 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4396 Mark the current article as dormant
4397 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4401 @kindex M d (Summary)
4403 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4404 Mark the current article as read
4405 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4409 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4410 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4411 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4416 @kindex M k (Summary)
4417 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4418 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4419 and then select the next unread article
4420 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4424 @kindex M K (Summary)
4425 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4426 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4427 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4428 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4431 @kindex M C (Summary)
4432 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4433 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4434 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4437 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4438 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4439 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4440 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4443 @kindex M H (Summary)
4444 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4445 Catchup the current group to point
4446 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4449 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4450 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4451 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4452 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4455 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4456 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4457 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4458 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4462 @kindex M e (Summary)
4464 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4465 Mark the current article as expirable
4466 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4469 @kindex M b (Summary)
4470 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4471 Set a bookmark in the current article
4472 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4475 @kindex M B (Summary)
4476 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4477 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4478 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4481 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4482 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4483 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4484 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4487 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4488 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4489 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4490 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4493 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4494 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4495 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4496 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4497 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4500 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4501 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4502 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4503 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4504 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4505 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4506 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4507 The default is @code{t}.
4510 @node Setting Process Marks
4511 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4512 @cindex setting process marks
4519 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4520 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4521 Mark the current article with the process mark
4522 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4523 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4527 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4528 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4529 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4530 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4533 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4534 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4535 Remove the process mark from all articles
4536 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4539 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4540 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4541 Invert the list of process marked articles
4542 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4545 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4546 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4547 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4548 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4551 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4552 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4553 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4556 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4557 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4558 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4559 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4562 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4563 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4564 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4565 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4568 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4569 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4570 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4571 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4574 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4575 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4576 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4579 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4580 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4581 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4582 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4585 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4586 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4587 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4590 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4591 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4592 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4593 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4596 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4597 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4598 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4599 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4602 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4603 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4604 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4605 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4608 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4609 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4610 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4611 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4620 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4621 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4622 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4625 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4626 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4627 additional articles.
4633 @kindex / / (Summary)
4634 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4635 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4636 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4639 @kindex / a (Summary)
4640 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4641 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4642 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4646 @kindex / u (Summary)
4648 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4649 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4650 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4651 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4652 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4655 @kindex / m (Summary)
4656 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4657 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4658 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4661 @kindex / t (Summary)
4662 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4663 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4664 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4665 articles younger than that number of days.
4668 @kindex / n (Summary)
4669 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4670 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4671 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4672 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4675 @kindex / w (Summary)
4676 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4677 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4678 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4682 @kindex / v (Summary)
4683 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4684 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4685 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4689 @kindex M S (Summary)
4690 @kindex / E (Summary)
4691 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4692 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4693 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4696 @kindex / D (Summary)
4697 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4698 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4699 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4702 @kindex / * (Summary)
4703 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4704 Include all cached articles in the limit
4705 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4708 @kindex / d (Summary)
4709 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4710 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4711 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4714 @kindex / M (Summary)
4715 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
4716 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
4719 @kindex / T (Summary)
4720 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4721 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4724 @kindex / c (Summary)
4725 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4726 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4727 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4730 @kindex / C (Summary)
4731 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4732 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4733 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4734 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4742 @cindex article threading
4744 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4745 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4746 hierarchical fashion.
4748 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4749 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4750 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4751 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4752 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4753 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4754 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4756 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4760 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4763 A tree-like article structure.
4766 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4769 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4770 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4771 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4772 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4773 called loose threads.
4775 @item thread gathering
4776 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4778 @item sparse threads
4779 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4780 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4786 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4787 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4791 @node Customizing Threading
4792 @subsection Customizing Threading
4793 @cindex customizing threading
4796 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4797 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4798 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4799 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4804 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4807 @cindex loose threads
4810 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4811 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4812 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4813 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4814 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4815 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4817 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4818 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4819 There are four possible values:
4823 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4824 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4825 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4826 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4827 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4832 @cindex adopting articles
4837 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4838 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4839 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4840 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4843 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4844 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4845 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4846 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4847 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4848 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4849 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4852 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4853 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4854 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4858 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4859 display them after one another.
4862 Don't gather loose threads.
4865 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4866 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4867 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4868 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4869 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4870 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4871 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4872 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4873 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4874 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4875 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4877 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4878 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4879 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4882 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4883 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4884 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4885 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4886 simplification is used.
4888 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4889 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4890 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4891 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4893 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4895 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4901 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4902 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4903 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4904 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4909 (mapconcat 'identity
4910 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4912 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4915 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4918 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4919 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4920 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4921 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4922 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4923 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4925 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4928 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4929 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4930 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
4932 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4933 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4936 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
4937 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
4938 Remove excessive whitespace.
4941 You may also write your own functions, of course.
4944 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4945 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4946 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4947 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4948 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4949 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4950 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
4951 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4953 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4954 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4955 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4956 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4957 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4958 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4959 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
4960 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
4961 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4965 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4966 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4967 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4968 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4970 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4971 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4972 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4975 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4979 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4980 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4986 @node Filling In Threads
4987 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
4990 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4991 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4992 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4993 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
4994 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
4995 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
4996 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
4997 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
4998 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
4999 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5000 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5001 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
5003 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5004 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5005 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5007 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5008 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5009 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5010 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5011 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5012 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5013 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
5014 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5015 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
5016 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
5017 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5018 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
5019 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5020 @code{nil} by default.
5025 @node More Threading
5026 @subsubsection More Threading
5029 @item gnus-show-threads
5030 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5031 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5032 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5033 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5034 slower and more awkward.
5036 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5037 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5038 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5041 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5042 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5043 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5044 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5045 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5046 threads are expunged.
5048 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5049 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5050 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5053 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5054 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5055 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5056 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5057 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5060 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5061 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5062 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5068 @node Low-Level Threading
5069 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5073 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5074 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5075 Hook run before parsing any headers.
5077 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5078 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5079 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5080 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5081 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5082 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5083 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5084 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5085 meaningful. Here's one example:
5088 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5090 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5091 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5093 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5095 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5102 @node Thread Commands
5103 @subsection Thread Commands
5104 @cindex thread commands
5110 @kindex T k (Summary)
5111 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5112 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5113 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5114 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5115 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5120 @kindex T l (Summary)
5121 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5122 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5123 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5124 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5127 @kindex T i (Summary)
5128 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5129 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5130 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5133 @kindex T # (Summary)
5134 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5135 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5136 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5139 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5140 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5141 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5142 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5145 @kindex T T (Summary)
5146 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5147 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5150 @kindex T s (Summary)
5151 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5152 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5153 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5156 @kindex T h (Summary)
5157 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5158 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5161 @kindex T S (Summary)
5162 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5163 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5166 @kindex T H (Summary)
5167 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5168 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5171 @kindex T t (Summary)
5172 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5173 Re-thread the current article's thread
5174 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5175 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5178 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5179 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5180 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5181 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5185 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5186 understand the numeric prefix.
5191 @kindex T n (Summary)
5192 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5193 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5196 @kindex T p (Summary)
5197 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5198 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5201 @kindex T d (Summary)
5202 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5203 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5206 @kindex T u (Summary)
5207 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5208 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5211 @kindex T o (Summary)
5212 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5213 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5216 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5217 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5218 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5219 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5220 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5221 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5222 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5223 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5224 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5225 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5226 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5227 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5234 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5235 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5236 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5237 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5238 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5239 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5240 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5241 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5242 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
5243 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
5244 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
5246 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5247 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5248 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5249 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5250 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5252 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5253 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5254 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
5256 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
5257 last function in the list. You should probably always include
5258 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5259 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5260 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5261 ascending article order.
5263 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
5264 by number, you could do something like:
5267 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5268 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5269 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5270 (reverse gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
5273 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5274 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5275 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5276 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5277 which the articles arrived.
5279 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5283 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5285 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5286 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5289 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5290 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5291 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5292 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5295 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5296 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5297 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5298 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5299 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5300 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5301 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5302 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5303 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5304 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5305 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5306 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5307 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5309 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5313 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5314 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5315 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5320 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5321 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5322 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5323 @cindex article pre-fetch
5326 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5327 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5328 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5329 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5330 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5332 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5333 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
5335 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5336 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5337 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5338 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5339 connection is blocked.
5341 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5342 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5343 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5344 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
5346 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5347 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5348 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5349 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5352 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5355 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5356 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5357 happen automatically.
5359 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5360 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5361 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5362 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5363 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5364 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5365 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5367 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5368 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5369 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5370 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5371 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5372 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5373 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5374 data structure as the only parameter.
5376 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5379 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5380 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5381 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5382 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5385 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5388 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5389 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
5390 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5392 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5393 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5394 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5395 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5399 Remove articles when they are read.
5402 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5405 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5407 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5408 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5409 @c from the next group.
5412 @node Article Caching
5413 @section Article Caching
5414 @cindex article caching
5417 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5418 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5419 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5420 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5421 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5423 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5425 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5426 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5427 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5428 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5429 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5430 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5431 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5432 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5434 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5435 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5436 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5437 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5438 as dormant, and don't worry.
5440 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5442 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5443 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5444 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5445 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5446 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5447 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5448 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5449 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5450 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5451 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5453 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5454 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5455 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5456 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5457 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5458 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5459 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5460 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5461 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5462 not then be downloaded by this command.
5464 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5465 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
5466 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
5467 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5468 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5469 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
5471 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
5472 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
5473 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
5474 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
5475 variables, the group is not cached.
5477 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5478 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5479 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5480 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5481 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5482 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
5483 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5484 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5485 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5489 @node Persistent Articles
5490 @section Persistent Articles
5491 @cindex persistent articles
5493 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5494 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5495 useful in my opinion.
5497 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5498 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5499 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5500 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5501 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5502 the expiry going on at the news server.
5504 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5505 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5506 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5512 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5513 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5516 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5517 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5518 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5519 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5523 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5525 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5526 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5527 interested in persistent articles:
5530 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5534 @node Article Backlog
5535 @section Article Backlog
5537 @cindex article backlog
5539 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5540 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5541 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
5542 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5543 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5544 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5545 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
5546 increase memory usage some.
5548 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5549 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
5550 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5551 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
5552 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5553 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5554 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5556 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5559 @node Saving Articles
5560 @section Saving Articles
5561 @cindex saving articles
5563 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5564 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5565 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5566 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5567 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5569 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5570 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
5571 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5573 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5574 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5575 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5576 deleted before saving.
5582 @kindex O o (Summary)
5584 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5585 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5586 Save the current article using the default article saver
5587 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5590 @kindex O m (Summary)
5591 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5592 Save the current article in mail format
5593 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5596 @kindex O r (Summary)
5597 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5598 Save the current article in rmail format
5599 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5602 @kindex O f (Summary)
5603 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5604 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5605 Save the current article in plain file format
5606 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5609 @kindex O F (Summary)
5610 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5611 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5612 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5615 @kindex O b (Summary)
5616 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5617 Save the current article body in plain file format
5618 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5621 @kindex O h (Summary)
5622 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5623 Save the current article in mh folder format
5624 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5627 @kindex O v (Summary)
5628 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5629 Save the current article in a VM folder
5630 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5633 @kindex O p (Summary)
5634 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5635 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5636 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5639 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5640 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5641 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5642 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5643 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5644 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5645 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5646 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5647 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5648 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5649 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5650 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5654 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5655 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5656 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
5657 functions below, or you can create your own.
5661 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5662 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5663 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5664 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5665 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5666 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5667 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5669 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5670 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5671 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5672 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5673 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5674 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5676 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5677 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5678 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5679 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5680 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5681 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5682 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5684 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5685 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5686 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5687 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5688 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5690 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5691 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5692 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5693 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5694 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5697 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5698 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5699 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5700 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5701 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5703 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5704 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5705 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5706 reader to use this setting.
5709 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5710 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5711 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5712 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5715 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5716 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5717 available functions that generate names:
5721 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5722 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5723 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5725 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5726 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5727 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5729 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5730 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5731 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5733 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5734 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5735 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5738 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5739 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5740 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5741 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5742 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5746 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5747 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5748 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5749 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5752 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5753 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5754 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5755 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5756 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5757 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5758 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5759 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5760 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5762 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5763 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5764 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5765 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5767 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5768 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5769 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5772 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5773 lots of mail groups called things like
5774 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5775 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5776 following will do just that:
5779 (defun my-save-name (group)
5780 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5781 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5783 (setq gnus-split-methods
5784 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5789 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5790 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5791 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5792 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5793 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5794 all the files in the top level directory
5795 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5796 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5797 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5798 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5800 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5801 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5802 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5803 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5804 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5807 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5811 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5812 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5815 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5816 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5817 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5818 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5821 @node Decoding Articles
5822 @section Decoding Articles
5823 @cindex decoding articles
5825 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5826 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5829 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5830 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5831 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5832 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5833 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5834 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5838 @cindex article series
5839 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5840 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5841 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5842 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5843 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5845 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5846 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5847 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5849 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5850 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5851 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5853 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5854 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5855 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5858 @node Uuencoded Articles
5859 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5861 @cindex uuencoded articles
5866 @kindex X u (Summary)
5867 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5868 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5869 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5872 @kindex X U (Summary)
5873 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5874 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5875 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5878 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5879 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5880 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5883 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5884 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5885 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5886 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5890 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5891 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5892 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5893 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5894 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5896 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5897 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5898 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5899 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5902 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5903 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5904 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5905 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5906 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5907 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5911 @node Shell Archives
5912 @subsection Shell Archives
5914 @cindex shell archives
5915 @cindex shared articles
5917 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5918 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5919 some commands to deal with these:
5924 @kindex X s (Summary)
5925 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5926 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5929 @kindex X S (Summary)
5930 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5931 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5934 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5935 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5936 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5939 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5940 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5941 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5942 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5946 @node PostScript Files
5947 @subsection PostScript Files
5953 @kindex X p (Summary)
5954 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5955 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5958 @kindex X P (Summary)
5959 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5960 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5961 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5964 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5965 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5966 View the current PostScript series
5967 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5970 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5971 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5972 View and save the current PostScript series
5973 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5978 @subsection Other Files
5982 @kindex X o (Summary)
5983 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
5984 Save the current series
5985 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
5988 @kindex X b (Summary)
5989 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
5990 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
5991 doesn't really work yet.
5995 @node Decoding Variables
5996 @subsection Decoding Variables
5998 Adjective, not verb.
6001 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6002 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6003 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6007 @node Rule Variables
6008 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6009 @cindex rule variables
6011 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6012 variables are of the form
6015 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6022 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6023 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6025 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6026 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6029 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6030 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6033 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6034 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6035 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6036 user and default view rules.
6038 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6039 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6040 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6045 @node Other Decode Variables
6046 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6049 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6051 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6052 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6053 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6054 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6055 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6059 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6060 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6063 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6064 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6065 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6068 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6069 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6070 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6071 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6072 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6075 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6076 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6077 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6079 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6080 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6081 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6082 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6083 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6086 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6087 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6088 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6090 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6091 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6092 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6093 looking for files to display.
6095 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6096 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6097 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6100 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6101 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6102 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6105 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6106 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6107 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6110 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6111 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6112 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6115 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6116 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6117 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6118 decoded articles as unread.
6120 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6121 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6122 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6123 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6125 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6126 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6127 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6129 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6130 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6132 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6133 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6134 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6135 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6137 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6138 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6139 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6140 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6141 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6142 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
6143 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6144 simply dropped them.
6149 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6150 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6154 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6155 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6156 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6157 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6158 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6159 for you when you post the article.
6161 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6162 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6163 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6164 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6166 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6167 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6168 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6169 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6170 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6171 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6172 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6174 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6175 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6176 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6177 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6178 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6179 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6180 Default is @code{t}.
6186 @subsection Viewing Files
6187 @cindex viewing files
6188 @cindex pseudo-articles
6190 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
6191 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6192 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6193 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
6194 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6195 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6196 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6198 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6199 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6200 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6201 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6203 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6204 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6205 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6207 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6208 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6209 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6210 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6211 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6213 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6214 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6215 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6216 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6217 a list of parameters to that command.
6219 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6220 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6221 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6223 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6224 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6225 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6228 @node Article Treatment
6229 @section Article Treatment
6231 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6232 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6233 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6234 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6235 these articles easier.
6238 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6239 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6240 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6241 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6242 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6243 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6244 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6248 @node Article Highlighting
6249 @subsection Article Highlighting
6250 @cindex highlighting
6252 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6253 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6258 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6259 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6260 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
6261 Do much highlighting of the current article
6262 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
6263 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
6266 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6267 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6268 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6269 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6270 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6271 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6272 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6273 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6274 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6275 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6276 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6279 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6280 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6281 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6283 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6286 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6288 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6289 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6290 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6292 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6293 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6294 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6296 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6297 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6298 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6300 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6301 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6302 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6303 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6304 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6305 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6307 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6308 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6309 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6311 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6312 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6313 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6315 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6316 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6317 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6318 that it's a citation.
6320 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6321 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6322 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6324 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6325 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6326 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6328 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6329 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6330 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6331 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6337 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6338 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6339 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6340 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6341 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6342 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6343 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6344 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6349 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to highlight articles automatically.
6352 @node Article Fontisizing
6353 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6355 @cindex article emphasis
6357 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6358 @kindex W e (Summary)
6359 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6360 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6361 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6362 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6364 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
6365 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6366 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
6367 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6368 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6369 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6370 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6371 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6375 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6376 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6377 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6380 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6381 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6382 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6383 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6384 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6385 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6386 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6387 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6388 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6389 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6390 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6391 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6392 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6394 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6395 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6396 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6400 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6403 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to fontize articles automatically.
6406 @node Article Hiding
6407 @subsection Article Hiding
6408 @cindex article hiding
6410 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6411 too much cruft in most articles.
6416 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6417 @findex gnus-article-hide
6418 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
6419 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
6420 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
6423 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6424 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6425 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6429 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6430 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6431 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6432 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6435 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6436 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6437 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6441 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6442 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6443 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6444 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6445 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6446 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
6447 articles that have signatures in them do:
6449 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
6451 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
6453 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
6454 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
6456 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6459 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
6464 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6465 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6466 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6467 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6470 @kindex W W B (Summary)
6471 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
6472 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
6473 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
6474 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
6475 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
6476 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
6477 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
6478 which will be interpreted as a regulax expression matching text to be
6479 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
6480 signature should be removed.
6483 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6484 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6485 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6486 customizing the hiding:
6490 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6491 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6492 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6493 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6494 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6495 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6496 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6501 Starting point of the hidden text.
6503 Ending point of the hidden text.
6505 Number of characters in the hidden region.
6507 Number of lines of hidden text.
6510 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6511 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6512 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6517 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
6518 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
6520 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
6521 following two variables:
6524 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6525 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6526 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6527 50), hide the cited text.
6529 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6530 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6531 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6536 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6537 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6538 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6539 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6540 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6541 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6545 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6546 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6547 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6549 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6550 citation customization.
6552 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to hide article elements
6556 @node Article Washing
6557 @subsection Article Washing
6559 @cindex article washing
6561 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6562 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6564 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6565 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6571 @kindex W l (Summary)
6572 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6573 Remove page breaks from the current article
6574 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article} for page
6578 @kindex W r (Summary)
6579 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6580 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6581 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6582 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6583 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6584 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6586 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6587 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6588 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6589 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6592 @kindex W t (Summary)
6593 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6594 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6595 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6598 @kindex W v (Summary)
6599 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6600 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6601 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6604 @kindex W o (Summary)
6605 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6606 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6609 @kindex W d (Summary)
6610 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6611 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
6613 @cindex M******** sm*rtq**t*s
6615 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s according to
6616 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
6617 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
6618 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
6622 @kindex W w (Summary)
6623 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6624 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
6626 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6630 @kindex W q (Summary)
6631 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
6632 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
6635 @kindex W C (Summary)
6636 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentencse
6637 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
6638 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
6641 @kindex W c (Summary)
6642 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6643 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
6644 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
6645 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
6646 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6649 @kindex W q (Summary)
6650 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
6651 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
6652 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
6653 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
6654 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
6655 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
6656 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
6657 header that says that this encoding has been done.
6660 @kindex W f (Summary)
6662 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6663 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6664 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6665 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6671 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6672 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6673 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6674 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6675 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6676 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6677 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6678 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6679 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6680 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6681 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6682 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6683 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6684 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6688 @kindex W b (Summary)
6689 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6690 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6691 @xref{Article Buttons}.
6694 @kindex W B (Summary)
6695 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6696 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6697 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6700 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6701 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6702 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6703 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6706 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6707 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6708 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6709 lines with a single empty line.
6710 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6713 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6714 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6715 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6716 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6719 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6720 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6721 Do all the three commands above
6722 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6725 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6726 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6727 Remove all blank lines
6728 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6731 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6732 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6733 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6734 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6737 @kindex W E e (Summary)
6738 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
6739 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
6740 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
6744 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to wash articles automatically.
6747 @node Article Buttons
6748 @subsection Article Buttons
6751 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6752 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6753 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6754 button on these references.
6756 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6757 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6758 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6763 @item gnus-button-alist
6764 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6765 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6768 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6774 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6775 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6776 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6779 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6780 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6781 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6784 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6785 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6786 avoid false matches.
6789 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6792 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6793 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6797 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6800 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6803 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6804 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6805 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6806 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6807 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6810 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6813 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6815 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6816 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6817 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6818 default values of the variables above.
6820 @item gnus-article-button-face
6821 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6822 Face used on buttons.
6824 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6825 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6826 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6830 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to buttonize articles automatically.
6834 @subsection Article Date
6836 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6837 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6838 when the article was sent.
6843 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6844 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6845 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6846 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6849 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6850 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6852 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6853 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6856 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6857 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6858 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6861 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6862 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6863 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6864 @findex format-time-string
6865 Display the date using a user-defined format
6866 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6867 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6868 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6869 for a list of possible format specs.
6872 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6873 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6874 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6875 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6876 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6877 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). If you want to have this line
6878 updated continually, you can put
6881 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6884 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6885 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6889 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6890 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6891 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6892 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6893 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6894 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6895 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6899 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to display the date in your
6900 preferred format automatically.
6903 @node Article Signature
6904 @subsection Article Signature
6906 @cindex article signature
6908 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6909 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6910 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6911 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6912 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6913 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6914 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6915 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6916 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6919 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6920 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6921 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6922 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6923 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6924 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6925 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6926 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6929 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6932 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6933 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6938 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6941 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6944 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6945 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6947 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6948 in question is not a signature.
6951 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6952 listed above. Here's an example:
6955 (setq gnus-signature-limit
6956 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
6959 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
6960 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
6961 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
6962 signature after all.
6966 @section MIME Commands
6967 @cindex MIME decoding
6971 @kindex M-t (Summary)
6972 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
6973 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
6974 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
6977 @kindex W M w (Summary)
6978 Decode RFC2047-encoded words in the article headers
6979 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
6982 @kindex W M c (Summary)
6983 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
6984 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
6986 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
6987 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
6988 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
6989 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
6990 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
6991 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
6994 @kindex W M v (Summary)
6995 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
6996 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
7003 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
7004 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
7005 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7006 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
7009 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
7012 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
7016 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7017 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
7018 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
7019 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
7020 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
7022 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
7023 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
7024 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
7025 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
7026 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
7027 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
7028 save all jpegs into some directory).
7030 Here's an example function the does the latter:
7033 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
7034 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
7036 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
7037 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
7038 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
7039 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
7040 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
7050 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
7051 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
7052 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
7053 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
7054 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
7055 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
7056 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
7058 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
7059 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
7060 variable, which is an alist of regexps (to match group names) and
7061 default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
7063 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
7064 aren't. These blitely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
7065 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
7066 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
7067 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
7068 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
7069 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
7070 something some agents insist on having in there.
7073 @node Article Commands
7074 @section Article Commands
7081 @kindex A P (Summary)
7082 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
7083 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
7084 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
7085 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
7086 run just before printing the buffer.
7091 @node Summary Sorting
7092 @section Summary Sorting
7093 @cindex summary sorting
7095 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
7096 can't really see why you'd want that.
7101 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
7102 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
7103 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
7106 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
7107 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
7108 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
7111 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
7112 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
7113 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
7116 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
7117 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
7118 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
7121 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
7122 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
7123 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
7126 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
7127 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
7128 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
7131 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
7132 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
7133 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
7134 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
7135 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
7139 @node Finding the Parent
7140 @section Finding the Parent
7141 @cindex parent articles
7142 @cindex referring articles
7147 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
7148 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
7149 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
7150 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
7151 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
7152 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
7153 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
7154 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
7155 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
7157 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
7158 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
7159 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
7160 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
7161 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
7165 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
7166 @kindex A R (Summary)
7167 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
7168 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
7171 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
7172 @kindex A T (Summary)
7173 Display the full thread where the current article appears
7174 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
7175 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
7176 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
7177 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
7178 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
7179 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
7181 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
7182 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
7183 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
7184 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
7185 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
7186 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
7189 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
7190 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
7192 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
7193 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
7194 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
7195 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
7196 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
7197 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
7198 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
7201 The current select method will be used when fetching by
7202 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
7203 by giving this command a prefix.
7205 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
7206 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
7207 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
7208 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
7209 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
7210 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
7213 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
7214 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
7215 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
7216 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
7217 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
7218 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
7221 @node Alternative Approaches
7222 @section Alternative Approaches
7224 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
7225 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
7228 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
7229 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
7234 @subsection Pick and Read
7235 @cindex pick and read
7237 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
7238 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
7239 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
7240 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
7242 @findex gnus-pick-mode
7243 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
7244 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
7245 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
7246 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
7247 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
7249 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
7254 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
7255 Pick the article or thread on the current line
7256 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7257 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
7258 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
7259 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
7260 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
7261 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
7264 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
7265 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
7266 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
7267 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
7271 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
7272 Unpick the thread or article
7273 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7274 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
7275 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
7276 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
7277 the thread or article at that line.
7281 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
7282 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
7283 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
7284 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
7285 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
7286 will still be visible when you are reading.
7290 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
7291 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
7292 which is mapped to the same function
7293 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
7295 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
7298 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
7301 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
7302 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
7304 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
7305 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
7306 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
7308 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
7309 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
7310 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
7311 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
7312 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
7313 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
7314 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
7318 @subsection Binary Groups
7319 @cindex binary groups
7321 @findex gnus-binary-mode
7322 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
7323 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
7324 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
7325 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
7326 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
7327 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
7330 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
7331 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
7332 command, when you have turned on this mode
7333 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
7335 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
7336 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
7340 @section Tree Display
7343 @vindex gnus-use-trees
7344 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
7345 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
7346 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
7349 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
7352 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
7353 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
7354 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
7356 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7357 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7358 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
7359 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
7360 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
7362 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7363 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7364 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7365 default is @code{modeline}.
7367 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7368 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7369 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7370 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7371 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7372 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7373 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7379 The name of the poster.
7381 The @code{From} header.
7383 The number of the article.
7385 The opening bracket.
7387 The closing bracket.
7392 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7394 Variables related to the display are:
7397 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7398 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7399 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7400 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7401 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7402 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7404 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7405 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7406 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7407 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7411 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7412 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7413 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
7414 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
7415 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7416 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7417 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7418 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7419 other windows displayed next to it.
7421 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7422 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7423 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7424 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7425 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7426 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7427 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7431 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7434 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7444 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7448 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7449 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7451 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7453 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7458 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7459 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7460 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7463 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7464 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7465 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7466 (gnus-add-configuration
7470 (summary 0.75 point)
7475 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7478 @node Mail Group Commands
7479 @section Mail Group Commands
7480 @cindex mail group commands
7482 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7483 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7485 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7486 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7491 @kindex B e (Summary)
7492 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7493 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7494 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7497 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7498 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7499 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7500 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7501 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7502 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7505 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7506 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7507 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7508 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7509 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7510 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7513 @kindex B m (Summary)
7515 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7516 Move the article from one mail group to another
7517 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7520 @kindex B c (Summary)
7522 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7523 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7524 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7525 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7528 @kindex B B (Summary)
7529 @cindex crosspost mail
7530 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7531 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7532 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7533 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7534 be properly updated.
7537 @kindex B i (Summary)
7538 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7539 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7540 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7541 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7544 @kindex B r (Summary)
7545 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7546 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
7547 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7548 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7549 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7553 @kindex B w (Summary)
7555 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7556 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7557 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7558 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7559 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7560 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7563 @kindex B q (Summary)
7564 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7565 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7566 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7567 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7570 @kindex B t (Summary)
7571 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
7572 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
7573 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
7576 @kindex B p (Summary)
7577 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7578 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7579 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7580 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7581 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7582 article from your news server (or rather, from
7583 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7584 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7585 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7586 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7587 just not have arrived yet.
7591 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7592 @cindex moving articles
7593 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
7594 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7595 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7596 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7597 suggestions you find reasonable.
7600 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7601 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7602 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7603 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7607 @node Various Summary Stuff
7608 @section Various Summary Stuff
7611 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7612 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7613 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7614 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7618 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7619 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7620 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7622 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7623 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7624 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7625 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7626 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7627 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7630 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7631 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7632 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7633 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7634 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7636 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7637 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7638 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
7641 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7642 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7643 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7644 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7645 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7646 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7647 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
7648 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7649 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7650 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7655 @node Summary Group Information
7656 @subsection Summary Group Information
7661 @kindex H f (Summary)
7662 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7663 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7664 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7665 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7666 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7667 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7668 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7669 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7670 be used for fetching the file.
7673 @kindex H d (Summary)
7674 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7675 Give a brief description of the current group
7676 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7677 rereading the description from the server.
7680 @kindex H h (Summary)
7681 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7682 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7683 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7686 @kindex H i (Summary)
7687 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7688 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7692 @node Searching for Articles
7693 @subsection Searching for Articles
7698 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7699 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7700 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7701 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7704 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7705 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7706 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7707 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7711 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7712 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7713 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7714 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7718 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7719 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7720 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7721 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7724 @node Summary Generation Commands
7725 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7730 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7731 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7732 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7735 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7736 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7737 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7738 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7743 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7744 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7749 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7750 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7751 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7752 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7753 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7754 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7755 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7756 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7757 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7761 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7762 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7763 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7764 several documents into one biiig group
7765 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7766 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7767 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7768 command understands the process/prefix convention
7769 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7772 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7773 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7774 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7775 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7776 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7777 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7781 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7782 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7783 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7786 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7787 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7788 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7789 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7792 @kindex M-C-g (Summary)
7793 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
7794 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7795 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
7800 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7801 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7802 @cindex summary exit
7803 @cindex exiting groups
7805 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7806 group and return you to the group buffer.
7812 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7814 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7815 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7816 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7817 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7818 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7819 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7820 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7821 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7822 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7823 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7824 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7828 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7830 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7831 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7832 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7836 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7838 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7839 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7840 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7841 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7844 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7845 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7846 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7847 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7850 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7851 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7852 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7853 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7856 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7857 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7858 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7859 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7860 all articles, both read and unread.
7864 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7865 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7866 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7867 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7868 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7869 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7870 articles, both read and unread.
7873 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7874 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7875 Exit the group and go to the next group
7876 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7879 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7880 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7881 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7882 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
7885 @kindex Z s (Summary)
7886 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
7887 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
7888 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
7889 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
7890 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7893 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7894 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7897 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7898 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7899 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7900 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7901 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7902 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7903 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7904 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7905 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7906 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7907 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7908 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7910 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7912 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7913 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7914 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7915 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7916 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7917 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7918 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7919 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7920 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7923 @node Crosspost Handling
7924 @section Crosspost Handling
7928 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7929 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7930 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7931 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7932 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7933 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7936 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7937 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7938 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7939 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7940 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7942 @cindex cross-posting
7945 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7946 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7947 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7948 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7949 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7950 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7951 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7952 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7953 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7954 the cross reference mechanism.
7956 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7957 @cindex overview.fmt
7958 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7959 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7960 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7961 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7962 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7963 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7966 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7967 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7968 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7973 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7976 @node Duplicate Suppression
7977 @section Duplicate Suppression
7979 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7980 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7981 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7982 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
7987 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7988 is evil and not very common.
7991 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7992 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7995 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7996 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7999 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
8002 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
8003 well, but these four are the most common situations.
8005 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
8006 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
8007 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
8008 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
8009 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
8010 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
8011 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
8014 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
8015 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
8016 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
8017 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
8018 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
8022 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
8023 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
8024 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
8026 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
8027 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
8028 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
8029 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
8030 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
8031 session are suppressed.
8033 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
8034 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
8035 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
8036 suppression list. The default is 10000.
8038 @item gnus-duplicate-file
8039 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
8040 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
8041 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
8044 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
8045 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
8046 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
8047 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
8048 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
8049 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
8050 to you to figure out, I think.
8053 @node The Article Buffer
8054 @chapter The Article Buffer
8055 @cindex article buffer
8057 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
8058 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
8059 tell Gnus otherwise.
8062 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
8063 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
8064 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
8065 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
8066 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
8070 @node Hiding Headers
8071 @section Hiding Headers
8072 @cindex hiding headers
8073 @cindex deleting headers
8075 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
8076 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
8078 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
8079 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
8080 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
8081 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
8082 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
8083 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
8084 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
8085 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
8086 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
8088 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
8092 @item gnus-visible-headers
8093 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
8094 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
8095 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
8096 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
8098 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
8099 the article and the subject, you'd say:
8102 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
8105 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8108 @item gnus-ignored-headers
8109 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
8110 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
8111 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
8112 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
8113 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
8115 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
8116 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
8119 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
8122 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8125 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
8126 variable will have no effect.
8130 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
8131 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
8132 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
8133 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
8134 the headers are to be displayed.
8136 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
8137 and then the subject, you might say something like:
8140 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
8143 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
8144 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
8146 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8147 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
8148 You can hide further boring headers by setting
8149 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-header} to @code{head}. What this function
8150 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
8151 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
8152 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
8155 These conditions are:
8158 Remove all empty headers.
8160 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
8161 @code{Newsgroups} header.
8163 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
8166 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
8169 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
8172 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
8174 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
8177 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
8180 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
8181 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
8184 This is also the default value for this variable.
8188 @section Using @sc{mime}
8191 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
8192 while people stand around yawning.
8194 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
8195 while all newsreaders die of fear.
8197 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
8198 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
8199 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
8201 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
8202 @findex gnus-display-mime
8203 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
8204 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
8205 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
8206 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
8208 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
8212 @findex gnus-article-press-button
8214 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
8215 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
8216 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
8218 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
8219 @item M-RET (Article)
8221 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
8222 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
8224 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
8226 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
8227 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
8229 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
8231 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
8232 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
8234 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
8236 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
8239 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
8240 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
8243 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
8244 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
8245 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
8246 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
8247 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
8248 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
8249 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
8250 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
8251 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
8253 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
8256 @node Customizing Articles
8257 @section Customizing Articles
8258 @cindex article customization
8260 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
8261 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
8262 called automatically when you select the articles.
8264 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
8265 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
8266 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
8267 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
8271 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
8274 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
8277 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
8280 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
8283 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
8289 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
8290 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
8291 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
8295 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
8300 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
8301 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
8302 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
8303 considered to contain just a single part.
8305 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
8306 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
8307 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
8308 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
8309 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
8310 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
8311 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
8313 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
8314 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
8318 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature
8319 @item gnus-treat-buttonize
8320 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head
8321 @item gnus-treat-emphasize
8322 @item gnus-treat-fill-article
8323 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr
8324 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers
8325 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers
8326 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature
8327 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation
8328 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp
8329 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem
8330 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers
8331 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation
8332 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature
8333 @item gnus-treat-date-ut
8334 @item gnus-treat-date-local
8335 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed
8336 @item gnus-treat-date-original
8337 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines
8338 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines
8339 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8340 @item gnus-treat-strip-blank-lines
8341 @item gnus-treat-overstrike
8342 @item gnus-treat-display-xface
8343 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys
8344 @item gnus-treat-display-picons
8347 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
8348 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
8349 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
8350 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
8351 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
8352 everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead make
8353 them invisible if you want to make them go away.
8356 @node Article Keymap
8357 @section Article Keymap
8359 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
8360 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
8361 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
8362 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
8365 A few additional keystrokes are available:
8370 @kindex SPACE (Article)
8371 @findex gnus-article-next-page
8372 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
8375 @kindex DEL (Article)
8376 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
8377 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
8380 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
8381 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
8382 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
8383 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
8384 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
8387 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
8388 @findex gnus-article-mail
8389 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
8390 given a prefix, include the mail.
8394 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
8395 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
8396 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
8400 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
8401 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
8402 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
8405 @kindex TAB (Article)
8406 @findex gnus-article-next-button
8407 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
8408 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
8411 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
8412 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
8413 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
8419 @section Misc Article
8423 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
8424 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
8425 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
8426 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
8429 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
8430 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
8432 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
8433 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
8435 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
8436 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
8437 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
8438 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
8439 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
8440 the contents of the article buffer.
8442 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
8443 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
8444 Hook called in article mode buffers.
8446 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8447 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8448 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
8449 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
8451 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
8452 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
8453 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
8454 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
8455 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
8460 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
8461 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8464 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
8467 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8469 @item gnus-break-pages
8470 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8471 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8472 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8473 paging will not be done.
8475 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8476 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8477 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8482 @node Composing Messages
8483 @chapter Composing Messages
8484 @cindex composing messages
8487 @cindex sending mail
8492 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8493 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8494 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8495 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8496 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8497 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8498 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8501 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8502 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8503 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8504 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8505 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8506 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
8507 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8508 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8511 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8512 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8518 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8521 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8522 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8523 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8524 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8526 @item gnus-add-to-list
8527 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8528 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8529 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8537 Variables for composing news articles:
8540 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8541 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8542 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8543 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8544 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8545 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8546 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8547 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8548 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
8551 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8552 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8553 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8554 file. It is 1000 by default.
8559 @node Posting Server
8560 @section Posting Server
8562 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8563 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8565 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8567 @vindex gnus-post-method
8569 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
8570 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8571 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8572 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8573 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8576 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8579 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8580 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8581 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8582 the ``current'' server for posting.
8584 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8585 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8587 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8588 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8591 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8592 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8593 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8598 @section Mail and Post
8600 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8604 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8605 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8606 @cindex mailing lists
8608 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8609 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8610 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8611 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8612 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8613 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8614 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8615 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8616 still a pain, though.
8620 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8621 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8622 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8625 @findex ispell-message
8627 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8631 @node Archived Messages
8632 @section Archived Messages
8633 @cindex archived messages
8634 @cindex sent messages
8636 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8637 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8638 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8639 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8642 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8643 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
8644 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8648 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8649 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8650 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8651 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8654 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8655 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8656 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8657 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8660 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8661 '(nnfolder "archive"
8662 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8663 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8664 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8667 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8669 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8670 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8671 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8673 This variable can be used to do the following:
8677 Messages will be saved in that group.
8678 @item a list of strings
8679 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8680 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8681 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8683 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8688 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8690 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8693 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8695 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8698 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8700 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8701 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8702 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8703 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8708 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8709 '((if (message-news-p)
8714 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8715 messages in one file per month:
8718 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8719 '((if (message-news-p)
8721 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8722 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8725 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8726 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8728 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8729 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8730 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8731 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8732 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8733 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8734 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8735 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8736 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8737 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8739 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8740 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8741 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8742 this will disable archiving.
8745 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8746 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8747 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8748 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8749 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8752 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8753 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8754 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8757 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8758 but the latter is the preferred method.
8762 @node Posting Styles
8763 @section Posting Styles
8764 @cindex posting styles
8767 All them variables, they make my head swim.
8769 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8770 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8771 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8774 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8775 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8776 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8777 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8778 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8783 (signature "Peace and happiness")
8784 (organization "What me?"))
8786 (signature "Death to everybody"))
8787 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8788 (organization "Emacs is it")))
8791 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8792 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8793 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8794 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8795 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8796 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8797 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8798 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8800 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8801 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8802 If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8803 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8804 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8805 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8808 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8809 attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
8810 can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
8811 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
8812 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8813 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8816 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8817 return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8818 list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8820 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
8821 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
8822 of the two dynamically bound variables @code{message-this-is-news} and
8823 @code{message-this-is-mail}.
8825 @vindex message-this-is-mail
8826 @vindex message-this-is-news
8828 So here's a new example:
8831 (setq gnus-posting-styles
8833 (signature-file "~/.signature")
8835 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8836 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
8838 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8839 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8840 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
8841 (message-this-is-news
8842 (signature my-news-signature))
8843 (posting-from-work-p
8844 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
8845 (address "user@@bar.foo")
8846 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
8847 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
8849 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
8857 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8858 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8859 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8860 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8861 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8863 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8864 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8865 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8866 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8867 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8871 @vindex nndraft-directory
8872 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8873 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8874 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8875 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8876 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8877 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
8879 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
8880 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
8883 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
8884 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
8885 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
8886 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
8887 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
8888 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
8889 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
8890 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
8891 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
8892 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
8893 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
8894 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
8895 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
8896 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
8898 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
8899 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
8900 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
8902 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
8904 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
8905 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
8906 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
8908 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
8911 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
8912 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
8913 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
8914 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
8915 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
8916 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
8917 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
8920 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
8921 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
8922 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
8925 @node Rejected Articles
8926 @section Rejected Articles
8927 @cindex rejected articles
8929 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
8930 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
8931 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
8932 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
8934 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
8935 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
8936 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
8937 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
8938 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
8940 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
8941 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
8942 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
8945 @node Select Methods
8946 @chapter Select Methods
8947 @cindex foreign groups
8948 @cindex select methods
8950 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
8951 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
8952 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
8953 personal mail group.
8955 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
8956 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
8957 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
8958 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
8959 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
8960 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
8962 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
8963 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
8965 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
8968 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
8969 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
8970 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
8971 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
8972 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
8974 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
8977 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
8978 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
8979 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
8980 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
8981 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
8982 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
8986 @node The Server Buffer
8987 @section The Server Buffer
8989 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
8990 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
8991 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
8992 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
8993 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
8994 backend represents a virtual server.
8996 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
8997 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
8998 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
8999 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
9001 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
9002 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
9003 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
9004 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
9005 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
9006 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
9007 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
9009 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
9010 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
9013 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
9014 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
9015 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
9016 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
9017 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
9018 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
9019 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
9022 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
9023 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
9026 @node Server Buffer Format
9027 @subsection Server Buffer Format
9028 @cindex server buffer format
9030 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
9031 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
9032 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
9033 variable, with some simple extensions:
9038 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
9041 The name of this server.
9044 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
9047 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
9050 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
9051 The mode line can also be customized by using the
9052 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
9053 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
9063 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
9066 @node Server Commands
9067 @subsection Server Commands
9068 @cindex server commands
9074 @findex gnus-server-add-server
9075 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
9079 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
9080 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
9083 @kindex SPACE (Server)
9084 @findex gnus-server-read-server
9085 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
9089 @findex gnus-server-exit
9090 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
9094 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
9095 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
9099 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
9100 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
9104 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
9105 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
9109 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
9110 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
9114 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
9115 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
9116 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
9121 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
9122 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
9123 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
9124 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
9129 @node Example Methods
9130 @subsection Example Methods
9132 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
9135 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
9138 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
9144 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
9145 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
9148 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
9149 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
9151 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
9152 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
9156 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
9159 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
9160 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
9162 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
9163 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
9164 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
9168 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
9171 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
9174 Here's the method for a public spool:
9178 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
9179 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
9182 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
9183 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
9184 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
9185 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
9186 should probably look something like this:
9190 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
9191 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9192 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9193 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9194 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
9197 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
9198 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
9199 server that would look something like this:
9203 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
9204 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
9205 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9206 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9207 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9208 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
9211 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
9212 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
9213 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
9214 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
9217 @node Creating a Virtual Server
9218 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
9220 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
9221 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
9223 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
9224 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
9225 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
9227 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
9229 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
9230 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
9231 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
9232 will contain the following:
9242 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
9243 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
9244 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
9247 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
9248 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
9249 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
9252 @node Server Variables
9253 @subsection Server Variables
9255 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
9256 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
9257 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
9258 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
9259 won't change the "derived" variables.
9261 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
9262 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
9263 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
9264 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
9265 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
9266 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
9267 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
9268 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
9269 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
9273 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
9274 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
9275 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
9279 @node Servers and Methods
9280 @subsection Servers and Methods
9282 Wherever you would normally use a select method
9283 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
9284 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
9285 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
9289 @node Unavailable Servers
9290 @subsection Unavailable Servers
9292 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
9293 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
9294 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
9295 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
9296 actually the case or not.
9298 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
9299 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
9300 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
9301 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
9302 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
9303 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
9304 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
9305 it will regard that server as ``down''.
9307 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
9308 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
9310 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
9311 with the following commands:
9317 @findex gnus-server-open-server
9318 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
9319 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
9323 @findex gnus-server-close-server
9324 Close the connection (if any) to the server
9325 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
9329 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
9330 Mark the current server as unreachable
9331 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
9334 @kindex M-o (Server)
9335 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
9336 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
9337 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
9340 @kindex M-c (Server)
9341 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
9342 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
9343 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
9347 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
9348 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
9349 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
9355 @section Getting News
9356 @cindex reading news
9357 @cindex news backends
9359 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
9360 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
9361 or it can read from a local spool.
9364 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
9365 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
9370 @subsection @sc{nntp}
9373 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
9374 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
9375 server as the, uhm, address.
9377 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
9378 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
9379 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
9380 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9382 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
9383 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
9384 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
9386 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
9391 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
9392 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
9393 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
9395 @cindex authentification
9396 @cindex nntp authentification
9397 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9398 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
9399 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
9400 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
9401 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
9402 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
9403 present in this hook.
9405 @item nntp-authinfo-function
9406 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
9407 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9408 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
9409 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
9410 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
9411 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
9412 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
9413 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
9414 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
9415 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
9416 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
9420 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
9423 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
9424 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
9425 @samp{default} and @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid
9426 @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} token, which is the only way the
9427 @file{.authinfo} file format deviates from the @file{.netrc} file
9432 Here's an example file:
9435 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
9436 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
9439 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
9440 have to be first, for instance.
9442 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
9443 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
9444 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
9445 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
9446 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
9447 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
9448 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
9450 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
9451 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
9457 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
9458 previously mentioned.
9460 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
9462 @item nntp-server-action-alist
9463 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
9464 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
9465 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
9466 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
9469 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
9473 You probably don't want to do that, though.
9475 The default value is
9478 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
9479 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
9482 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
9483 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
9485 @item nntp-maximum-request
9486 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
9487 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
9488 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
9489 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
9490 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
9491 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9492 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9494 @item nntp-connection-timeout
9495 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9496 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9497 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9498 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9499 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9500 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9501 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9502 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9503 no timeouts are done.
9505 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9506 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9507 @c @cindex PPP connections
9508 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9509 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9510 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9511 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9512 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9513 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9514 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9515 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9516 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9517 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9519 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9520 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9521 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9522 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9525 @item nntp-server-hook
9526 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9527 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9530 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9531 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9532 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9533 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9534 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9535 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9536 functions are supplied:
9539 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9540 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9543 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9544 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9545 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9548 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9552 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9553 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9554 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9555 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9557 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9558 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9559 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9561 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9562 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9563 User name on the remote system.
9567 @item nntp-open-telnet
9568 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9569 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9571 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9574 @item nntp-telnet-command
9575 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9576 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9578 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9579 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9580 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9582 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9583 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9584 User name for log in on the remote system.
9586 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9587 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9588 Password to use when logging in.
9590 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9591 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9592 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9595 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9596 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9597 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9598 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9600 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9601 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9602 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9603 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9604 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9608 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9609 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9610 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9611 you must have SSLay installed
9612 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9613 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9614 define a server as follows:
9617 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9619 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9621 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9622 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9623 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9624 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9629 @item nntp-end-of-line
9630 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9631 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9632 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9633 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9635 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9636 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9637 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9641 @vindex nntp-address
9642 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9644 @item nntp-port-number
9645 @vindex nntp-port-number
9646 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9649 @item nntp-buggy-select
9650 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9651 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9653 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9654 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9655 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9656 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9659 @item nntp-xover-commands
9660 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9663 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9664 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9668 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9669 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9670 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9671 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9672 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9673 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9674 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9675 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9676 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9677 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9678 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9680 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9681 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9682 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9684 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9685 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9686 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9687 server closes connection.
9689 @item nntp-record-commands
9690 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9691 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9692 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9693 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9694 that doesn't seem to work.
9700 @subsection News Spool
9704 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9705 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9706 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9709 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9710 anything else) as the address.
9712 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9713 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9714 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9715 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9719 @item nnspool-inews-program
9720 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9721 Program used to post an article.
9723 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9724 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9725 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9727 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9728 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9729 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9730 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9732 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9733 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9734 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9735 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9737 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9738 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9739 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9741 @item nnspool-active-file
9742 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9743 The path to the active file.
9745 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9746 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9747 The path to the group descriptions file.
9749 @item nnspool-history-file
9750 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9751 The path to the news history file.
9753 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9754 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9755 The path to the active date file.
9757 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9758 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9759 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9762 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9763 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9765 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9766 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9767 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9773 @section Getting Mail
9774 @cindex reading mail
9777 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9781 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9782 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9783 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
9784 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9785 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9786 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9787 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9788 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9789 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9790 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9791 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9795 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9796 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9798 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9799 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
9800 and things will happen automatically.
9802 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
9803 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
9806 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
9807 '((nnml "private")))
9810 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
9811 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
9812 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
9813 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
9814 like any other group.
9816 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
9819 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9820 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9821 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9825 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
9826 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
9827 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
9830 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
9831 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
9832 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
9835 @node Splitting Mail
9836 @subsection Splitting Mail
9837 @cindex splitting mail
9838 @cindex mail splitting
9840 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
9841 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
9842 to be split into groups.
9845 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9846 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9847 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9851 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
9852 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
9853 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
9854 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
9855 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
9856 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
9857 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
9860 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
9863 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
9864 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
9865 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
9866 mail belongs in that group.
9868 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
9869 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9870 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9871 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9872 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9873 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9875 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9876 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9877 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9878 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
9879 thinks should carry this mail message.
9881 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
9882 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
9883 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
9884 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
9886 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
9887 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
9888 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
9889 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
9890 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
9892 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
9895 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
9896 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
9897 links. If that's the case for you, set
9898 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
9899 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
9901 @findex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
9902 Header lines may be arbitrarily long. However, the longer a line is,
9903 the longer it takes to match them. Very long lines may lead to Gnus
9904 taking forever to split the mail, so Gnus excludes lines that are longer
9905 than @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} (which defaults to 1024).
9907 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
9908 @kindex nnmail-split-history
9909 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
9910 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
9912 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
9913 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
9914 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
9915 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
9916 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
9917 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
9918 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
9919 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
9924 @subsection Mail Sources
9926 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
9927 POP mail server, or from a procmail directory, for instance.
9930 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
9931 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
9932 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
9936 @node Mail Source Specifiers
9937 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
9944 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by creating a @dfn{mail source
9950 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
9953 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
9954 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
9955 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
9958 The following mail source types are available:
9962 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
9968 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
9969 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
9972 An example file mail source:
9975 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
9978 Or using the default path:
9985 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
9986 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
9992 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
9996 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
10000 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
10001 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
10002 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
10003 predicate are considered.
10007 An example directory mail source:
10010 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
10015 Get mail from a POP server.
10021 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
10022 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
10025 The port number of the POP server. The default is @samp{pop3}.
10028 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
10032 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
10036 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This is should be
10037 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
10040 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
10043 The valid format specifier characters are:
10047 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
10048 included in this string.
10051 The name of the server.
10054 The port number of the server.
10057 The user name to use.
10060 The password to use.
10063 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
10064 corresponding keywords.
10067 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10068 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10071 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
10072 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
10075 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
10076 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
10079 @item :authentication
10080 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
10081 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
10086 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
10087 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
10089 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
10090 default user name, and default fetcher:
10096 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
10099 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
10100 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
10103 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
10106 (pop :program "movemail"
10107 :args (format "po:%s %s %s" user mail-source-crash-box password))
10111 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox currently only
10112 supported by qmail, where each file in a special directory contains
10119 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
10120 @samp{~/Maildir/new}.
10122 If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
10123 them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
10124 @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the following example.
10128 An example maildir mail source:
10131 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/cur")
10137 @node Mail Source Customization
10138 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
10140 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
10141 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
10145 @item mail-source-movemail-program
10146 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
10147 A command to be executed to move mail from the inbox. The default is
10150 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be
10151 called with two parameters -- the name of the INBOX file, and the file
10154 @item mail-source-movemail-args
10155 @vindex mail-source-movemail-args
10156 Extra arguments to give to the command described above.
10158 @item mail-source-crash-box
10159 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
10160 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
10161 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
10163 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
10164 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
10165 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
10167 @item mail-source-directory
10168 @vindex mail-source-directory
10169 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
10170 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
10171 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
10174 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
10175 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
10176 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
10181 @node Fetching Mail
10182 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
10184 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
10185 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to a list of mail source specifiers
10186 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
10188 If this variable is @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to
10189 fetch mail by themselves.
10191 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
10192 mail server, you'd say something like:
10195 (setq nnmail-spool-file
10197 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10198 :password "secret")))
10201 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
10204 (setq nnmail-spool-file
10205 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
10206 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
10209 :password "secret")))
10213 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
10214 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
10215 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
10216 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
10217 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
10218 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
10222 @node Mail Backend Variables
10223 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
10225 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
10229 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10230 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
10231 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
10232 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
10234 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
10235 @item nnmail-split-hook
10236 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
10237 @findex RFC1522 decoding
10238 @findex RFC2047 decoding
10239 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
10240 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
10241 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
10242 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
10243 in the buffer will show up in any files.
10244 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
10247 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10248 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10249 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10250 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
10251 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
10252 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
10253 starting to handle the new mail) and
10254 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
10255 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
10256 default file modes the new mail files get:
10259 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
10260 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
10262 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
10263 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
10266 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
10267 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
10268 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
10269 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
10270 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
10271 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
10272 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
10274 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
10275 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
10276 @findex delete-file
10277 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
10279 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10280 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
10281 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
10282 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
10283 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
10288 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
10289 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
10290 @cindex mail splitting
10291 @cindex fancy mail splitting
10293 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
10294 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
10295 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
10296 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
10297 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
10298 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
10300 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
10303 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
10304 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
10305 ;; from real errors.
10306 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
10308 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
10309 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
10310 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
10311 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
10312 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
10313 ;; Other mailing lists...
10314 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
10315 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
10317 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
10318 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
10322 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
10323 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
10324 the five possible split syntaxes:
10329 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
10330 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
10334 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
10335 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
10336 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
10339 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10340 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
10341 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
10342 be stored in one or more groups.
10345 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
10346 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
10349 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
10350 this message. Use with extreme caution.
10353 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
10354 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
10355 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
10359 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
10363 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
10364 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
10365 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
10366 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
10367 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
10369 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
10370 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
10371 are expanded as specified by the variable
10372 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
10373 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
10376 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
10377 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
10378 when all this splitting is performed.
10380 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
10381 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
10382 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
10385 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
10388 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
10389 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
10390 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
10391 groupings 1 through 9.
10394 @node Incorporating Old Mail
10395 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
10397 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
10398 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
10399 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
10402 Doing so can be quite easy.
10404 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
10405 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
10406 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
10407 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
10408 your @code{nnml} groups.
10414 Go to the group buffer.
10417 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
10418 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10421 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
10424 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
10425 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
10428 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
10429 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
10432 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
10433 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
10434 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
10435 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
10436 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
10438 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
10439 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
10440 using the new mail backend.
10443 @node Expiring Mail
10444 @subsection Expiring Mail
10445 @cindex article expiry
10447 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
10448 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
10449 different approach to mail reading.
10451 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
10452 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
10453 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
10454 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
10455 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
10456 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
10459 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
10460 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
10461 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
10462 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
10463 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
10464 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
10465 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
10466 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
10468 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10469 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
10470 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
10471 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
10472 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
10473 column in the summary buffer.
10475 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
10476 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
10477 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
10478 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
10481 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
10483 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
10484 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
10485 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
10488 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
10489 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
10490 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
10491 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
10492 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
10494 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
10495 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
10498 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10499 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
10502 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
10503 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
10505 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
10506 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
10507 don't really mix very well.
10509 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
10510 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
10511 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
10512 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
10515 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
10516 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
10517 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
10518 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
10521 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10523 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10525 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
10527 ((string= group "mail.junk")
10529 ((string= group "important")
10535 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
10536 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
10538 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
10539 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
10540 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
10543 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
10544 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
10546 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
10547 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
10548 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
10549 easier for procmail users.
10551 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
10552 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
10553 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
10554 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
10555 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
10556 caution. Even more dangerous is the
10557 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
10558 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
10559 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
10560 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
10561 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
10562 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
10563 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
10566 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
10568 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
10569 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
10570 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
10571 auto-expire turned on.
10575 @subsection Washing Mail
10576 @cindex mail washing
10577 @cindex list server brain damage
10578 @cindex incoming mail treatment
10580 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
10581 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
10582 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
10583 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
10584 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
10585 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
10587 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
10588 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
10589 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
10592 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
10593 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
10594 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
10595 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
10598 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10599 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10600 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
10601 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
10602 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
10605 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10606 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10607 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
10608 Emacs running on MS machines.
10612 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10613 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10614 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
10615 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
10618 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10619 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10620 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
10621 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
10623 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10624 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10625 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
10626 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
10627 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
10628 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
10629 also be a list of regexp.
10631 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
10632 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10635 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10636 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10639 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10640 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10641 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10643 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10644 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
10646 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
10647 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
10648 @code{References} headers.
10652 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10653 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10654 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10658 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10659 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10660 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10667 @subsection Duplicates
10669 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10670 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10671 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10672 @cindex duplicate mails
10673 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10674 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10675 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10676 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10677 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10678 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10679 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10680 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10681 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10682 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10683 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10684 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10685 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10687 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10688 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10689 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10690 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10692 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10695 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10696 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10700 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10701 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10702 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10703 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10704 (any mail "mail.misc")
10711 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10712 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10717 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10718 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10719 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10720 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10721 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10724 @node Not Reading Mail
10725 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10727 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10728 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10729 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10731 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
10732 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
10734 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10735 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10736 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10737 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10738 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10739 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10740 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10741 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10742 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10743 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10744 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10746 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10747 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10751 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10752 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10754 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10755 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10756 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10759 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10760 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10761 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10762 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10763 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10767 @node Unix Mail Box
10768 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10770 @cindex unix mail box
10772 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10773 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10774 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10775 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10776 which group it belongs in.
10778 Virtual server settings:
10781 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10782 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10783 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10785 @item nnmbox-active-file
10786 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10787 The name of the active file for the mail box.
10789 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
10790 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10791 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
10797 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
10801 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10802 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10803 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
10804 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
10805 article to say which group it belongs in.
10807 Virtual server settings:
10810 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
10811 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10812 The name of the rmail mbox file.
10814 @item nnbabyl-active-file
10815 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10816 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
10818 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10819 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10820 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
10825 @subsubsection Mail Spool
10827 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
10829 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
10830 format. It should be used with some caution.
10832 @vindex nnml-directory
10833 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
10834 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
10835 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
10836 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
10838 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
10841 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
10842 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
10843 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
10844 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
10845 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
10846 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
10847 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
10848 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
10850 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
10851 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
10852 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
10853 backend when it comes to reading mail.
10855 Virtual server settings:
10858 @item nnml-directory
10859 @vindex nnml-directory
10860 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
10862 @item nnml-active-file
10863 @vindex nnml-active-file
10864 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
10866 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
10867 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
10868 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
10871 @item nnml-get-new-mail
10872 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10873 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
10875 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
10876 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
10877 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
10879 @item nnml-nov-file-name
10880 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
10881 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
10883 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10884 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10885 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
10889 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
10890 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
10891 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
10892 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
10893 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
10894 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
10895 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
10900 @subsubsection MH Spool
10902 @cindex mh-e mail spool
10904 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
10905 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
10906 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
10907 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
10909 Virtual server settings:
10912 @item nnmh-directory
10913 @vindex nnmh-directory
10914 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
10916 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
10917 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10918 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
10921 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
10922 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
10923 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
10924 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
10925 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
10926 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
10927 to set this variable to @code{t}.
10932 @subsubsection Mail Folders
10934 @cindex mbox folders
10935 @cindex mail folders
10937 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
10938 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
10939 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
10942 Virtual server settings:
10945 @item nnfolder-directory
10946 @vindex nnfolder-directory
10947 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
10949 @item nnfolder-active-file
10950 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
10951 The name of the active file.
10953 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10954 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10955 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
10957 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
10958 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10959 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
10961 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
10962 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
10963 @cindex backup files
10964 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
10965 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
10966 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
10967 your @file{.emacs} file:
10970 (defun turn-off-backup ()
10971 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
10973 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
10976 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
10977 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
10978 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
10979 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
10980 extract some information from it before removing it.
10985 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
10986 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
10987 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
10988 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
10989 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
10990 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
10994 @node Other Sources
10995 @section Other Sources
10997 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
10998 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
11002 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
11003 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
11004 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
11005 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
11006 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
11007 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
11011 @node Directory Groups
11012 @subsection Directory Groups
11014 @cindex directory groups
11016 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
11017 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
11020 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
11021 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
11022 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
11023 backend to read directories. Big deal.
11025 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
11026 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
11027 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
11028 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
11029 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
11031 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
11033 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
11034 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
11035 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
11036 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
11039 @node Anything Groups
11040 @subsection Anything Groups
11043 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
11044 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
11045 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
11048 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
11049 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
11050 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
11051 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
11052 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
11053 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
11054 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
11055 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
11056 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
11057 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
11060 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
11061 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
11062 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
11063 in the article buffer, just as usual.
11065 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
11066 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
11067 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
11068 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
11070 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
11071 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
11072 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
11073 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
11074 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
11075 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
11076 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
11077 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
11082 @item nneething-map-file-directory
11083 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
11084 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
11085 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
11087 @item nneething-exclude-files
11088 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
11089 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
11090 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
11092 @item nneething-include-files
11093 @vindex nneething-include-files
11094 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
11095 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
11097 @item nneething-map-file
11098 @vindex nneething-map-file
11099 Name of the map files.
11103 @node Document Groups
11104 @subsection Document Groups
11106 @cindex documentation group
11109 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
11110 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
11117 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
11122 The standard Unix mbox file.
11124 @cindex MMDF mail box
11126 The MMDF mail box format.
11129 Several news articles appended into a file.
11132 @cindex rnews batch files
11133 The rnews batch transport format.
11134 @cindex forwarded messages
11137 Forwarded articles.
11140 MIME multipart messages.
11142 @item standard-digest
11143 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
11146 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
11149 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
11150 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
11151 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
11154 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
11155 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
11156 group. And that's it.
11158 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
11159 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
11160 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
11161 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
11162 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
11163 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
11164 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
11165 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
11166 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
11167 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
11169 Virtual server variables:
11172 @item nndoc-article-type
11173 @vindex nndoc-article-type
11174 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
11175 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
11176 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
11177 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs} or @code{guess}.
11179 @item nndoc-post-type
11180 @vindex nndoc-post-type
11181 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
11182 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
11187 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
11191 @node Document Server Internals
11192 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
11194 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
11195 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
11196 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
11197 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
11199 First, here's an example document type definition:
11203 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
11204 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
11207 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
11208 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
11209 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
11210 types can be defined with very few settings:
11213 @item first-article
11214 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
11215 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
11218 @item article-begin
11219 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
11220 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
11222 @item head-begin-function
11223 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
11226 @item nndoc-head-begin
11227 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
11230 @item nndoc-head-end
11231 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
11232 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
11234 @item body-begin-function
11235 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
11239 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
11242 @item body-end-function
11243 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
11247 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
11250 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
11251 regexp will be totally ignored.
11255 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
11256 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
11257 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
11258 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
11259 something that's palatable for Gnus:
11262 @item prepare-body-function
11263 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
11264 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
11265 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
11267 @item article-transform-function
11268 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
11269 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
11270 body of the article.
11272 @item generate-head-function
11273 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
11274 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
11275 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
11276 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
11280 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
11285 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11286 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
11287 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
11288 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
11289 (head-end . "^ ?$")
11290 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
11291 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
11292 (subtype digest guess))
11295 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
11296 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
11297 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
11298 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
11299 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
11301 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
11302 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
11303 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
11304 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
11305 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
11306 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
11307 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
11308 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
11309 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
11310 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
11318 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
11319 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
11320 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
11322 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
11323 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
11324 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
11327 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
11328 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
11329 that interested in doing things properly.
11331 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
11332 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
11335 First some terminology:
11340 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
11341 get news and/or mail from.
11344 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
11345 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
11348 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
11352 @item message packets
11353 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
11354 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
11355 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11357 @item response packets
11358 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
11359 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
11360 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11370 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
11371 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
11372 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
11373 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
11376 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
11379 You put the packet in your home directory.
11382 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
11383 the native or secondary server.
11386 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
11387 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
11390 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
11394 You transfer this packet to the server.
11397 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
11400 You then repeat until you die.
11404 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
11405 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
11408 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
11409 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
11410 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
11414 @node SOUP Commands
11415 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
11417 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
11421 @kindex G s b (Group)
11422 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
11423 Pack all unread articles in the current group
11424 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
11425 process/prefix convention.
11428 @kindex G s w (Group)
11429 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
11430 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
11433 @kindex G s s (Group)
11434 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
11435 Send all replies from the replies packet
11436 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
11439 @kindex G s p (Group)
11440 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
11441 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
11444 @kindex G s r (Group)
11445 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
11446 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
11449 @kindex O s (Summary)
11450 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
11451 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
11452 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
11453 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
11458 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
11463 @item gnus-soup-directory
11464 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
11465 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
11466 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
11468 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
11469 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
11470 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
11471 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
11473 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
11474 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
11475 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
11476 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
11478 @item gnus-soup-packer
11479 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
11480 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11481 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
11483 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
11484 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
11485 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11486 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11488 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
11489 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
11490 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
11492 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11493 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11494 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
11495 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
11501 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
11504 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
11505 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
11506 you can read them at leisure.
11508 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
11512 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
11513 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
11514 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
11515 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
11517 @item nnsoup-directory
11518 @vindex nnsoup-directory
11519 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
11520 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
11522 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
11523 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
11524 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
11525 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
11527 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
11528 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
11529 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
11530 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
11531 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
11533 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
11534 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
11535 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
11536 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
11538 @item nnsoup-active-file
11539 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
11540 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
11541 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
11542 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
11543 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
11545 @item nnsoup-packer
11546 @vindex nnsoup-packer
11547 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
11548 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
11550 @item nnsoup-unpacker
11551 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
11552 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
11553 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11555 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
11556 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
11557 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
11560 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
11561 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
11562 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
11565 @item nnsoup-always-save
11566 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
11567 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
11573 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
11575 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
11576 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
11577 more for that to happen.
11579 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
11580 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
11581 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
11584 In specific, this is what it does:
11587 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
11588 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
11591 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
11592 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
11593 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
11597 @subsection Web Searches
11601 @cindex InReference
11602 @cindex Usenet searches
11603 @cindex searching the Usenet
11605 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
11606 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
11607 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
11608 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
11609 searches without having to use a browser.
11611 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
11612 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
11613 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
11614 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
11615 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
11617 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
11618 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
11619 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
11620 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
11621 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
11622 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
11623 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
11624 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
11625 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
11626 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
11629 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
11630 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
11631 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
11632 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
11633 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
11634 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
11636 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
11637 to use @code{nnweb}.
11639 Virtual server variables:
11644 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
11645 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
11649 @vindex nnweb-search
11650 The search string to feed to the search engine.
11652 @item nnweb-max-hits
11653 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
11654 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
11657 @item nnweb-type-definition
11658 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
11659 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
11660 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
11665 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
11669 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
11672 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
11675 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
11679 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
11686 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
11687 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
11688 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
11691 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
11692 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
11693 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
11695 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
11701 @item nngateway-address
11702 @vindex nngateway-address
11703 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
11705 @item nngateway-header-transformation
11706 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
11707 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
11708 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
11709 transformation should be called, and defaults to
11710 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
11711 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
11714 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
11715 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
11716 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
11719 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
11722 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
11725 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
11728 The following pre-defined functions exist:
11730 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11733 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11734 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11735 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
11737 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11739 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11740 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11741 @code{nngateway-address}.
11746 (setq gnus-post-method
11747 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
11748 (nngateway-header-transformation
11749 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
11757 So, to use this, simply say something like:
11760 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
11764 @node Combined Groups
11765 @section Combined Groups
11767 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
11771 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
11772 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
11776 @node Virtual Groups
11777 @subsection Virtual Groups
11779 @cindex virtual groups
11780 @cindex merging groups
11782 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
11785 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
11786 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
11787 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
11789 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
11790 regexp to match component groups.
11792 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
11793 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
11794 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
11795 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
11796 the virtual group.)
11798 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
11799 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
11802 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
11805 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
11806 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
11808 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
11809 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
11810 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
11811 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
11814 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
11817 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
11818 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
11819 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
11821 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
11822 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
11823 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
11824 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
11825 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
11827 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
11828 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
11829 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
11831 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
11832 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
11833 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
11834 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
11835 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
11836 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
11837 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
11838 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
11839 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
11840 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
11841 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
11843 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
11844 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
11845 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
11846 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
11847 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
11848 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
11849 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
11851 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
11852 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
11856 @node Kibozed Groups
11857 @subsection Kibozed Groups
11861 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
11862 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
11863 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
11864 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
11866 @kindex G k (Group)
11867 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
11870 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
11871 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
11872 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
11873 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
11875 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
11876 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
11877 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
11879 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
11880 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
11881 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
11882 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
11883 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
11884 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
11885 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
11886 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
11888 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
11889 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
11890 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
11891 Stranger things have happened.
11893 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
11894 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
11896 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
11897 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
11898 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
11899 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
11900 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
11901 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
11903 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
11904 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
11907 @node Gnus Unplugged
11908 @section Gnus Unplugged
11913 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
11915 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
11916 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
11917 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
11918 read news. Believe it or not.
11920 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
11921 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
11922 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
11923 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
11924 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
11926 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
11927 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
11928 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
11929 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
11930 reading news on a machine.
11932 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
11936 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
11937 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
11941 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
11942 @file{.gnus.el} file:
11949 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
11951 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
11954 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
11955 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
11956 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
11957 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
11958 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
11959 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
11960 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
11961 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
11962 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
11967 @subsection Agent Basics
11969 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
11971 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
11972 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
11973 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
11974 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
11976 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
11977 connected to the net continuously.
11979 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
11980 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
11982 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
11987 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
11988 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
11989 already fetched while in this mode.
11992 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
11993 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
11994 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
11997 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
11998 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
11999 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
12000 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
12003 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
12004 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
12005 then you read the news offline.
12008 And then you go to step 2.
12011 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
12017 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
12018 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
12019 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
12020 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
12021 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
12022 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
12025 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
12032 @node Agent Categories
12033 @subsection Agent Categories
12035 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
12036 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
12037 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
12038 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
12039 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
12040 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
12041 you're interested in the articles anyway.
12043 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
12044 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
12045 Gnus has its own buffer for creating and managing categories.
12048 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
12049 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
12050 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
12054 @node Category Syntax
12055 @subsubsection Category Syntax
12057 A category consists of two things.
12061 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
12062 are eligible for downloading; and
12065 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
12066 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
12067 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
12070 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
12071 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
12072 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
12073 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
12075 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
12076 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
12077 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as descibed below.
12079 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
12080 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
12081 operators sprinkled in between.
12083 Perhaps some examples are in order.
12085 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
12086 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
12092 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
12093 short (for some value of ``short'').
12095 Here's a more complex predicate:
12104 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
12105 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
12108 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
12109 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
12110 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
12112 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
12113 you want to do, you can write your own.
12117 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
12118 lines; default 100.
12121 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
12122 lines; default 200.
12125 True iff the article has a download score less than
12126 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
12129 True iff the article has a download score greater than
12130 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
12133 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
12134 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
12135 checksum and sees whether articles match.
12144 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
12145 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
12146 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
12149 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
12150 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
12151 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
12152 something along the lines of the following:
12155 (defun my-article-old-p ()
12156 "Say whether an article is old."
12157 (< (time-to-day (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
12158 (- (time-to-day (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
12161 with the predicate then defined as:
12164 (not my-article-old-p)
12167 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
12168 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
12169 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
12170 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
12173 (defvar gnus-category-predicate-alist
12174 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
12175 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
12178 and simply specify your predicate as:
12184 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
12185 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
12186 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
12187 just don't give a damm.
12190 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
12191 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
12192 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
12193 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
12194 parameters like so:
12197 (agent-predicate . short)
12200 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category
12201 default. Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this,
12202 the @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair
12205 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
12208 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
12211 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
12212 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
12213 predicate is assumed to be a list.
12216 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
12217 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
12218 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
12219 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
12220 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
12221 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
12223 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
12224 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
12225 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
12226 if it's to be specific to that group.
12228 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
12235 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
12236 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
12242 Category specification
12246 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12252 Group Parameter specification
12255 (agent-score ("from"
12256 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
12261 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
12267 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
12274 Category specification
12277 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
12283 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
12287 Group Parameter specification
12290 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
12293 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
12298 Use @code{normal} score files
12300 If you dont want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
12301 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
12302 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
12303 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
12305 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
12306 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
12307 files for a group, *filtering out* those those sections that do not
12308 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
12312 Category Specification
12319 Group Parameter specification
12322 (agent-score . file)
12327 @node The Category Buffer
12328 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
12330 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
12331 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
12332 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
12334 The following commands are available in this buffer:
12338 @kindex q (Category)
12339 @findex gnus-category-exit
12340 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
12343 @kindex k (Category)
12344 @findex gnus-category-kill
12345 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
12348 @kindex c (Category)
12349 @findex gnus-category-copy
12350 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
12353 @kindex a (Category)
12354 @findex gnus-category-add
12355 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
12358 @kindex p (Category)
12359 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
12360 Edit the predicate of the current category
12361 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
12364 @kindex g (Category)
12365 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
12366 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
12367 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
12370 @kindex s (Category)
12371 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
12372 Edit the download score rule of the current category
12373 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
12376 @kindex l (Category)
12377 @findex gnus-category-list
12378 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
12382 @node Category Variables
12383 @subsubsection Category Variables
12386 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
12387 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
12388 Hook run in category buffers.
12390 @item gnus-category-line-format
12391 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
12392 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
12393 Variables}). Valid elements are:
12397 The name of the category.
12400 The number of groups in the category.
12403 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
12404 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
12405 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
12407 @item gnus-agent-short-article
12408 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
12409 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
12411 @item gnus-agent-long-article
12412 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
12413 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
12415 @item gnus-agent-low-score
12416 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
12417 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
12420 @item gnus-agent-high-score
12421 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
12422 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
12428 @node Agent Commands
12429 @subsection Agent Commands
12431 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
12432 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
12433 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
12437 * Group Agent Commands::
12438 * Summary Agent Commands::
12439 * Server Agent Commands::
12442 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
12443 following incantation:
12445 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12447 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12452 @node Group Agent Commands
12453 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
12457 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
12458 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
12459 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
12460 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
12463 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
12464 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
12465 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
12468 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
12469 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
12470 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
12471 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
12474 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
12475 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
12476 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
12477 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}.
12480 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
12481 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
12482 Add the current group to an Agent category
12483 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
12484 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12487 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
12488 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
12489 Remove the current group from its category, if any
12490 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
12491 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
12496 @node Summary Agent Commands
12497 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
12501 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
12502 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
12503 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
12506 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
12507 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
12508 Remove the downloading mark from the article
12509 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
12512 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
12513 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
12514 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
12517 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
12518 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
12519 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
12524 @node Server Agent Commands
12525 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
12529 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
12530 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
12531 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
12532 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
12535 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
12536 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
12537 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
12538 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
12544 @subsection Agent Expiry
12546 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
12547 @findex gnus-agent-expire
12548 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
12549 @cindex Agent expiry
12550 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
12553 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
12554 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
12555 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
12556 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
12557 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
12558 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
12560 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
12561 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
12562 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
12563 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
12564 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
12567 @node Outgoing Messages
12568 @subsection Outgoing Messages
12570 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
12571 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
12572 after posting, and edit them at will.
12574 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
12575 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
12576 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
12577 messages in the draft group.
12581 @node Agent Variables
12582 @subsection Agent Variables
12585 @item gnus-agent-directory
12586 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
12587 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
12588 @file{~/News/agent/}.
12590 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
12591 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
12592 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
12593 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
12594 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
12597 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12598 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12599 Hook run when connecting to the network.
12601 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12602 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12603 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
12608 @node Example Setup
12609 @subsection Example Setup
12611 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
12612 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
12613 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
12616 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
12617 ;;; from your ISP's server.
12618 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "nntp.your-isp.com"))
12620 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
12621 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
12622 (setenv "MAILHOST" "pop.your-isp.com")
12623 (setq nnmail-spool-file "po:username")
12625 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
12626 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12628 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
12632 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
12633 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
12636 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
12637 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
12638 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
12639 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
12640 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
12643 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
12644 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
12645 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
12646 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
12647 back all the killed groups.)
12649 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
12650 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
12651 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
12654 @node Batching Agents
12655 @subsection Batching Agents
12657 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
12658 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
12659 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
12663 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
12667 @node Agent Caveats
12668 @subsection Agent Caveats
12670 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
12671 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
12675 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
12680 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
12681 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
12687 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
12688 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
12695 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
12696 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
12697 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
12700 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
12701 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
12702 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
12703 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
12704 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
12706 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
12707 before generating the summary buffer.
12709 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
12710 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
12711 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
12713 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
12714 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
12715 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
12716 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
12719 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
12720 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
12721 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
12722 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
12723 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
12724 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
12725 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
12726 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
12727 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
12728 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
12729 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
12730 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
12731 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
12732 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
12733 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
12734 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
12738 @node Summary Score Commands
12739 @section Summary Score Commands
12740 @cindex score commands
12742 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
12743 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
12744 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
12745 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
12746 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
12748 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
12749 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
12750 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
12751 score file the current one.
12753 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
12758 @kindex V s (Summary)
12759 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
12760 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
12763 @kindex V S (Summary)
12764 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
12765 Display the score of the current article
12766 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
12769 @kindex V t (Summary)
12770 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
12771 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
12772 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
12775 @kindex V R (Summary)
12776 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
12777 Run the current summary through the scoring process
12778 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
12779 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
12780 effect you're having.
12783 @kindex V c (Summary)
12784 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
12785 Make a different score file the current
12786 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
12789 @kindex V e (Summary)
12790 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
12791 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
12792 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
12796 @kindex V f (Summary)
12797 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
12798 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
12799 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
12802 @kindex V F (Summary)
12803 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12804 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
12805 after editing score files.
12808 @kindex V C (Summary)
12809 @findex gnus-score-customize
12810 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
12811 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
12815 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
12820 @kindex V m (Summary)
12821 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
12822 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
12823 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
12826 @kindex V x (Summary)
12827 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
12828 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
12829 expunge all articles below this score
12830 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
12833 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
12834 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
12837 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
12838 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
12842 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
12843 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
12845 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
12846 keys are available:
12850 Score on the author name.
12853 Score on the subject line.
12856 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
12859 Score on the @code{References} line.
12865 Score on the number of lines.
12868 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
12871 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
12872 the followups to this author.
12886 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
12887 what headers you are scoring on.
12899 Substring matching.
12902 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
12931 Greater than number.
12936 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
12937 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
12938 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
12942 Temporary score entry.
12945 Permanent score entry.
12948 Immediately scoring.
12953 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
12954 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
12955 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
12956 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
12958 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
12959 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
12960 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
12961 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
12962 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
12964 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
12965 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
12966 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
12967 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
12968 current score file.
12970 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
12971 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
12972 pretend they are keymaps or not.
12975 @node Group Score Commands
12976 @section Group Score Commands
12977 @cindex group score commands
12979 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
12984 @kindex W f (Group)
12985 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12986 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
12987 all the time. This command will flush the cache
12988 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
12992 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
12994 @findex gnus-batch-score
12995 @cindex batch scoring
12997 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
13001 @node Score Variables
13002 @section Score Variables
13003 @cindex score variables
13007 @item gnus-use-scoring
13008 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
13009 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
13010 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
13012 @item gnus-kill-killed
13013 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
13014 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
13015 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
13016 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
13017 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
13018 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
13019 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
13021 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
13022 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
13023 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
13024 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
13025 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
13027 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
13028 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
13029 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
13030 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
13032 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13033 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
13034 @cindex score cache
13035 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
13036 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
13037 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
13038 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
13039 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
13040 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
13043 @item gnus-save-score
13044 @vindex gnus-save-score
13045 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
13046 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
13047 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
13049 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13050 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
13051 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
13052 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
13053 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
13054 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
13055 manually entered data.
13057 @item gnus-summary-default-score
13058 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
13059 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
13061 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
13062 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
13063 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
13064 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
13065 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
13066 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
13068 @item gnus-score-over-mark
13069 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
13070 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
13071 default. Default is @samp{+}.
13073 @item gnus-score-below-mark
13074 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
13075 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
13076 default. Default is @samp{-}.
13078 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13079 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
13080 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
13081 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
13083 Predefined functions available are:
13086 @item gnus-score-find-single
13087 @findex gnus-score-find-single
13088 Only apply the group's own score file.
13090 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
13091 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
13092 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
13093 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
13094 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
13095 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
13096 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
13097 then a regexp match is done.
13099 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
13100 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
13102 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
13103 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
13104 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
13105 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
13107 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13108 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
13109 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
13110 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
13111 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
13114 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
13115 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
13116 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
13117 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
13118 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
13119 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
13122 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
13123 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
13124 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
13125 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
13126 are expired. It's 7 by default.
13128 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13129 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
13130 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
13131 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
13132 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
13133 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
13134 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
13137 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13138 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
13139 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
13141 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
13142 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
13143 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
13144 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
13145 threading---according to the current value of
13146 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
13147 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
13148 simplified in this manner.
13153 @node Score File Format
13154 @section Score File Format
13155 @cindex score file format
13157 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
13158 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
13159 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
13161 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
13165 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
13167 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
13169 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
13171 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
13176 (mark-and-expunge -10)
13180 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
13181 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
13182 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
13183 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
13187 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
13188 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
13190 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
13191 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
13192 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
13194 Six keys are supported by this alist:
13199 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
13200 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
13201 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
13202 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
13203 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
13204 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
13205 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
13206 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
13207 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
13208 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
13209 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
13210 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
13211 to articles that matches these score entries.
13213 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
13214 score entry has one to four elements.
13218 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
13219 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
13223 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
13224 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
13225 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
13226 is successful. If this element is not present, the
13227 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
13228 instead. This is 1000 by default.
13231 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
13232 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
13233 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
13234 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
13235 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
13238 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
13239 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
13240 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
13241 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
13244 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
13245 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
13246 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
13247 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
13248 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
13249 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
13250 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
13251 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
13252 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
13253 instead, if you feel like.
13256 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
13257 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
13259 These predicates are true if
13262 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
13265 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
13266 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
13273 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
13274 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
13275 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
13276 it's not. I think.)
13278 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
13279 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
13280 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
13281 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
13284 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
13285 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
13286 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
13287 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
13288 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
13289 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
13290 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
13294 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
13295 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
13296 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
13297 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
13298 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
13299 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
13300 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
13301 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
13304 @item Head, Body, All
13305 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
13309 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
13310 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
13311 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
13312 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
13313 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
13314 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
13315 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
13319 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
13320 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
13321 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
13322 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
13323 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
13324 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
13325 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
13326 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
13327 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
13328 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
13332 @cindex Score File Atoms
13334 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13335 lower than this number will be marked as read.
13338 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13339 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
13341 @item mark-and-expunge
13342 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13343 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
13346 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
13347 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
13348 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
13349 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
13350 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
13353 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
13354 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
13357 @item exclude-files
13358 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
13359 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
13363 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
13364 ignored when handling global score files.
13367 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
13368 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
13369 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
13370 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
13373 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
13374 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
13375 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
13376 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
13378 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
13382 (mark-and-expunge -100)
13385 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
13386 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
13387 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
13388 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
13389 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
13391 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
13392 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
13393 ordinary scoring rules.
13396 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
13397 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
13398 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
13399 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
13400 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
13401 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
13402 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13403 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
13404 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
13405 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
13406 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
13410 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
13411 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
13412 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
13413 file for a number of groups.
13416 @cindex local variables
13417 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
13418 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
13419 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
13420 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
13421 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
13425 @node Score File Editing
13426 @section Score File Editing
13428 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
13429 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
13430 with a mode for that.
13432 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
13433 additional commands:
13438 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
13439 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
13440 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
13441 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
13444 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
13445 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
13446 Insert the current date in numerical format
13447 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
13448 you were wondering.
13451 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
13452 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
13453 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
13454 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
13455 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
13460 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
13462 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
13463 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
13465 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
13466 e} to begin editing score files.
13469 @node Adaptive Scoring
13470 @section Adaptive Scoring
13471 @cindex adaptive scoring
13473 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
13474 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
13475 stupidity, to be precise.
13477 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
13478 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
13479 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
13480 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
13481 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13482 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
13483 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
13484 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
13485 variable to @code{(word line)}.
13487 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13488 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
13489 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
13490 might look something like this:
13493 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13494 '((gnus-unread-mark)
13495 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
13496 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
13497 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
13498 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
13499 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
13500 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
13501 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
13502 (gnus-ancient-mark)
13503 (gnus-low-score-mark)
13504 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
13507 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
13508 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
13509 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
13510 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
13511 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
13512 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
13515 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
13516 will be applied to each article.
13518 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
13519 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
13520 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
13521 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
13523 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
13524 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
13525 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
13526 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
13528 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
13529 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
13530 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
13531 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
13533 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
13534 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
13535 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
13536 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
13537 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
13538 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
13540 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
13541 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
13542 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
13543 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
13544 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
13545 aspirins afterwards.)
13547 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
13548 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
13549 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
13551 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
13552 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
13553 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
13555 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
13556 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
13557 let you use different rules in different groups.
13559 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
13560 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
13561 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
13564 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
13565 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
13566 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
13567 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
13568 the length of the match is less than
13569 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
13570 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
13573 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13574 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
13575 headers. If you adapt on words, the
13576 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
13577 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
13580 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13581 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
13582 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
13583 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
13584 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
13587 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
13588 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
13589 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
13590 score with 30 points.
13592 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
13593 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
13594 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
13595 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
13596 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
13598 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
13599 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
13600 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
13601 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
13603 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
13604 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
13605 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
13606 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
13608 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
13609 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
13610 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
13611 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
13612 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
13614 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
13615 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
13616 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
13618 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
13619 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
13620 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
13621 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
13624 @node Home Score File
13625 @section Home Score File
13627 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
13628 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
13629 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
13630 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
13632 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
13633 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
13634 could perhaps use the same home score file.
13636 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
13637 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
13642 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
13646 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
13647 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
13651 A list. The elements in this list can be:
13655 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
13656 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
13659 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
13660 the home score file.
13663 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
13666 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
13671 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
13674 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13675 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
13678 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
13679 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
13681 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
13683 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13684 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
13687 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
13688 Other functions include
13691 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
13692 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
13693 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
13694 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
13698 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
13699 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
13700 their own home score files:
13703 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13704 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
13705 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
13706 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
13707 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
13710 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
13711 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
13712 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
13713 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
13714 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
13716 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
13717 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
13718 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
13719 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
13720 precedence over this variable.
13723 @node Followups To Yourself
13724 @section Followups To Yourself
13726 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
13727 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
13728 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
13729 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
13730 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
13731 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
13735 @item gnus-score-followup-article
13736 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
13737 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
13740 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
13741 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
13742 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
13746 @vindex message-sent-hook
13747 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
13748 @code{message-sent-hook}.
13750 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
13751 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
13755 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
13756 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
13759 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
13760 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
13765 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
13769 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
13770 is system-dependent.
13774 @section Scoring Tips
13775 @cindex scoring tips
13781 @cindex scoring crossposts
13782 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
13783 the @code{Xref} header.
13785 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
13788 @item Multiple crossposts
13789 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
13790 more than, say, 3 groups:
13792 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
13795 @item Matching on the body
13796 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
13797 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
13798 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
13799 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
13800 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
13801 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
13802 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
13805 @item Marking as read
13806 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
13807 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
13808 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
13812 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
13814 @item Negated character classes
13815 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
13816 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
13817 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
13821 @node Reverse Scoring
13822 @section Reverse Scoring
13823 @cindex reverse scoring
13825 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
13826 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
13827 like this in your score file:
13831 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
13836 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
13837 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
13840 @node Global Score Files
13841 @section Global Score Files
13842 @cindex global score files
13844 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
13845 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
13846 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
13848 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
13849 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
13850 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
13852 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
13853 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
13854 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
13855 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
13856 files are applicable to which group.
13858 Say you want to use the score file
13859 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
13860 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
13863 (setq gnus-global-score-files
13864 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
13865 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
13868 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
13869 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
13870 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
13871 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
13872 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
13874 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
13875 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
13877 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
13878 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
13879 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
13880 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
13881 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
13882 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
13884 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
13890 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
13892 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
13894 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
13896 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
13897 lowered out of existence.
13899 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
13900 articles completely.
13903 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
13904 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
13905 old articles for a long time.
13908 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
13909 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
13910 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
13911 holding our breath yet?
13915 @section Kill Files
13918 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
13919 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
13920 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
13922 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
13923 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
13924 files into score files.
13926 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
13927 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
13928 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
13929 that isn't a very good idea.
13931 Normal kill files look like this:
13934 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13935 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
13939 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
13940 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
13942 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
13943 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
13946 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
13951 @kindex M-k (Summary)
13952 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
13953 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
13956 @kindex M-K (Summary)
13957 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
13958 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
13961 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
13966 @kindex M-k (Group)
13967 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
13968 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
13971 @kindex M-K (Group)
13972 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
13973 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
13976 Kill file variables:
13979 @item gnus-kill-file-name
13980 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
13981 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
13982 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
13983 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
13984 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
13985 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
13987 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13988 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13989 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
13990 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
13993 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
13994 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
13995 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
13996 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
13997 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
13998 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
13999 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
14000 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
14001 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
14003 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14004 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
14005 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
14010 @node Converting Kill Files
14011 @section Converting Kill Files
14013 @cindex converting kill files
14015 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
14016 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
14017 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
14020 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
14021 You can fetch it from
14022 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
14024 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
14025 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
14026 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
14034 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
14035 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
14036 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
14038 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
14039 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
14040 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
14041 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
14042 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
14043 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
14044 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
14045 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
14049 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
14050 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
14051 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
14052 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
14056 @node Using GroupLens
14057 @subsection Using GroupLens
14059 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
14061 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
14062 better bit in town at the moment.
14064 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
14068 @item gnus-use-grouplens
14069 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
14070 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
14071 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
14073 @item grouplens-pseudonym
14074 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
14075 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
14076 with the Better Bit Bureau.
14078 @item grouplens-newsgroups
14079 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
14080 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
14084 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
14085 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
14086 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
14087 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
14088 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
14089 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
14092 @node Rating Articles
14093 @subsection Rating Articles
14095 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
14096 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
14097 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
14098 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
14101 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
14106 @kindex r (GroupLens)
14107 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
14108 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
14111 @kindex k (GroupLens)
14112 @findex grouplens-score-thread
14113 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
14114 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
14115 threads in rec.humor.
14119 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
14120 the score of the article you're reading.
14125 @kindex n (GroupLens)
14126 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
14127 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
14130 @kindex , (GroupLens)
14131 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
14132 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
14136 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
14137 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
14140 @node Displaying Predictions
14141 @subsection Displaying Predictions
14143 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
14144 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
14145 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
14146 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
14147 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
14149 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
14150 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
14151 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
14152 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
14153 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
14154 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
14155 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
14156 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
14157 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
14158 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
14159 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
14160 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
14161 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
14163 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
14164 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
14165 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
14166 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
14168 The following are valid values for that variable.
14171 @item prediction-spot
14172 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
14175 @item confidence-interval
14176 A numeric confidence interval.
14178 @item prediction-bar
14179 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
14181 @item confidence-bar
14182 Numerical confidence.
14184 @item confidence-spot
14185 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
14187 @item prediction-num
14188 Plain-old numeric value.
14190 @item confidence-plus-minus
14191 Prediction +/- confidence.
14196 @node GroupLens Variables
14197 @subsection GroupLens Variables
14201 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
14202 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
14203 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
14204 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
14207 @item grouplens-bbb-host
14208 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
14211 @item grouplens-bbb-port
14212 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
14214 @item grouplens-score-offset
14215 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
14216 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
14219 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
14220 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
14221 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
14226 @node Advanced Scoring
14227 @section Advanced Scoring
14229 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
14230 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
14231 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
14232 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
14233 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
14235 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
14239 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
14240 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
14241 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
14245 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
14246 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
14248 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
14249 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
14250 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
14251 non-@code{nil} value.
14253 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
14254 operator, and various match operators.
14261 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14262 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
14263 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
14268 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
14269 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
14270 then this operator will return @code{false}.
14275 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
14276 logical negation of the value of its argument.
14280 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
14281 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
14282 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
14283 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
14284 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
14285 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
14286 the ancestry you want to go.
14288 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
14289 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
14290 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
14291 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
14292 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
14295 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
14296 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
14298 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
14299 when he's talking about Gnus:
14303 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14304 ("subject" "Gnus"))
14310 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
14314 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14321 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
14322 really don't want to read what he's written:
14326 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
14327 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
14331 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
14332 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
14333 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
14340 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
14341 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
14342 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
14343 ("body" "white.*socks"))
14347 The possibilities are endless.
14350 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
14351 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
14353 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
14354 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
14355 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
14356 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
14357 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
14358 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
14359 @samp{subject}) first.
14361 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
14362 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
14373 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
14374 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
14380 ("subject" "Gnus")))
14387 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
14388 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
14393 @section Score Decays
14394 @cindex score decays
14397 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
14398 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
14399 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
14400 use them in any sensible way.
14402 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
14403 @findex gnus-decay-score
14404 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
14405 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
14406 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
14407 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
14408 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
14409 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
14410 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
14411 definition of that function:
14414 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
14416 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
14417 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
14420 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
14422 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
14424 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
14427 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
14428 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
14429 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
14430 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
14434 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
14437 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
14440 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
14444 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
14445 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
14446 the new score, which should be an integer.
14448 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
14449 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
14456 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
14457 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
14458 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
14459 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
14460 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
14461 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
14462 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
14463 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
14464 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
14465 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
14466 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
14467 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
14468 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
14469 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
14470 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
14471 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
14472 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
14473 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
14477 @node Process/Prefix
14478 @section Process/Prefix
14479 @cindex process/prefix convention
14481 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
14482 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
14484 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
14485 command to be performed on.
14489 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
14490 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
14491 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
14492 with the current one.
14494 @vindex transient-mark-mode
14495 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
14496 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
14498 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
14499 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
14502 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
14503 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
14505 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
14508 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
14509 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
14510 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
14511 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14513 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
14514 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
14515 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
14516 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
14517 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
14518 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
14519 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
14520 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
14524 @section Interactive
14525 @cindex interaction
14529 @item gnus-novice-user
14530 @vindex gnus-novice-user
14531 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
14532 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
14533 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
14534 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
14537 @item gnus-expert-user
14538 @vindex gnus-expert-user
14539 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
14540 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
14541 matter how strange.
14543 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
14544 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
14545 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
14546 is @code{t} by default.
14548 @item gnus-interactive-exit
14549 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
14550 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14555 @node Symbolic Prefixes
14556 @section Symbolic Prefixes
14557 @cindex symbolic prefixes
14559 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
14560 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
14561 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
14562 rule of 900 to the current article.
14564 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
14565 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
14566 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
14567 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
14568 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
14569 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
14570 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
14572 @kindex M-i (Summary)
14573 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
14574 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
14575 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
14576 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
14577 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
14578 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
14579 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
14580 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
14582 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
14583 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
14584 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
14586 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
14590 @node Formatting Variables
14591 @section Formatting Variables
14592 @cindex formatting variables
14594 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
14595 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
14596 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
14597 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
14598 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
14601 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
14602 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
14603 lots of percentages everywhere.
14606 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
14607 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
14608 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
14609 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
14610 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
14613 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
14614 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
14615 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
14616 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
14617 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
14618 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
14619 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
14620 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
14622 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
14623 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
14625 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
14626 @findex gnus-update-format
14627 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
14628 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
14629 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
14630 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
14634 @node Formatting Basics
14635 @subsection Formatting Basics
14637 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
14638 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
14639 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
14641 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
14642 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
14643 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
14644 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
14645 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
14648 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
14649 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
14650 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
14651 less than 4 characters wide.
14654 @node Mode Line Formatting
14655 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
14657 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
14658 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
14659 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
14660 with the following two differences:
14665 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
14668 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
14669 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
14670 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
14671 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
14672 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
14673 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
14674 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
14679 @node Advanced Formatting
14680 @subsection Advanced Formatting
14682 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
14683 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
14684 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
14685 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
14687 These are the valid modifiers:
14692 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
14696 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
14701 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
14704 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
14709 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
14712 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
14715 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
14718 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
14722 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
14723 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
14724 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
14725 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
14726 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
14727 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
14728 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
14730 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
14731 last operation, padding.
14733 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
14734 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
14735 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
14736 @xref{Compilation}.
14739 @node User-Defined Specs
14740 @subsection User-Defined Specs
14742 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
14743 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
14744 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
14745 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
14746 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
14747 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
14748 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
14749 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
14750 should protect against that.
14752 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
14753 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
14754 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
14755 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
14759 @node Formatting Fonts
14760 @subsection Formatting Fonts
14762 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
14763 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
14764 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
14765 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
14768 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
14769 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
14770 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
14771 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
14772 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
14773 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
14775 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
14776 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say
14777 @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
14778 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or
14779 symbols naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
14780 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
14781 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
14782 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
14784 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
14787 ;; Create three face types.
14788 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
14789 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
14791 ;; We want the article count to be in
14792 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
14793 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
14794 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
14796 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
14797 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
14799 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
14800 (setq gnus-group-line-format
14801 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
14804 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
14805 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
14807 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
14808 mode-line variables.
14811 @node Windows Configuration
14812 @section Windows Configuration
14813 @cindex windows configuration
14815 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
14817 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
14818 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
14819 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
14820 @code{t} by default.
14822 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
14823 glitches. Use at your own peril.
14825 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
14826 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
14827 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
14830 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
14831 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
14832 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
14836 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
14837 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
14838 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
14839 possible names is listed below.
14841 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
14842 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
14845 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
14849 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
14850 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
14851 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
14852 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
14853 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
14854 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
14855 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
14856 size spec per split.
14858 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
14859 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
14860 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
14861 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
14862 present) gets focus.
14864 Here's a more complicated example:
14867 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
14868 (summary 0.25 point)
14869 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
14873 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
14874 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
14875 occupy, not a percentage.
14877 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
14878 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
14879 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
14880 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
14881 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
14884 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
14887 (article (horizontal 1.0
14892 (summary 0.25 point)
14897 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
14898 @code{horizontal} thingie?
14900 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
14901 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
14902 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
14903 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
14904 the screen is to be given to this strip.
14906 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
14907 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
14908 lines from the splits.
14910 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
14914 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
14915 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
14916 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
14917 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
14918 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
14919 size = number | frame-params
14920 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
14923 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
14924 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
14925 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
14926 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
14928 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
14929 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
14930 @cindex window height
14931 @cindex window width
14932 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
14933 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
14934 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
14935 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
14936 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
14937 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
14939 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
14940 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
14941 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
14942 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
14944 @findex gnus-configure-frame
14945 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
14946 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
14947 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
14948 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
14949 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
14950 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
14951 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
14952 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
14953 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
14954 configuration list.
14957 (gnus-configure-frame
14961 (article 0.3 point))
14969 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
14970 @code{frame} split:
14973 (gnus-configure-frame
14976 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
14978 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
14979 (user-position . t)
14980 (left . -1) (top . 1))
14985 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
14986 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
14987 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
14988 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
14989 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
14990 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
14991 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
14992 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
14994 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
14995 be found in its default value.
14997 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
14998 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
14999 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
15003 (message (horizontal 1.0
15004 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
15006 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
15011 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
15012 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
15013 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
15016 (message (frame 1.0
15017 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
15018 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
15019 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
15020 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
15021 (name . "Message"))
15022 (message 1.0 point))))
15025 @findex gnus-add-configuration
15026 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
15027 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
15028 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
15029 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
15032 (gnus-add-configuration
15033 '(article (vertical 1.0
15035 (summary .25 point)
15039 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
15040 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
15041 Gnus has been loaded.
15043 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
15044 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
15045 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
15046 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
15047 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
15049 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
15050 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
15051 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
15055 @node Faces and Fonts
15056 @section Faces and Fonts
15061 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
15062 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
15063 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
15068 @section Compilation
15069 @cindex compilation
15070 @cindex byte-compilation
15072 @findex gnus-compile
15074 Remember all those line format specification variables?
15075 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
15076 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
15077 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
15078 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
15079 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
15082 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
15083 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
15084 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
15085 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
15086 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
15087 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
15088 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
15092 @section Mode Lines
15095 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
15096 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
15097 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
15098 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
15099 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
15100 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
15101 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
15104 @cindex display-time
15106 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
15107 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
15108 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
15109 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
15110 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
15111 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
15112 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
15113 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
15116 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
15118 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
15119 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
15121 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
15122 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
15123 (length display-time-string)))))
15126 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
15127 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
15128 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
15129 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
15130 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
15133 @node Highlighting and Menus
15134 @section Highlighting and Menus
15136 @cindex highlighting
15139 @vindex gnus-visual
15140 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
15141 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
15142 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
15145 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
15146 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
15149 @item group-highlight
15150 Do highlights in the group buffer.
15151 @item summary-highlight
15152 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
15153 @item article-highlight
15154 Do highlights in the article buffer.
15156 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
15158 Create menus in the group buffer.
15160 Create menus in the summary buffers.
15162 Create menus in the article buffer.
15164 Create menus in the browse buffer.
15166 Create menus in the server buffer.
15168 Create menus in the score buffers.
15170 Create menus in all buffers.
15173 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
15174 buffers, you could say something like:
15177 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
15180 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
15183 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
15186 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
15187 in all Gnus buffers.
15189 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
15192 @item gnus-mouse-face
15193 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
15194 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
15195 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
15199 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
15203 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
15204 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
15205 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
15207 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
15208 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
15209 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
15211 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
15212 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
15213 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
15215 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
15216 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
15217 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
15219 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
15220 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
15221 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
15223 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
15224 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
15225 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
15236 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
15237 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
15238 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
15239 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
15240 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
15244 @vindex gnus-carpal
15245 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
15246 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
15247 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
15252 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15253 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
15254 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
15256 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
15257 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
15258 Face used on buttons.
15260 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
15261 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
15262 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
15264 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15265 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
15266 Buttons in the group buffer.
15268 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15269 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
15270 Buttons in the summary buffer.
15272 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15273 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
15274 Buttons in the server buffer.
15276 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15277 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
15278 Buttons in the browse buffer.
15281 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
15282 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
15283 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
15291 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
15292 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
15293 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
15294 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
15295 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
15297 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
15298 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
15299 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
15301 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
15302 been idle for thirty minutes:
15305 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
15308 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
15312 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
15315 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
15316 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
15317 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15319 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
15320 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
15321 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
15322 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
15324 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
15325 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
15326 @var{idle} minutes.
15328 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
15329 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
15332 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
15333 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
15334 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
15336 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
15337 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
15338 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
15339 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
15341 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
15342 your @file{.gnus} file:
15344 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
15346 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
15349 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
15350 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
15351 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
15352 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
15353 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
15354 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
15355 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
15356 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
15357 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
15358 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
15359 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
15361 @findex gnus-demon-init
15362 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
15363 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
15364 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
15365 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
15366 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
15368 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
15369 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
15370 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
15379 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
15380 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
15382 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
15383 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
15384 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
15385 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
15388 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
15389 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
15390 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
15391 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
15393 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
15394 this will make spam disappear.
15396 There are some variables to customize, of course:
15399 @item gnus-use-nocem
15400 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
15401 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
15404 @item gnus-nocem-groups
15405 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
15406 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
15407 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
15408 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
15410 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
15411 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
15412 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
15413 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
15414 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
15415 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
15416 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
15418 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
15421 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
15422 @cindex Chris Lewis
15423 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
15424 usenet abuse than anybody else.
15427 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
15428 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
15429 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
15431 @item jem@@xpat.com;
15433 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
15436 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
15437 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
15438 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
15441 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
15442 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
15443 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
15444 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
15445 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
15446 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
15447 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
15448 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
15449 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
15450 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
15452 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
15453 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
15456 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
15459 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
15460 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
15463 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
15466 The specs are applied left-to-right.
15469 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
15470 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
15472 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
15473 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
15474 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
15475 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
15477 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
15478 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
15481 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
15483 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
15491 This might be dangerous, though.
15493 @item gnus-nocem-directory
15494 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
15495 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
15496 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
15498 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15499 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15500 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
15501 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
15502 might then see old spam.
15506 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
15507 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
15508 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
15509 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
15516 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
15517 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
15518 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
15520 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
15521 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
15522 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
15523 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
15524 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
15525 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
15526 @code{undo} function.
15528 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
15529 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
15530 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
15531 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
15532 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
15533 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
15534 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
15535 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
15536 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
15537 never be totally undoable.
15539 @findex gnus-undo-mode
15540 @vindex gnus-use-undo
15542 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
15543 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
15544 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
15545 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
15550 @section Moderation
15553 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
15554 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
15555 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
15558 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
15562 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
15565 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
15567 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
15572 You split your incoming mail by matching on
15573 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
15574 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
15577 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
15578 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
15581 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
15582 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
15586 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
15589 (setq gnus-moderated-list
15590 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
15594 @node XEmacs Enhancements
15595 @section XEmacs Enhancements
15598 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
15602 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
15603 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
15604 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
15605 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
15618 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
15619 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
15620 over your shoulder as you read news.
15623 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
15624 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
15625 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
15626 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
15627 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
15632 @subsubsection Picon Basics
15634 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
15643 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
15644 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
15645 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
15646 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
15647 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
15648 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
15649 @code{GIF} formats.
15652 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15653 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
15654 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
15655 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
15656 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
15658 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15659 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
15660 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
15661 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
15662 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
15663 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
15666 @node Picon Requirements
15667 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
15669 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
15670 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
15673 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
15674 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
15675 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
15677 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15678 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
15679 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
15680 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
15681 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
15685 @subsubsection Easy Picons
15687 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
15688 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
15691 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
15692 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
15695 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
15696 containing the Picons databases.
15698 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
15701 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15702 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
15707 @subsubsection Hard Picons
15715 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
15716 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
15717 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
15718 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
15719 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
15724 @item gnus-picons-database
15725 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15726 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
15727 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
15728 subdirectories. This is only useful if
15729 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
15730 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
15732 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15733 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15734 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
15735 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
15736 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
15737 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
15738 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
15740 @item gnus-picons-display-where
15741 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
15742 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
15743 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
15744 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
15745 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
15746 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
15747 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
15749 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
15750 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
15751 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
15756 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
15757 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
15759 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
15760 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
15763 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
15765 @item gnus-article-display-picons
15766 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
15767 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
15768 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
15770 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
15771 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
15772 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
15778 @node Picon Useless Configuration
15779 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
15787 The following variables offer further control over how things are
15788 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
15789 don't need to worry about.
15793 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
15794 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
15795 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
15796 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
15798 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
15799 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
15800 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
15801 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
15803 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
15804 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
15805 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
15806 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
15807 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
15809 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15810 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15811 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
15812 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
15813 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
15814 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
15815 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
15817 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
15818 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
15819 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
15820 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
15822 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
15823 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
15824 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
15825 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
15826 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
15827 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
15828 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
15830 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
15831 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
15832 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
15833 Defaults to @code{nil}.
15835 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
15836 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
15837 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
15838 Defaults to @code{t}.
15840 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
15841 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
15842 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
15843 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
15845 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
15846 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
15847 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
15849 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
15850 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
15851 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
15852 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
15854 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
15855 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the defailt.
15857 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
15858 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
15859 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
15860 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
15861 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
15862 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
15863 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
15864 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
15875 @subsection Smileys
15880 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
15885 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
15886 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
15888 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
15889 @file{.gnus.el} file:
15892 (setq gnus-treat-display-smiley t)
15895 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
15896 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
15897 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
15898 text and maps that to file names.
15900 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
15901 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
15902 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
15903 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
15904 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
15905 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
15907 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
15908 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
15910 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
15911 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
15912 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
15914 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
15915 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
15919 @item smiley-data-directory
15920 @vindex smiley-data-directory
15921 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
15923 @item smiley-flesh-color
15924 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
15925 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
15927 @item smiley-features-color
15928 @vindex smiley-features-color
15929 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15931 @item smiley-tongue-color
15932 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
15933 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
15935 @item smiley-circle-color
15936 @vindex smiley-circle-color
15937 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15939 @item smiley-mouse-face
15940 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
15941 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
15947 @subsection Toolbar
15957 @item gnus-use-toolbar
15958 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
15959 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
15960 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
15961 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
15963 @item gnus-group-toolbar
15964 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
15965 The toolbar in the group buffer.
15967 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
15968 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
15969 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
15971 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15972 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15973 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
15979 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
15982 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15983 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15984 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
15985 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
15986 unusual directory structure.
15988 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15989 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15990 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
15991 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
15993 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15994 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15995 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
15996 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
15997 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
15998 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
16000 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16001 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
16002 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
16016 @node Fuzzy Matching
16017 @section Fuzzy Matching
16018 @cindex fuzzy matching
16020 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
16021 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
16023 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
16024 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
16025 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
16027 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
16028 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
16029 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
16030 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
16031 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
16034 @node Thwarting Email Spam
16035 @section Thwarting Email Spam
16039 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
16041 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
16042 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
16043 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
16044 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
16045 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
16046 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
16047 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
16048 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
16051 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
16052 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
16053 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
16054 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
16055 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
16056 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
16060 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
16061 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
16063 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
16064 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
16065 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
16066 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
16067 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
16068 part of the mail address.)
16071 (setq message-default-news-headers
16072 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
16075 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
16076 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
16081 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
16082 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
16083 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
16089 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
16090 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
16091 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
16092 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
16094 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
16095 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
16096 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
16097 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
16098 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
16099 your fancy split rule in this way:
16104 (to "larsi" "misc")
16108 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
16109 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
16110 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
16111 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
16112 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
16114 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
16115 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
16116 at @* @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
16117 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
16118 cosmic balance somewhat.
16120 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
16121 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
16122 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
16123 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
16126 @node Various Various
16127 @section Various Various
16133 @item gnus-home-directory
16134 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
16135 defaults to @file{~/}.
16137 @item gnus-directory
16138 @vindex gnus-directory
16139 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
16140 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
16141 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
16143 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
16144 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
16145 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
16146 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
16148 @item gnus-default-directory
16149 @vindex gnus-default-directory
16150 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
16151 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
16152 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
16153 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
16154 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
16155 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
16158 @vindex gnus-verbose
16159 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
16160 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
16161 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
16162 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
16163 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
16165 @item gnus-verbose-backends
16166 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
16167 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
16168 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
16170 @item nnheader-max-head-length
16171 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
16172 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
16173 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
16174 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
16175 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
16176 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
16177 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
16178 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
16179 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
16181 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
16182 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
16183 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
16184 read when doing the operation described above.
16186 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16187 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16189 @cindex invalid characters in file names
16190 @cindex characters in file names
16191 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
16192 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
16193 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
16196 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
16200 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
16201 Windows (phooey) systems.
16203 @item gnus-hidden-properties
16204 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
16205 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
16206 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
16207 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
16209 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
16210 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
16211 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
16212 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
16213 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
16215 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
16216 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
16217 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
16226 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
16227 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
16229 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
16231 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
16237 Not because of victories @*
16240 but for the common sunshine,@*
16242 the largess of the spring.
16246 but for the day's work done@*
16247 as well as I was able;@*
16248 not for a seat upon the dais@*
16249 but at the common table.@*
16254 @chapter Appendices
16257 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
16258 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
16259 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
16260 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
16261 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
16262 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
16263 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
16271 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
16272 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
16274 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
16275 can point your (feh!) web browser to
16276 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
16277 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
16278 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
16280 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
16281 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
16282 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
16283 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
16284 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
16285 appropriate name, don't you think?)
16287 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
16288 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
16289 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
16290 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
16292 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
16293 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
16294 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
16296 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
16297 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
16299 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
16300 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
16302 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37
16303 releases. If was released as ``Gnus 5.6 on March 8th 1998.
16305 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
16306 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
16307 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
16308 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
16309 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
16313 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
16314 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
16315 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
16316 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
16317 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
16318 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
16319 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
16326 What's the point of Gnus?
16328 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
16329 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
16330 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
16331 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
16332 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
16333 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
16334 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
16335 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
16336 keep track of millions of people who post?
16338 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
16339 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
16340 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
16341 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
16342 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
16343 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
16344 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
16345 every one of you to explore and invent.
16347 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
16348 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
16351 @node Compatibility
16352 @subsection Compatibility
16354 @cindex compatibility
16355 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
16356 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
16357 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
16362 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
16366 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
16369 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
16372 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
16373 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
16374 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
16375 important variables have their values copied into their global
16376 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
16377 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
16379 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
16380 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
16381 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
16382 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
16383 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
16387 @cindex highlighting
16388 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
16389 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
16390 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
16391 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
16392 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
16393 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
16396 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
16397 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
16398 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
16399 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
16401 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
16402 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
16403 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
16404 to stop doing it the old way.
16406 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
16408 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
16410 @cindex reporting bugs
16412 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
16413 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
16414 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
16416 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
16417 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
16418 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
16419 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
16424 @subsection Conformity
16426 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
16427 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
16434 There are no known breaches of this standard.
16438 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
16440 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
16441 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
16442 We do have some breaches to this one.
16448 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
16449 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
16450 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
16451 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
16452 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
16457 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
16458 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
16459 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
16460 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
16464 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
16465 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
16470 @subsection Emacsen
16476 Gnus should work on :
16484 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
16488 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
16489 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
16492 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
16493 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
16494 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
16499 @subsection Contributors
16500 @cindex contributors
16502 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
16503 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
16504 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
16505 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
16506 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
16507 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
16508 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
16509 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
16510 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
16511 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
16513 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
16519 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
16522 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
16523 well as numerous other things).
16526 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
16529 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
16532 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el and many other things
16533 connected with @sc{mime} and other types of en/decoding.
16536 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
16537 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
16540 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
16543 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
16544 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16547 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
16550 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
16553 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
16556 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
16559 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
16560 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
16563 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
16566 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
16569 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
16572 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
16576 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
16579 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
16582 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
16585 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
16586 well as autoconf support.
16590 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
16591 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
16593 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
16602 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
16606 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
16629 Massimo Campostrini,
16637 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
16643 Michael Welsh Duggan,
16647 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
16651 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
16658 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
16660 Michelangelo Grigni,
16664 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
16666 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
16668 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
16673 François Felix Ingrand,
16674 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
16676 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
16685 Peter Skov Knudsen,
16686 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
16687 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
16688 Thor Kristoffersen,
16691 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
16709 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
16710 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
16717 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
16721 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
16725 John McClary Prevost,
16731 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
16736 Christian von Roques,
16739 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
16746 Philippe Schnoebelen,
16748 Randal L. Schwartz,
16779 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
16784 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
16785 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
16786 (550kB and counting).
16788 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
16791 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
16792 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
16796 @subsection New Features
16797 @cindex new features
16800 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
16801 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
16802 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
16803 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
16806 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
16807 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
16808 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
16812 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
16814 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
16819 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
16820 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
16823 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
16824 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
16827 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
16830 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
16831 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
16832 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
16835 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
16836 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
16837 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
16838 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
16841 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
16842 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16845 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
16846 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
16847 (@pxref{The Active File}).
16850 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
16851 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
16854 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
16855 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
16856 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
16859 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
16860 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
16861 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
16864 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
16865 the @file{.emacs} file.
16868 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
16869 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16872 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
16873 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
16876 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
16877 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16880 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
16881 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
16884 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
16885 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
16888 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
16891 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
16892 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
16895 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
16896 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
16899 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
16900 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
16903 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
16906 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
16907 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
16910 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
16914 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
16918 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
16919 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
16922 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
16928 @node September Gnus
16929 @subsubsection September Gnus
16933 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
16937 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
16942 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
16943 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
16947 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
16948 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
16952 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
16956 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
16957 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
16960 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
16964 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16967 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
16970 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
16973 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
16977 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
16978 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
16981 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
16985 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
16989 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
16993 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
16997 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
17000 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
17001 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
17004 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
17008 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
17009 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
17012 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
17015 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
17016 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
17017 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
17020 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
17024 The Gnus cache is much faster.
17027 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
17031 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
17032 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
17035 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
17036 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
17039 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
17040 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17043 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
17044 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
17045 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
17048 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
17049 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
17052 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
17055 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17058 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
17061 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
17064 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
17065 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
17068 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
17072 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
17075 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
17080 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
17083 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
17087 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
17090 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
17094 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
17097 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
17100 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
17101 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
17104 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
17105 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
17109 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
17110 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
17113 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
17117 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
17118 buffer to allow easier treatment.
17121 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
17124 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
17128 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
17132 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
17133 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
17136 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
17140 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
17141 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
17144 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
17145 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17148 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
17152 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
17155 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
17158 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
17164 @subsubsection Red Gnus
17166 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
17170 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
17177 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
17180 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
17181 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
17184 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
17185 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
17189 Article washing status can be displayed in the
17190 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
17193 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
17196 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
17197 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
17200 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
17204 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
17205 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
17209 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
17210 Server Internals}).
17213 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
17217 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
17220 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
17221 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
17224 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
17225 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
17226 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
17229 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
17230 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17233 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
17234 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
17237 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
17241 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
17242 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17245 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
17246 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
17249 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
17253 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
17256 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
17260 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
17261 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17264 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
17265 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
17268 A new command for reading collections of documents
17269 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
17270 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
17273 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
17277 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
17278 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
17281 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
17282 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
17283 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
17286 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
17287 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
17291 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
17295 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
17299 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
17304 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
17308 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
17312 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
17313 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
17316 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
17322 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
17324 New features in Gnus 5.6:
17329 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
17330 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
17331 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
17334 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
17335 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
17336 group, which is created automatically.
17339 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
17343 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
17346 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
17347 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
17350 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
17354 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
17357 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
17358 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
17361 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
17364 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
17365 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
17368 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
17369 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
17372 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
17373 control over simplification.
17376 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
17379 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
17383 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
17386 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
17389 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
17390 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
17391 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
17394 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
17395 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
17398 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
17402 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
17403 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
17406 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
17407 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
17410 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
17414 A history of where mails have been split is available.
17417 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
17420 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
17421 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
17424 A new function for citing in Message has been
17425 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
17428 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
17431 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
17435 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
17436 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
17439 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
17440 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
17443 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
17446 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
17451 @node Newest Features
17452 @subsection Newest Features
17455 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
17458 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
17460 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
17461 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
17464 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
17469 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
17470 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
17473 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
17476 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
17479 facep is not declared.
17482 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
17483 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
17486 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
17491 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
17492 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
17493 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
17494 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
17495 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
17496 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
17497 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
17502 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
17505 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
17508 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
17510 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
17511 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
17513 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
17515 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
17517 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
17518 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
17520 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
17522 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
17523 be marked as unread.
17525 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
17527 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
17529 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
17530 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
17532 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
17534 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
17536 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
17537 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
17539 topics that contain just groups with ticked
17540 articles aren't displayed.
17542 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
17544 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
17545 make the mail groups killed.
17547 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
17549 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
17550 and articles have to be removed.
17552 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
17555 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
17557 finding short score file names takes forever.
17559 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17561 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
17563 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
17565 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
17567 nnweb doesn't work properly.
17569 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
17571 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
17572 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
17576 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
17578 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
17579 bar and the Gnus bar.
17582 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
17583 `(canonize-message-id id)'
17584 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
17585 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
17586 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
17587 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
17592 nnml .overview directory with splits.
17596 postponed commands.
17598 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
17600 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
17603 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
17604 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
17606 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
17607 inherit copy prompts and save files.
17609 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
17611 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
17612 for backends that support that.
17614 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
17616 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
17617 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
17619 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
17620 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
17622 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
17624 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
17626 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
17628 server mode command: close/open all connections
17630 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
17631 has been changed before using it.
17633 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
17635 hide (sub)threads with low score.
17637 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
17639 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
17641 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
17642 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
17644 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
17645 contain groups that match a regexp.
17647 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
17650 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
17653 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
17654 from subject lines.
17656 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
17658 nntp-ping-before-connect
17660 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
17662 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
17663 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
17665 message annotations.
17667 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
17669 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
17670 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
17672 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
17677 support qmail maildir spools
17679 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
17681 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
17683 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
17685 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
17686 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
17688 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
17690 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
17692 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
17693 finds and generate proper active ranges.
17695 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
17696 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
17698 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
17700 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
17702 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
17703 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
17705 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
17707 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
17709 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
17710 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
17713 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
17715 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
17717 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
17718 `C-c C-c' when posting.
17720 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
17723 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
17724 should be marker as expirable.
17726 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
17728 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
17729 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
17731 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
17732 Also consult Date headers.
17734 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
17736 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
17738 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
17739 Message-ID, delete the "original".
17741 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
17742 into a See-Also header.
17744 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
17746 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
17748 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
17749 should be listed as such and not as "K".
17751 generate font names dynamically.
17753 score file mode auto-alist.
17755 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
17756 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
17758 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
17759 absolutely all headers there is.
17761 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
17762 and pipe them to the process.
17764 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
17765 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
17766 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
17768 function for starting to edit a file to put into
17769 the current mail group.
17771 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
17773 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
17774 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
17776 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
17777 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
17779 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
17781 when replying to several process-marked articles,
17782 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
17784 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
17785 groups it has been mailed to.
17787 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
17789 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
17791 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
17793 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
17794 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
17796 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
17797 newlines) should be ignored.
17799 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
17800 groups in subtopics as well.
17802 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
17804 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
17807 add edit and forward secondary marks.
17809 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
17811 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
17813 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
17815 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
17817 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
17819 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
17820 or the formatted article.
17822 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
17824 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
17825 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
17827 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
17829 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
17831 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
17833 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
17834 even unread articles.
17836 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
17838 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
17840 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
17842 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
17844 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17846 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
17849 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
17850 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
17852 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
17853 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
17855 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
17857 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
17859 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
17860 from a particular server? Hm.
17862 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
17863 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
17865 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
17867 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
17868 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
17870 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
17871 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
17873 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
17874 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
17875 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
17878 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
17879 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
17881 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
17883 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
17885 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
17887 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
17890 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
17893 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
17894 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
17896 command to show and edit group scores
17898 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
17901 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
17903 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
17905 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
17906 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
17909 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
17910 that are of that length.
17912 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
17914 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
17916 asynchronous posting under nntp.
17918 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
17920 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
17922 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
17924 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
17925 a score lower than this number.
17927 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
17929 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
17931 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
17932 so that each copy can be edited separately.
17934 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
17936 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
17937 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
17939 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
17942 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
17943 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
17944 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
17945 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
17947 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
17950 command to remove all topic stuff.
17952 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
17953 and splitting the resulting digests.
17955 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
17957 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
17959 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
17960 matches an alist -- before saving.
17962 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
17964 variable to activate each group before entering them
17965 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
17967 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
17968 starting Gnus first if necessary.
17970 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
17971 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
17973 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
17975 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
17976 of several groups at once.
17978 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
17979 matches some regexp(s).
17981 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
17983 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
17985 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
17987 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
17989 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
17991 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
17993 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
17995 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
17996 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
17997 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
17998 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
18000 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
18001 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
18003 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
18005 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
18006 recently cited text.
18008 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
18010 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
18013 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
18014 server and just read the articles in the server
18016 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
18017 value of nnoo variables.
18019 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
18021 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
18022 listed in each group info.
18024 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
18027 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
18028 should only be applied to some groups.
18030 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
18031 mail-copies-to: never.
18033 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
18034 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
18036 the slave dribble files should auto-save to the slave file names.
18038 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
18041 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
18044 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
18046 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
18049 group user-defined meta-parameters.
18053 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
18055 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
18056 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
18057 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
18058 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
18059 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
18061 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at @*
18062 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
18069 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
18070 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
18072 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
18073 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
18075 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
18076 "Return the date the group was last read."
18077 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
18082 tanken var at når du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til å lete
18083 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den være en
18084 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
18085 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
18089 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
18090 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
18092 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
18095 They could be used like this:
18099 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
18100 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
18101 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
18103 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
18105 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
18108 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
18111 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
18112 affect the summary line format.
18116 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
18118 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
18119 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
18121 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
18124 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
18126 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
18128 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
18130 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
18132 - For other files, just find them normally.
18134 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
18135 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
18138 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
18139 tell him what you are doing.
18142 Currently, I get prompted:
18146 decend into sci.something ?
18150 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
18151 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
18152 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
18153 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
18156 Ja, det burde være en måte å si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
18157 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? SÃ¥ kunne score-regler legges til den
18158 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
18159 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
18162 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
18163 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
18169 more than n blank lines
18171 more than m identical lines
18172 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
18174 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
18178 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
18179 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
18180 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
18181 "same" subject for threading purposes.
18184 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
18185 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
18186 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
18187 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
18190 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
18193 soup - bowl of soup
18194 score below - dim light bulb
18195 score over - bright light bulb
18198 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
18203 show-list-of-articles-in-group
18204 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18205 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
18206 if (articles-selected)
18207 start-reading-selected-articles;
18208 junk-unread-articles;
18213 else if (key-pressed = '.')
18214 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
18215 select-thread-under-cursor;
18217 select-article-under-cursor;
18221 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
18222 if (more-pages-in-article)
18224 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
18231 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
18232 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
18233 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
18236 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
18237 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
18238 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
18239 the wildcard expression).
18242 It would be nice if it also handled
18244 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
18246 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
18251 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
18252 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
18253 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
18254 article versions) variable.
18256 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
18258 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
18259 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
18263 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
18266 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
18267 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
18268 (message-sent-hook).
18270 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
18273 * Enhancements to Gnus:
18277 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
18278 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
18281 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
18282 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
18283 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
18286 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
18287 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
18291 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
18294 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
18298 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
18299 the nnmail duplicate checking.
18302 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
18303 value of the signature file.
18306 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
18307 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
18310 (setq message-tab-alist
18311 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
18312 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
18314 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
18318 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
18321 a command to import a buffer into a group.
18324 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
18327 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
18328 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
18331 a command to process mark all unread articles.
18334 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
18335 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
18336 do more gathering by subject.
18339 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
18340 article numerical order.
18343 (gnus-thread-total-score
18344 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
18348 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
18351 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
18352 in the summary buffer.
18355 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
18356 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
18359 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
18360 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
18361 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
18362 and/or newsgroup name.
18365 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
18368 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
18371 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
18374 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
18375 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
18376 will automatically get the process mark.
18379 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
18380 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
18381 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
18384 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
18388 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
18389 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
18392 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
18393 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
18397 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
18398 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
18401 be able to post via DejaNews.
18404 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
18407 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
18408 allow them to be displayed separately.
18411 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
18412 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
18415 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
18416 articles that match a certain From header.
18419 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
18420 saving living summary buffers.
18423 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
18424 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
18427 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
18428 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
18431 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
18432 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
18435 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
18436 (goto-char (point-min))
18437 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
18438 (replace-match "`" t t))
18439 (goto-char (point-min))
18440 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
18441 (replace-match "'" t t))
18442 (goto-char (point-min))
18443 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
18444 (replace-match "\"" t t))
18445 (goto-char (point-min))
18446 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
18447 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
18452 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
18454 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
18455 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
18456 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
18457 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
18461 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
18464 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
18465 numbers and match on the age of the article.
18469 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
18470 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
18471 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
18473 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
18474 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
18476 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
18477 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
18482 all commands that react to the process mark should push
18483 the current process mark set onto the stack.
18486 gnus-article-hide-pgp
18487 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt å slette den dersom teksten matcher
18489 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
18491 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
18492 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
18495 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
18496 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
18499 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
18503 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
18504 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
18507 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
18510 nndraft-request-group should tally auto-save files.
18513 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
18516 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
18520 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
18526 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
18529 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
18533 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
18534 X characters in the body.
18537 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
18540 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
18543 format spec to "tab" to a position.
18546 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
18549 command to display all dormant articles.
18552 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
18555 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
18556 to something someone else has said.
18559 Read Netscape discussion groups:
18560 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
18563 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
18564 the displayed version.
18567 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
18571 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
18574 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
18575 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
18576 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
18580 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
18581 in the head or body.
18584 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
18587 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
18590 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
18591 in a special, unique buffer.
18594 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
18597 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
18598 is less than a certain number of days old.
18601 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
18604 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
18607 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
18608 file, for instance.
18611 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
18612 in any other dummy thread will make Gnus highlight the
18613 dummy root instead of the first article.
18616 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
18617 topics for displaying.
18620 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
18621 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
18624 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
18627 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
18628 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
18629 summary buffer for each article.
18632 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
18635 Group parameters and summary commands for un/subscribing to mailing
18639 Introduce nnmail-home-directory.
18642 gnus-fetch-group and friends should exit Gnus when the user
18646 The jingle is only played on the second invocation of Gnus.
18649 Bouncing articles should do MIME.
18652 Crossposted articles should "inherit" the % or @ mark from the other
18653 groups it has been crossposted to, or something. (Agent.)
18656 `S D r' should allow expansion of aliases.
18659 If point is on a group that appears multiple times in topics, and
18660 you press `l', point will move to the first instance of the group.
18663 The documentation should mention pop3.el, fetchmail, smtpmail and why
18664 po:username often fails.
18667 Fetch by Message-ID from dejanews.
18669 <URL:http://search.dejanews.com/msgid.xp?MID=%3C62h9l9$hm4@@basement.replay.com%3E&fmt=raw>
18672 A spec for the group line format to display the number of
18673 agent-downloaded articles in the group.
18676 Some nntp servers never respond when posting, so there should be a
18677 timeout for all commands.
18680 Solve the halting problem.
18689 @section The Manual
18693 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
18694 either @code{texi2dvi}
18696 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
18697 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
18699 to get what you hold in your hands now.
18701 The following conventions have been used:
18706 This is a @samp{string}
18709 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
18712 This is a @file{file}
18715 This is a @code{symbol}
18719 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
18723 (setq flargnoze "yes")
18726 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
18729 (setq flumphel 'yes)
18732 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
18733 ever get them confused.
18737 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
18738 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
18739 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
18740 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
18741 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
18742 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
18743 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
18751 @section Terminology
18753 @cindex terminology
18758 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
18759 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
18760 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
18761 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
18762 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
18766 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
18767 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
18768 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
18769 not posting, and replying is not following up.
18773 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
18777 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
18782 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
18783 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
18784 is all done by the backends.
18788 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
18789 default, way of getting news.
18793 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
18794 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
18799 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
18800 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
18804 A message that has been posted as news.
18807 @cindex mail message
18808 A message that has been mailed.
18812 A mail message or news article
18816 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
18821 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
18826 A line from the head of an article.
18830 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
18831 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
18835 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
18836 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
18837 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
18838 normal @sc{head} format.
18842 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
18843 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
18844 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
18845 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
18846 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
18847 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
18849 @item killed groups
18850 @cindex killed groups
18851 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
18852 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
18854 @item zombie groups
18855 @cindex zombie groups
18856 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
18859 @cindex active file
18860 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
18861 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
18862 is rather large, as you might surmise.
18865 @cindex bogus groups
18866 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
18867 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
18868 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
18871 @cindex activating groups
18872 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
18873 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
18874 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
18878 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
18880 @item select method
18881 @cindex select method
18882 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
18885 @item virtual server
18886 @cindex virtual server
18887 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
18888 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
18889 whole is a virtual server.
18893 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
18894 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
18897 @item ephemeral groups
18898 @cindex ephemeral groups
18899 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
18900 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
18901 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
18904 @cindex solid groups
18905 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
18906 group buffer are solid groups.
18908 @item sparse articles
18909 @cindex sparse articles
18910 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
18911 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
18915 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
18916 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
18920 @cindex thread root
18921 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
18922 articles in the thread.
18926 An article that has responses.
18930 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
18934 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
18935 specified by RFC1153.
18941 @node Customization
18942 @section Customization
18943 @cindex general customization
18945 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
18946 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
18947 for some quite common situations.
18950 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
18951 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
18952 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
18953 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
18957 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
18958 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
18960 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
18961 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
18962 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
18966 @item gnus-read-active-file
18967 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
18968 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
18969 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18970 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
18971 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
18973 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
18974 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
18975 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
18976 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
18980 @node Slow Terminal Connection
18981 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
18983 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
18984 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
18985 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
18989 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
18990 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
18991 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
18992 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
18993 horizontal and vertical recentering.
18995 @item gnus-visible-headers
18996 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
18997 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
18998 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
18999 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
19001 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
19003 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
19004 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
19005 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
19008 @item gnus-use-full-window
19009 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
19010 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
19011 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
19012 want to read them anyway.
19014 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
19015 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
19018 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
19019 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
19020 lines, which might save some time.
19024 @node Little Disk Space
19025 @subsection Little Disk Space
19028 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
19029 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
19033 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
19034 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
19035 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
19036 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
19039 @item gnus-save-killed-list
19040 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
19041 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
19042 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
19043 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
19049 @subsection Slow Machine
19050 @cindex slow machine
19052 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
19053 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
19055 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
19056 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
19058 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
19059 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
19060 summary buffer faster.
19064 @node Troubleshooting
19065 @section Troubleshooting
19066 @cindex troubleshooting
19068 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
19076 Make sure your computer is switched on.
19079 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
19080 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
19084 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
19085 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
19086 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
19087 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
19090 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
19094 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
19095 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
19096 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
19097 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
19098 something like that.
19101 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
19104 @cindex reporting bugs
19106 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19108 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
19109 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
19110 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
19111 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
19113 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
19114 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
19115 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
19116 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
19119 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
19120 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
19121 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
19122 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
19123 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
19124 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
19126 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
19127 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
19128 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
19131 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
19132 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
19134 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
19135 @cindex ding mailing list
19136 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
19137 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
19141 @node Gnus Reference Guide
19142 @section Gnus Reference Guide
19144 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
19145 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
19146 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
19147 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
19150 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
19151 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
19152 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
19153 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
19154 and general methods of operation.
19157 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
19158 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
19159 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
19160 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
19161 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
19162 * Group Info:: The group info format.
19163 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
19164 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
19165 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
19169 @node Gnus Utility Functions
19170 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
19171 @cindex Gnus utility functions
19172 @cindex utility functions
19174 @cindex internal variables
19176 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
19177 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
19178 Below is a list of the most common ones.
19182 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
19183 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
19184 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
19186 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
19187 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
19188 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
19190 @item gnus-group-real-name
19191 @findex gnus-group-real-name
19192 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
19195 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
19196 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
19197 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
19198 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
19200 @item gnus-get-info
19201 @findex gnus-get-info
19202 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
19204 @item gnus-group-unread
19205 @findex gnus-group-unread
19206 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
19210 @findex gnus-active
19211 The active entry for @var{group}.
19213 @item gnus-set-active
19214 @findex gnus-set-active
19215 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
19217 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19218 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
19219 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
19222 @item gnus-continuum-version
19223 @findex gnus-continuum-version
19224 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
19225 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
19228 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
19229 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
19230 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
19232 @item gnus-news-group-p
19233 @findex gnus-news-group-p
19234 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
19236 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19237 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
19238 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
19240 @item gnus-server-to-method
19241 @findex gnus-server-to-method
19242 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
19244 @item gnus-server-equal
19245 @findex gnus-server-equal
19246 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
19248 @item gnus-group-native-p
19249 @findex gnus-group-native-p
19250 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
19252 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
19253 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
19254 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
19256 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
19257 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
19258 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
19260 @item group-group-find-parameter
19261 @findex group-group-find-parameter
19262 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
19263 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
19265 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
19266 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
19267 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
19269 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
19270 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
19271 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
19273 @item gnus-check-backend-function
19274 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
19275 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
19276 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
19279 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
19283 @item gnus-read-method
19284 @findex gnus-read-method
19285 Prompts the user for a select method.
19290 @node Backend Interface
19291 @subsection Backend Interface
19293 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
19294 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
19295 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
19296 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
19297 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
19298 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
19300 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
19301 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
19302 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
19303 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
19304 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
19305 been opened, the function should fail.
19307 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
19308 name. Take this example:
19312 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
19313 (nntp-port-number 4324))
19316 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
19317 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
19319 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
19320 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
19321 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
19323 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
19324 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
19325 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
19327 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
19328 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
19329 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
19330 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
19331 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
19332 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
19335 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
19336 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
19337 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
19338 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
19341 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
19344 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
19347 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
19348 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
19349 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
19350 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
19351 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
19352 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
19356 @node Required Backend Functions
19357 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
19361 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
19363 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
19364 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
19365 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
19366 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
19368 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
19369 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
19370 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
19371 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
19373 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
19374 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
19375 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
19376 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
19377 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
19378 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
19379 number, do maximum fetches.
19381 Here's an example HEAD:
19384 221 1056 Article retrieved.
19385 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
19386 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
19387 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
19388 Subject: Re: Something very droll
19389 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
19390 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
19392 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
19393 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
19394 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
19398 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
19399 these in the data buffer.
19401 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
19405 head = error / valid-head
19406 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
19407 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
19408 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
19409 header = <text> eol
19412 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
19413 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
19417 nov-buffer = *nov-line
19418 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
19419 field = <text except TAB>
19422 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
19426 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
19428 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
19429 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
19431 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
19432 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
19433 server. In fact, it should do so.
19435 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
19436 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
19439 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
19441 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
19442 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
19445 There should be no data returned.
19448 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
19450 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
19451 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
19452 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
19453 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
19455 There should be no data returned.
19458 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
19460 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
19461 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
19462 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
19463 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
19465 There should be no data returned.
19468 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
19470 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
19472 There should be no data returned.
19475 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
19477 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
19478 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
19479 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
19480 it would be nice if that were possible.
19482 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
19483 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
19484 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
19485 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
19486 into its article buffer.
19488 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
19489 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
19490 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
19491 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
19492 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
19493 on successful article retrieval.
19496 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
19498 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
19499 making @var{group} the current group.
19501 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
19504 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
19507 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
19510 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
19511 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
19512 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
19513 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
19514 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
19515 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
19516 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
19517 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
19520 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
19521 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
19522 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
19526 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19528 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
19529 a no-op on most backends.
19531 There should be no data returned.
19534 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
19536 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
19539 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
19542 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
19543 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
19546 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
19547 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
19550 active-file = *active-line
19551 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
19553 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
19556 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
19557 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
19558 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
19561 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
19563 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
19564 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
19565 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
19566 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
19567 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
19568 clear if the posting could not be completed.
19570 There should be no result data from this function.
19575 @node Optional Backend Functions
19576 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
19580 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
19582 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
19583 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
19584 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
19586 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
19587 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
19588 former is in the same format as the data from
19589 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
19590 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
19593 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
19597 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
19599 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
19600 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
19601 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
19602 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
19603 should return the (altered) group info.
19605 There should be no result data from this function.
19608 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
19610 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
19611 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
19612 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
19613 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
19614 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
19615 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
19616 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
19617 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
19619 There should be no result data from this function.
19622 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
19624 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
19625 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
19626 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as IMAP) however carry all
19627 information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to propagate
19628 the mark information to the server.
19630 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
19633 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
19636 Range is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. Action is
19637 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
19638 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
19639 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
19640 mentioned) marks. Mark is a list of marks; where each mark is a
19641 symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
19642 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
19643 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
19644 not limit itself to theese.
19646 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
19647 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
19648 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
19649 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
19651 An example action list:
19654 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
19655 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
19656 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
19659 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
19660 mark on (currently not used for anything).
19662 There should be no result data from this function.
19664 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
19666 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
19667 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
19668 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
19669 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
19670 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
19672 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
19673 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
19674 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
19677 There should be no result data from this function.
19680 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
19682 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
19683 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
19684 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
19685 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
19686 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
19687 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
19688 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
19690 There should be no result data from this function.
19693 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
19695 The result data from this function should be a description of
19699 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
19701 description = <text>
19704 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
19706 The result data from this function should be the description of all
19707 groups available on the server.
19710 description-buffer = *description-line
19714 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
19716 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
19717 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
19718 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
19721 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19723 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
19725 There should be no return data.
19728 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
19730 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
19731 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
19732 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
19733 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
19734 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
19737 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
19740 There should be no result data returned.
19743 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
19746 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
19747 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
19749 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
19750 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
19751 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
19752 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
19753 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
19754 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
19756 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
19757 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
19760 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
19761 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
19763 There should be no data returned.
19766 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
19768 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
19769 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
19770 this function in short order.
19772 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
19773 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
19775 There should be no data returned.
19778 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
19780 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
19781 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
19783 There should be no data returned.
19786 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
19788 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
19789 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
19790 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
19792 There should be no data returned.
19795 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
19797 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
19798 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
19800 There should be no data returned.
19805 @node Error Messaging
19806 @subsubsection Error Messaging
19808 @findex nnheader-report
19809 @findex nnheader-get-report
19810 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
19811 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
19812 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
19813 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
19814 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
19815 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
19818 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
19820 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
19823 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
19824 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
19825 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
19826 takes one argument---the server symbol.
19828 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
19829 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
19830 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
19833 @node Writing New Backends
19834 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
19836 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
19837 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
19838 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
19839 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
19840 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
19843 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
19844 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
19845 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
19847 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
19848 package called @code{nnoo}.
19850 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
19851 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
19857 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
19858 parameters. For instance:
19861 (nnoo-declare nndir
19865 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
19866 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
19869 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
19870 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
19871 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
19873 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
19874 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
19875 a function in those backends.
19878 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
19879 "Where nndir will look for groups."
19880 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
19883 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
19884 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
19885 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
19887 @item nnoo-define-basics
19888 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
19892 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
19896 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
19897 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
19898 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
19900 @item nnoo-map-functions
19901 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
19902 functions from the parent backends.
19905 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
19906 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19907 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
19910 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
19911 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
19912 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
19913 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
19916 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
19917 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
19918 haven't already been defined.
19924 nnmh-request-newgroups)
19928 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
19929 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
19930 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
19935 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
19938 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
19939 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
19943 (require 'nnheader)
19947 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
19949 (nnoo-declare nndir
19952 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
19953 "Where nndir will look for groups."
19954 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
19956 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
19957 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
19960 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
19961 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
19962 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
19964 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
19965 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
19967 ;;; Interface functions.
19969 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
19971 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
19972 (setq nndir-directory
19973 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
19975 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
19976 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
19977 (push `(nndir-current-group
19978 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19980 (push `(nndir-top-directory
19981 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19983 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
19985 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
19986 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19987 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19988 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
19989 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
19993 nnmh-status-message
19995 nnmh-request-newgroups))
20001 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20002 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
20004 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
20005 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
20006 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
20007 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
20009 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
20010 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
20015 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
20018 The abilities can be:
20022 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
20024 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
20026 This backend supports both mail and news.
20028 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
20031 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
20032 articles and groups.
20034 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
20035 true for almost all backends.
20036 @item prompt-address
20037 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
20038 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
20039 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
20043 @node Mail-like Backends
20044 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
20046 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
20047 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
20048 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
20049 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
20052 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
20053 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
20054 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
20057 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
20058 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
20061 This function takes four parameters.
20065 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
20068 @item exit-function
20069 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
20071 @item temp-directory
20072 Where the temporary files should be stored.
20075 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
20076 performed for one group only.
20079 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
20080 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
20081 find the article number assigned to this article.
20083 The function also uses the following variables:
20084 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
20085 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
20086 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
20087 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
20091 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
20092 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
20096 @node Score File Syntax
20097 @subsection Score File Syntax
20099 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
20100 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
20101 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
20103 Here's a typical score file:
20107 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
20114 BNF definition of a score file:
20117 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
20118 element = rule / atom
20119 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
20120 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
20121 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
20122 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
20124 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
20125 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
20126 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
20127 date-header = "date"
20128 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20129 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20130 score = "nil" / <integer>
20131 date = "nil" / <natural number>
20132 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
20133 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
20134 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
20135 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
20136 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20137 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20138 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
20139 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
20140 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
20141 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
20142 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
20143 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
20144 exclude-files / read-only / touched
20145 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
20146 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
20147 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
20148 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
20149 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
20150 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
20151 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
20152 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
20153 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
20154 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
20155 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
20156 eval = "eval" space <form>
20157 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
20160 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
20163 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
20164 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
20165 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
20166 one looong line, then that's ok.
20168 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
20169 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20173 @subsection Headers
20175 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
20176 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
20177 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
20178 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
20180 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
20181 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
20182 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
20183 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
20184 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
20185 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
20186 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
20188 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
20189 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
20190 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
20191 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
20192 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
20194 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
20195 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
20201 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
20202 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
20204 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
20205 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
20206 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
20207 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
20209 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
20213 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
20216 is transformed into
20219 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
20222 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
20223 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
20226 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
20229 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
20230 is slightly tricky:
20233 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
20239 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
20242 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
20248 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
20255 and is equal to the previous range.
20257 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
20258 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
20259 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
20263 range = simple-range / normal-range
20264 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
20265 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
20266 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
20267 number *[ " " contents ]
20270 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
20271 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
20272 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
20273 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
20274 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
20279 @subsection Group Info
20281 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
20282 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
20283 describes the group.
20285 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
20286 second is a more complex one:
20289 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
20291 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
20292 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
20294 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
20297 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
20298 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
20299 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
20300 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
20301 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
20302 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
20303 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
20304 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
20305 this section is about.
20307 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
20308 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
20309 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
20311 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
20314 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
20315 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
20316 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
20317 group = quote <string> quote
20318 ralevel = rank / level
20319 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20320 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
20321 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20323 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
20324 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
20325 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
20326 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
20329 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
20330 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
20333 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
20334 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
20337 @item gnus-info-group
20338 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
20339 @findex gnus-info-group
20340 @findex gnus-info-set-group
20341 Get/set the group name.
20343 @item gnus-info-rank
20344 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
20345 @findex gnus-info-rank
20346 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
20347 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
20349 @item gnus-info-level
20350 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
20351 @findex gnus-info-level
20352 @findex gnus-info-set-level
20353 Get/set the group level.
20355 @item gnus-info-score
20356 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
20357 @findex gnus-info-score
20358 @findex gnus-info-set-score
20359 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
20361 @item gnus-info-read
20362 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
20363 @findex gnus-info-read
20364 @findex gnus-info-set-read
20365 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
20367 @item gnus-info-marks
20368 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
20369 @findex gnus-info-marks
20370 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
20371 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
20373 @item gnus-info-method
20374 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
20375 @findex gnus-info-method
20376 @findex gnus-info-set-method
20377 Get/set the group select method.
20379 @item gnus-info-params
20380 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
20381 @findex gnus-info-params
20382 @findex gnus-info-set-params
20383 Get/set the group parameters.
20386 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
20387 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
20389 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
20390 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
20391 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
20392 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
20395 @node Extended Interactive
20396 @subsection Extended Interactive
20397 @cindex interactive
20398 @findex gnus-interactive
20400 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
20401 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
20402 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
20405 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
20406 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
20411 The best thing to do would have been to implement
20412 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
20413 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
20414 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
20415 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
20416 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
20417 @code{interactive}.
20419 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
20424 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
20425 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
20429 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
20430 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
20431 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
20434 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
20438 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
20442 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
20448 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
20449 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
20453 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
20454 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
20455 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
20457 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
20458 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
20459 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
20460 Gnus, that's very useful.
20462 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
20463 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
20464 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
20465 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
20466 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
20467 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
20468 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
20469 following function:
20472 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
20476 (,function ,@@args))
20480 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
20481 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
20482 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
20485 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
20486 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
20487 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
20489 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
20490 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
20491 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
20494 @node Various File Formats
20495 @subsection Various File Formats
20498 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
20499 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
20503 @node Active File Format
20504 @subsubsection Active File Format
20506 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
20507 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
20510 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
20513 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
20514 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
20515 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
20516 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
20517 no.general 1000 900 y
20520 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
20523 active = *group-line
20524 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
20525 group = <non-white-space string>
20527 high-number = <non-negative integer>
20528 low-number = <positive integer>
20529 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
20532 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
20533 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
20536 @node Newsgroups File Format
20537 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
20539 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
20540 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
20541 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
20544 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
20545 Here's the definition:
20549 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
20550 group = <non-white-space string>
20552 description = <string>
20557 @node Emacs for Heathens
20558 @section Emacs for Heathens
20560 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
20561 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
20562 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
20563 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
20564 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
20565 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
20566 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
20570 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
20571 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
20576 @subsection Keystrokes
20580 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
20583 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
20586 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
20587 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
20588 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
20589 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
20590 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
20591 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
20593 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
20594 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
20595 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
20596 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
20597 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
20598 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
20599 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
20601 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
20602 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
20603 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
20604 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
20605 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
20606 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
20607 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
20609 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
20610 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
20611 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
20612 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
20613 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
20619 @subsection Emacs Lisp
20621 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
20622 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
20623 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
20624 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
20626 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
20627 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
20628 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
20629 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
20630 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
20631 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
20632 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
20635 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
20636 write the following:
20639 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
20642 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
20643 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
20644 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
20647 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
20648 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
20649 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
20650 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
20651 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
20653 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
20654 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
20655 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
20659 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
20663 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
20666 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
20667 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
20670 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
20673 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
20674 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
20677 @include gnus-faq.texi