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4 @settitle Semi-gnus 6.10.036 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 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 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 Semi-gnus 6.10.036 Manual
323 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
326 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
327 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97 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 Semi-gnus provides MIME features based on SEMI API. So Semi-gnus
358 supports your right to read strange messages including big images or
359 other various kinds of formats. Semi-gnus also supports
360 internationalization/localization and multiscript features based on MULE
361 API. So Semi-gnus does not discriminate various language communities.
362 Oh, if you are a Klingon, please wait Unicode Next Generation.
364 This manual corresponds to Semi-gnus 6.10.036.
375 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
376 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
378 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
379 being accused of plagiarism:
381 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
382 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
383 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
384 even read news with it!
386 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
387 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
388 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend gnus to make it behave
389 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
390 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
397 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
398 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
399 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
400 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
401 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
402 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
403 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
404 * Various:: General purpose settings.
405 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
406 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
407 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
408 * Key Index:: Key Index.
412 @chapter Starting gnus
417 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting gnus
418 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
421 @findex gnus-other-frame
422 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
423 If you want to start gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
424 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
426 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
427 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
428 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
430 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
431 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
434 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
435 * The First Time:: What does gnus do the first time you start it?
436 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
437 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one gnus active at a time.
438 * Fetching a Group:: Starting gnus just to read a group.
439 * New Groups:: What is gnus supposed to do with new groups?
440 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
441 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
442 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
443 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
444 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
448 @node Finding the News
449 @section Finding the News
452 @vindex gnus-select-method
454 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where gnus should look for
455 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
456 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
457 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are foreign
460 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
461 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
464 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
467 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
470 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
473 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
474 certainly be much faster.
476 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
478 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
479 If this variable is not set, gnus will take a look at the
480 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
481 gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
482 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
483 that fails as well, gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an
484 @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
486 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
487 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
488 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
489 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
491 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
492 You can also make gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
493 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
494 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), gnus will let you choose between the servers
495 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
496 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
498 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
500 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
501 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
502 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
503 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
504 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
505 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
507 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
509 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
510 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
511 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
512 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
513 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
514 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
517 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
518 would typically set this variable to
521 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
526 @section The First Time
527 @cindex first time usage
529 If no startup files exist, gnus will try to determine what groups should
530 be subscribed by default.
532 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
533 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, gnus
534 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
535 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
538 Since she hasn't, gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
539 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
540 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
542 You'll also be subscribed to the gnus documentation group, which should
543 help you with most common problems.
545 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, gnus will just
546 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
550 @node The Server is Down
551 @section The Server is Down
552 @cindex server errors
554 If the default server is down, gnus will understandably have some
555 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
556 the news groups, you may want to start gnus anyway.
558 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
559 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
560 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
561 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
562 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
563 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
564 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
566 @findex gnus-no-server
567 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
569 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
570 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
571 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start gnus. That might come in handy
572 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
573 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
574 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
579 @section Slave Gnusae
582 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one gnus at the
583 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if
584 you are using the two different gnusae to read from two different
585 servers), that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
587 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
590 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the gnus
591 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and @dfn{slaves}.
592 (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have taken out a
593 copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in conjunction
594 with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to me. Usage of
595 the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer Applications})
596 will be much more expensive, of course.)
598 Anyways, you start one gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
599 however you do it). Each subsequent slave gnusae should be started with
600 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
601 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
602 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master gnus
603 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
604 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
605 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
607 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
608 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
611 @node Fetching a Group
612 @section Fetching a Group
613 @cindex fetching a group
615 @findex gnus-fetch-group
616 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
617 group and I don't care whether gnus has been started or not''. This is
618 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
619 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
620 It takes the group name as a parameter.
628 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
629 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
630 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
631 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
632 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
633 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
634 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
635 @code{always}, then gnus will query the backends for new groups even
636 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
639 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
640 * Subscription Methods:: What gnus should do with new groups.
641 * Filtering New Groups:: Making gnus ignore certain new groups.
645 @node Checking New Groups
646 @subsection Checking New Groups
648 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
649 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
650 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
651 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, gnus will ask the
652 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
653 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
654 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
655 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
656 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
657 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
659 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
660 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
661 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
662 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
663 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't work.
664 I could write a function to make gnus guess whether the server supports
665 @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't. You could
666 @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see whether it lists
667 @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If it does, then it
668 might work. (But there are servers that lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} without
669 supporting the function properly.)
671 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, gnus will
672 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
673 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
674 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
675 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
676 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
679 @node Subscription Methods
680 @subsection Subscription Methods
682 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
683 What gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
684 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
686 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
687 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
689 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
693 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
694 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
695 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
696 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
697 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
699 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
700 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
701 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
702 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
704 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
705 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
706 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
708 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
709 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
710 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
711 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
712 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
713 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
714 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
715 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
716 up. Or something like that.
718 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
719 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
720 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that gnus will ask you
721 about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe to
722 will be subscribed hierarchically.
724 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
725 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
730 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
731 A closely related variable is
732 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
733 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will ask you in a
734 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
735 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
738 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
739 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
740 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
741 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
744 @node Filtering New Groups
745 @subsection Filtering New Groups
747 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
748 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
749 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
752 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
755 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
756 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
757 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
758 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
759 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
760 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
761 subscribing these groups.
762 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
763 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
765 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
766 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
767 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
768 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
769 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
770 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
771 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
772 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
774 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
775 Yet another variable that meddles here is
776 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
777 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
778 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
779 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
780 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
781 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
782 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
783 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
785 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
786 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
789 @node Changing Servers
790 @section Changing Servers
791 @cindex changing servers
793 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
794 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
795 very flaky and you want to use another.
797 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
798 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
802 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
803 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
804 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
805 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
808 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
809 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
810 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
811 functions more than absolutely necessary.
813 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
814 @findex gnus-change-server
815 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
816 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
817 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
818 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
819 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
821 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
822 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
823 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
824 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
825 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
827 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
828 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
829 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
830 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
831 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
832 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
834 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
835 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
836 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
840 @section Startup Files
841 @cindex startup files
846 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
847 information is traditionally stored in this file.
849 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{GNUS}. In addition to
850 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
851 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
852 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
853 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{GNUS} would read whichever one of these
854 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
855 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
857 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
858 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
859 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
860 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
861 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
862 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
864 In addition, gnus does not change anything. Hail comrade Lars!
866 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
867 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
868 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
869 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from gnus faster.
870 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
871 gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
873 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
874 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
875 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
876 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
877 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
878 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
879 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
880 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
881 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
882 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
883 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
884 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
886 @vindex gnus-startup-file
887 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
888 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
889 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
891 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
892 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
893 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
894 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
895 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
896 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
897 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
898 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
899 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
900 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
903 (defun turn-off-backup ()
904 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
906 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
907 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
910 @vindex gnus-init-file
911 When gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
912 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
913 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
914 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
915 @file{site-init} files with gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
916 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
917 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
918 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
919 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
928 Whenever you do something that changes the gnus data (reading articles,
929 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
930 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
931 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
932 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
935 If gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
936 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file
939 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
940 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, gnus won't create and
941 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
943 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
944 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
945 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, gnus will dribble
946 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
947 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
948 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
950 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
951 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
952 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
955 @node The Active File
956 @section The Active File
958 @cindex ignored groups
960 When gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
961 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
962 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
964 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
965 Before examining the active file, gnus deletes all lines that match the
966 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
967 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make gnus
968 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
969 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
970 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
973 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
974 @c if you set it to anything else.
976 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
978 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
979 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent gnus from
980 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
982 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
983 you actually subscribe to.
985 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
986 variable to @code{nil} will probably make gnus slower, not faster. At
987 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow gnus down
988 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
990 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
991 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
992 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
993 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
994 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
995 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
997 If this variable is @code{nil}, gnus will ask for group info in total
998 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
999 @sc{nntp} server, gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1000 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1001 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1002 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1004 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1005 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1007 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1008 secondary select methods.
1011 @node Startup Variables
1012 @section Startup Variables
1016 @item gnus-load-hook
1017 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1018 A hook run while gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1019 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1020 times you start gnus.
1022 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1023 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1024 A hook run after starting up gnus successfully.
1026 @item gnus-startup-hook
1027 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1028 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1030 @item gnus-started-hook
1031 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1032 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up gnus
1035 @item gnus-started-hook
1036 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1037 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1038 generating the group buffer.
1040 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1041 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1042 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1043 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1044 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1045 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1046 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1047 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1049 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1050 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1051 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1052 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1053 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1054 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1056 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1057 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1058 Message displayed by gnus when no groups are available.
1060 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1061 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1062 If non-@code{nil}, play the gnus jingle at startup.
1064 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1065 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1066 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1067 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1072 @node The Group Buffer
1073 @chapter The Group Buffer
1074 @cindex group buffer
1076 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1077 is the first buffer shown when gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1078 long as gnus is active.
1082 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1083 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1084 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1085 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1086 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1087 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1088 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1089 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1095 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1096 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1097 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1098 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1099 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1100 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1101 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1102 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1103 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1104 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1105 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1106 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1107 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1108 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1109 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1110 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1111 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1115 @node Group Buffer Format
1116 @section Group Buffer Format
1119 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1120 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1121 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1125 @node Group Line Specification
1126 @subsection Group Line Specification
1127 @cindex group buffer format
1129 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1130 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1132 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1135 25: news.announce.newusers
1136 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1141 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1142 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1143 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1144 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1146 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1147 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1148 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1149 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1150 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1151 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1153 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1155 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1156 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1157 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1158 never examined by gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1161 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1162 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1163 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1165 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1170 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1173 Whether the group is subscribed.
1176 Level of subscribedness.
1179 Number of unread articles.
1182 Number of dormant articles.
1185 Number of ticked articles.
1188 Number of read articles.
1191 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1192 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1195 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1198 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1207 Newsgroup description.
1210 @samp{m} if moderated.
1213 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1222 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1226 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1229 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1230 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1231 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1232 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1233 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1236 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1238 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1242 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1246 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1247 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1248 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1249 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1250 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1251 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1256 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1257 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1258 group, or a bogus native group.
1261 @node Group Modeline Specification
1262 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1263 @cindex group modeline
1265 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1266 The mode line can be changed by setting
1267 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1268 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1272 The native news server.
1274 The native select method.
1278 @node Group Highlighting
1279 @subsection Group Highlighting
1280 @cindex highlighting
1281 @cindex group highlighting
1283 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1284 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1285 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1286 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1287 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1289 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1293 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-1
1294 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))))
1295 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-2
1296 '((t (:foreground "SeaGreen" :bold t))))
1297 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-3
1298 '((t (:foreground "SpringGreen" :bold t))))
1299 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-4
1300 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))))
1301 (face-spec-set 'my-group-face-5
1302 '((t (:foreground "SkyBlue" :bold t))))
1304 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1305 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1306 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1307 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1308 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1309 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1312 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1314 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1321 The number of unread articles in the group.
1325 Whether the group is a mail group.
1327 The level of the group.
1329 The score of the group.
1331 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1333 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1334 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1336 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1337 topic being inserted.
1340 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1341 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal gnus
1342 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1344 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1345 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1346 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1347 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1348 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1351 @node Group Maneuvering
1352 @section Group Maneuvering
1353 @cindex group movement
1355 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1356 expected, hopefully.
1362 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1363 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1364 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1370 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1371 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1372 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1376 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1377 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1381 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1382 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1386 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1387 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1388 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1392 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1393 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1394 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1397 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1403 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1404 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1405 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1410 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1411 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1412 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1416 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1417 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1418 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1421 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1422 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1423 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1424 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1428 @node Selecting a Group
1429 @section Selecting a Group
1430 @cindex group selection
1435 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1436 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1437 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1438 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1439 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1440 this command, gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1441 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1442 determines the number of articles gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1443 positive, gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1444 negative, gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1448 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1449 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1450 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1451 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1452 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1456 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1457 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1458 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1459 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1460 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1461 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1462 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1463 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1464 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1465 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1468 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1469 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1470 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1471 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1472 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1475 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1476 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1477 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1478 doing any processing of its contents
1479 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1480 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1481 manner will have no permanent effects.
1485 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1486 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what gnus should consider
1487 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1488 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, gnus will query the user
1489 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1490 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1491 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1492 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1495 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1496 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1497 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1498 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1503 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1504 full summary buffer.
1507 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1510 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
1515 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
1516 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
1517 Useful functions include:
1520 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
1521 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
1522 don't select the article.
1524 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
1525 Select the first unread article.
1527 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
1528 Select the highest-scored unread article.
1532 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1533 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1534 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1538 @node Subscription Commands
1539 @section Subscription Commands
1540 @cindex subscription
1548 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1549 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1550 Toggle subscription to the current group
1551 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1557 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1558 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1559 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1560 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1566 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1567 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1568 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1574 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1575 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1578 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1579 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1580 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1581 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1582 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1588 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1589 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1593 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1594 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1597 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1598 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1599 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1600 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1601 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1602 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1603 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1604 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1605 @file{.newsrc} file.
1609 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1619 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1620 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1621 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1622 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1623 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1624 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group
1625 from the group buffer.
1629 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1630 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1631 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1635 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1636 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1637 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1639 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1640 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1641 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1642 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1643 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1644 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1651 @section Group Levels
1655 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1656 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1657 can ask gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1658 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1659 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1661 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1667 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1668 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1669 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1670 prompted for a level.
1673 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1674 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1675 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1676 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1677 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1678 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1679 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1680 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1681 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1682 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1683 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1684 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1685 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1686 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1687 reasons of efficiency.
1689 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1690 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1692 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1693 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1694 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1696 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1697 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1698 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1699 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1700 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1701 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1702 relevant valid ranges.
1704 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1705 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1706 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1707 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1708 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1709 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1712 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1713 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1714 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1717 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1718 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1719 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1720 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1723 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1724 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1725 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1726 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1728 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1729 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1730 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1731 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1732 to 5. The default is 6.
1736 @section Group Score
1741 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1742 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1743 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1746 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1747 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1748 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1749 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1750 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1751 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1752 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1754 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1755 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1756 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1757 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1758 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1759 action after each summary exit, you can add
1760 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1761 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1762 slow things down somewhat.
1765 @node Marking Groups
1766 @section Marking Groups
1767 @cindex marking groups
1769 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1770 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1771 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1772 bidding on those groups.
1774 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1775 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1776 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1784 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1785 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1791 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1792 Remove the mark from the current group
1793 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1797 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1798 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1802 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1803 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1807 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1808 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1812 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1813 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1814 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1817 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1819 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1820 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1821 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1822 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1823 the command to be executed.
1826 @node Foreign Groups
1827 @section Foreign Groups
1828 @cindex foreign groups
1830 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1831 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1832 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1833 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1840 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1841 @cindex making groups
1842 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1843 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1844 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1848 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1849 @cindex renaming groups
1850 Rename the current group to something else
1851 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1852 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1858 @findex gnus-group-customize
1859 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1863 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1864 @cindex renaming groups
1865 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1866 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1870 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1871 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1872 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1876 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1877 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1878 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1882 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1884 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1885 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1890 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1891 Make the gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1895 @cindex (ding) archive
1896 @cindex archive group
1897 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1898 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1899 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1900 Make a gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1901 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1902 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1903 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1907 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1909 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1910 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1911 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1912 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1916 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1918 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1919 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1920 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1924 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1925 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1927 Make a group based on some file or other
1928 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1929 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1930 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1931 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1932 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1933 this command without a prefix, gnus will guess at the file type.
1934 @xref{Document Groups}.
1938 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
1939 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
1940 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
1941 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
1945 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1950 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1951 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1952 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1953 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1954 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1955 @xref{Web Searches}.
1957 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
1958 to a particular group by using a match string like
1959 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
1962 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1963 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1964 This function will delete the current group
1965 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1966 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1967 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1968 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1969 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1973 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1974 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1975 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1979 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1980 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1981 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1984 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1987 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1988 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1989 gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1990 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1991 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
1992 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
1996 @node Group Parameters
1997 @section Group Parameters
1998 @cindex group parameters
2000 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2001 Here's an example group parameter list:
2004 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2008 We see that each element consists of a ``dotted pair''---the thing
2009 before the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value.
2010 All the parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs,
2011 which are not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2013 The following group parameters can be used:
2018 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2021 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2024 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2025 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2026 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2027 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2028 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2030 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2031 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2032 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2033 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2034 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2035 list address instead.
2039 Address used when doing a @kbd{a} in that group.
2042 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2045 It is totally ignored
2046 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2047 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2049 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2050 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2051 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2052 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2053 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2055 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2056 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2057 sending the message.
2061 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2062 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2063 of whether it has any unread articles.
2065 @item broken-reply-to
2066 @cindex broken-reply-to
2067 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2068 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2069 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2070 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2071 broken behavior. So there!
2075 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2076 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2080 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, gnus
2081 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2082 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2087 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2088 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2089 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2090 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2091 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2092 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2093 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2097 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2098 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2099 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2102 @cindex total-expire
2103 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2104 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2105 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2106 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2111 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2112 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2113 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2114 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2115 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2116 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2119 @cindex score file group parameter
2120 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2121 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2122 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2125 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2126 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2127 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2128 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2131 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2132 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2133 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2134 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2137 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2138 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2142 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2145 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2150 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")} are
2151 arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by gnus,
2152 but provide a place for you to store information on particular groups.
2155 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2156 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2157 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2159 @item @var{(variable form)}
2160 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2161 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2162 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2163 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2164 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2165 @code{eval}ed there.
2167 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2168 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2169 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2170 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2171 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2175 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group. You
2176 might also be interested in reading about topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
2180 @node Listing Groups
2181 @section Listing Groups
2182 @cindex group listing
2184 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2192 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2193 List all groups that have unread articles
2194 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2195 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2196 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2197 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2204 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2205 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2206 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2207 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2208 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2209 unsubscribed groups).
2213 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2214 List all unread groups on a specific level
2215 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2216 with no unread articles.
2220 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2221 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2222 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2223 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2228 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2229 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2233 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2234 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2235 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2239 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2240 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2244 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2245 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2246 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2247 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2248 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2249 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2250 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2251 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2255 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2256 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2257 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2261 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2262 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2263 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2267 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2268 @cindex visible group parameter
2269 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2270 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2271 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2272 get the same effect.
2274 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2275 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2276 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2277 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2278 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2281 @node Sorting Groups
2282 @section Sorting Groups
2283 @cindex sorting groups
2285 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2286 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2287 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2288 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2289 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2290 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2295 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2296 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2297 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2299 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2300 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2301 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2303 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2304 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2305 Sort by group level.
2307 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2308 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2309 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2311 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2312 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2313 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2314 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2316 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2317 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2318 Sort by number of unread articles.
2320 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2321 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2322 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2327 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2328 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2332 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2333 some sorting criteria:
2337 @kindex G S a (Group)
2338 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2339 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2340 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2343 @kindex G S u (Group)
2344 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2345 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2346 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2349 @kindex G S l (Group)
2350 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2351 Sort the group buffer by group level
2352 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2355 @kindex G S v (Group)
2356 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2357 Sort the group buffer by group score
2358 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2361 @kindex G S r (Group)
2362 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2363 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2364 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2367 @kindex G S m (Group)
2368 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2369 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2370 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2374 All the commands below obeys the process/prefix convention
2375 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2377 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
2378 commands will sort in reverse order.
2380 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2384 @kindex G P a (Group)
2385 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2386 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
2387 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2390 @kindex G P u (Group)
2391 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2392 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
2393 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2396 @kindex G P l (Group)
2397 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2398 Sort the groups by group level
2399 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2402 @kindex G P v (Group)
2403 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2404 Sort the groups by group score
2405 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2408 @kindex G P r (Group)
2409 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2410 Sort the groups by group rank
2411 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2414 @kindex G P m (Group)
2415 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2416 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
2417 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2423 @node Group Maintenance
2424 @section Group Maintenance
2425 @cindex bogus groups
2430 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2431 Find bogus groups and delete them
2432 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2436 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2437 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2438 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2439 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
2440 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
2444 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2445 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2446 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2447 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2450 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2451 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2452 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2453 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2458 @node Browse Foreign Server
2459 @section Browse Foreign Server
2460 @cindex foreign servers
2461 @cindex browsing servers
2466 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2467 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2468 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2469 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2472 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2473 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2474 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2475 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2477 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2482 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2483 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2487 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2488 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2491 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2492 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2493 Enter the current group and display the first article
2494 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2497 @kindex RET (Browse)
2498 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2499 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2503 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2504 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2505 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2511 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2512 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2516 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2517 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2518 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2523 @section Exiting gnus
2524 @cindex exiting gnus
2526 Yes, gnus is ex(c)iting.
2531 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2532 Suspend gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit
2533 gnus, but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure
2534 why this is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2538 @findex gnus-group-exit
2539 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2540 Quit gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2544 @findex gnus-group-quit
2545 Quit gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files
2546 (@code{gnus-group-quit}). The dribble file will be saved, though
2547 (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2550 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2551 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2552 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend gnus and
2553 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit gnus, while
2554 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2559 If you wish to completely unload gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2560 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2561 trying to customize meta-variables.
2566 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2567 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2568 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2574 @section Group Topics
2577 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2578 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2579 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2580 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2581 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2582 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2586 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2587 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2598 2: alt.religion.emacs
2601 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2603 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2604 13: comp.sources.unix
2607 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2609 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2610 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2611 is a toggling command.)
2613 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2614 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2615 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2616 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2619 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2620 the hook for the group mode:
2623 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2627 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2628 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2629 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2630 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2631 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2635 @node Topic Variables
2636 @subsection Topic Variables
2637 @cindex topic variables
2639 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2640 really neat, I think.
2642 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2643 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2644 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2657 Number of groups in the topic.
2659 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2661 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2664 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2665 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2666 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2669 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2670 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2672 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2673 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2674 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2677 @node Topic Commands
2678 @subsection Topic Commands
2679 @cindex topic commands
2681 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2682 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2683 definitions slightly.
2689 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2690 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2691 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2695 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2696 Move the current group to some other topic
2697 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2698 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2702 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2703 Copy the current group to some other topic
2704 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2705 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2709 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2710 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2711 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
2712 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
2713 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
2714 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
2715 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
2718 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2719 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2723 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2724 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2725 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2729 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2730 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2731 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2735 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2736 Toggle hiding empty topics
2737 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2741 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2742 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2743 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2746 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2747 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2748 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2749 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2753 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2755 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2756 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2757 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2758 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2761 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
2762 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
2763 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2764 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
2768 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2770 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2771 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2772 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2773 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2774 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2775 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2778 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
2779 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
2780 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the expiry
2781 process (if any) (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}).
2785 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2786 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2787 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2791 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2792 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2793 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2798 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2799 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2802 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2803 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2804 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2808 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2809 List all groups that gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2810 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2814 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2815 @cindex group parameters
2816 @cindex topic parameters
2818 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2819 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2825 @subsection Topic Sorting
2826 @cindex topic sorting
2828 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2834 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2835 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2836 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2837 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2840 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2841 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2842 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2843 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2846 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2847 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2848 Sort the current topic by group level
2849 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2852 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2853 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2854 Sort the current topic by group score
2855 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
2858 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2859 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2860 Sort the current topic by group rank
2861 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
2864 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2865 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2866 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2867 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2871 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2874 @node Topic Topology
2875 @subsection Topic Topology
2876 @cindex topic topology
2879 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2885 2: alt.religion.emacs
2888 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2890 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2891 13: comp.sources.unix
2894 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2895 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2896 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2901 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2902 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2906 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2907 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2908 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2909 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2910 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2911 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2913 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2914 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2915 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2918 @node Topic Parameters
2919 @subsection Topic Parameters
2920 @cindex topic parameters
2922 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2923 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2924 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2926 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2927 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2928 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2929 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2935 2: alt.religion.emacs
2939 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2941 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2942 13: comp.sources.unix
2946 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2947 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2948 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2949 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2950 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2951 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2953 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2954 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2955 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2956 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2957 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2959 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2960 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2961 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2962 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2963 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2964 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2965 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2966 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2969 @node Misc Group Stuff
2970 @section Misc Group Stuff
2973 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2974 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and gnus.
2975 * Group Timestamp:: Making gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2976 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the gnus files.
2983 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2984 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2985 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2989 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2990 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
2991 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
2995 @findex gnus-group-mail
2996 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3000 Variables for the group buffer:
3004 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3005 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3006 is called after the group buffer has been
3009 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3010 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3011 is called after the group buffer is
3012 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3015 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3016 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3017 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3018 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3020 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3021 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3022 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3023 whether they are empty or not.
3028 @node Scanning New Messages
3029 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3030 @cindex new messages
3031 @cindex scanning new news
3037 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3038 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3039 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3040 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3041 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3042 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3047 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3048 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3049 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3050 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3051 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3052 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3053 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3055 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3056 @cindex activating groups
3058 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3059 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3064 @findex gnus-group-restart
3065 Restart gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3066 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3067 gnus variables, and then starts gnus all over again.
3071 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3072 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3074 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3075 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3079 @node Group Information
3080 @subsection Group Information
3081 @cindex group information
3082 @cindex information on groups
3089 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3090 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3093 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3094 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3095 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3096 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3097 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3098 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3099 for fetching the file.
3101 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, gnus will attempt to go
3102 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3106 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3108 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3109 @cindex describing groups
3110 @cindex group description
3111 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3112 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3113 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3117 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3118 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3119 prefix, force gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3126 @findex gnus-version
3127 Display current gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3131 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3132 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3135 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3138 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3139 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3143 @node Group Timestamp
3144 @subsection Group Timestamp
3146 @cindex group timestamps
3148 It can be convenient to let gnus keep track of when you last read a
3149 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3150 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3153 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3156 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3158 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3159 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3162 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3163 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3166 This will result in lines looking like:
3169 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3170 0: custom 19961002T012713
3173 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3174 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3178 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3179 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3184 @subsection File Commands
3185 @cindex file commands
3191 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3192 @vindex gnus-init-file
3193 @cindex reading init file
3194 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3195 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3199 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3200 @cindex saving .newsrc
3201 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3202 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3203 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3206 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3207 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3208 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3213 @node The Summary Buffer
3214 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3215 @cindex summary buffer
3217 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3218 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3220 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3221 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3223 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3226 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3227 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3228 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3229 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3230 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3231 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3232 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3233 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3234 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3235 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3236 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3237 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3238 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3239 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3240 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3241 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3242 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3243 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3244 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3245 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3246 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3247 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3248 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3249 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3250 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3251 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3252 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3253 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3257 @node Summary Buffer Format
3258 @section Summary Buffer Format
3259 @cindex summary buffer format
3263 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3264 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3265 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3271 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3272 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
3273 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3274 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3277 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3278 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3279 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3280 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3281 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3282 @code{From} header. Three pre-defined functions exist:
3283 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3284 fast, and too simplistic solution;
3285 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works nicely, but is
3286 slower; and @code{std11-extract-address-components}, which works very
3287 nicely, but is slower. The default function will return the wrong
3288 answer in 5% of the cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the
3289 other function instead:
3292 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
3293 'mail-extract-address-components)
3296 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3297 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3298 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3299 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
3302 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3303 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3305 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3306 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3307 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3308 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3309 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3311 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3313 The following format specification characters are understood:
3321 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3322 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3323 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
3325 Full @code{From} header.
3327 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3329 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
3330 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
3332 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3333 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3334 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3335 may be more thorough.
3337 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3340 Number of lines in the article.
3342 Number of characters in the article.
3344 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3346 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3347 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3349 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3350 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3352 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3353 for adopted articles.
3355 One space for each thread level.
3357 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3362 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
3363 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
3367 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3369 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3370 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3371 default level. If the difference between
3372 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
3373 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3381 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3383 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3389 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3390 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3392 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3393 article has any children.
3399 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3400 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3401 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3402 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3403 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3404 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3407 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3408 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, gnus will
3409 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3410 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3411 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3412 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3414 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3415 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3417 This restriction may disappear in later versions of gnus.
3420 @node To From Newsgroups
3421 @subsection To From Newsgroups
3425 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
3426 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
3427 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
3428 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
3429 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
3433 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
3434 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
3435 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
3439 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3440 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
3443 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
3444 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
3447 @findex gnus-extra-header
3448 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
3449 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
3450 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
3453 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
3457 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3458 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
3459 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
3460 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
3461 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
3462 headers are used instead.
3466 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
3467 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
3468 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files.
3470 In summary, you'd typically do something like the following:
3473 (setq gnus-extra-headers
3475 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
3476 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
3477 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20f%]%) %s\n")
3478 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
3483 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3484 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3486 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3487 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
3488 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
3489 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3491 Here are the elements you can play with:
3497 Unprefixed group name.
3499 Current article number.
3501 Current article score.
3505 Number of unread articles in this group.
3507 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3510 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3511 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3512 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3513 and no unselected ones.
3515 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3516 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3518 Subject of the current article.
3520 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3522 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3524 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3526 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3528 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3530 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3534 @node Summary Highlighting
3535 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3539 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3540 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3541 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3542 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3543 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3545 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3546 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3547 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3548 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3550 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3551 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3552 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3553 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3555 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3556 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3557 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3558 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3559 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3560 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3562 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3563 ((> score default) . bold))
3565 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3566 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3570 @node Summary Maneuvering
3571 @section Summary Maneuvering
3572 @cindex summary movement
3574 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3575 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3577 None of these commands select articles.
3582 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3583 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3584 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3585 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3586 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3590 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3591 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3592 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3593 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3594 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3599 @kindex G j (Summary)
3600 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3601 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3602 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3605 @kindex G g (Summary)
3606 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3607 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3608 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3611 If gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3612 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3613 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3614 to the group buffer.
3616 Variables related to summary movement:
3620 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3621 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3622 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3623 no more unread articles after the current one, gnus will offer to go to
3624 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3625 empty, gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3626 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, gnus will select the
3627 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3628 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, gnus will select the
3629 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3630 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3631 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3632 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3633 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3635 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3636 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3637 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3638 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3639 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3640 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
3641 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
3643 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3645 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3646 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3647 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3648 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3649 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3651 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3652 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3653 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3654 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3655 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3656 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3657 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3658 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3661 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
3662 the given number of lines from the top.
3667 @node Choosing Articles
3668 @section Choosing Articles
3669 @cindex selecting articles
3672 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3673 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3677 @node Choosing Commands
3678 @subsection Choosing Commands
3680 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3681 and they all select and display an article.
3685 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3686 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3687 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3688 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3693 @kindex G n (Summary)
3694 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3695 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3696 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3701 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3702 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3703 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3708 @kindex G N (Summary)
3709 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3710 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3715 @kindex G P (Summary)
3716 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3717 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3720 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3721 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3722 Go to the next article with the same subject
3723 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3726 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3727 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3728 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3729 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3733 @kindex G f (Summary)
3735 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3736 Go to the first unread article
3737 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3741 @kindex G b (Summary)
3743 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3744 Go to the article with the highest score
3745 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3750 @kindex G l (Summary)
3751 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3752 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3755 @kindex G o (Summary)
3756 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3758 @cindex article history
3759 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3760 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3761 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3762 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
3763 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
3764 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3768 @node Choosing Variables
3769 @subsection Choosing Variables
3771 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3774 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3775 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3776 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3777 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3778 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3779 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3781 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3782 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3783 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3784 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3786 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3787 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3788 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3789 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3790 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3791 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3792 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3793 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3794 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3795 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3796 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3797 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3798 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3799 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3804 @node Paging the Article
3805 @section Scrolling the Article
3806 @cindex article scrolling
3811 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3812 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3813 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3814 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3815 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3818 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3819 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3820 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3823 @kindex RET (Summary)
3824 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3825 Scroll the current article one line forward
3826 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3829 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
3830 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
3831 Scroll the current article one line backward
3832 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
3836 @kindex A g (Summary)
3838 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3839 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3840 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3841 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3842 the way it came from the server.
3847 @kindex A < (Summary)
3848 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3849 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3850 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3855 @kindex A > (Summary)
3856 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3857 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3861 @kindex A s (Summary)
3863 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3864 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3865 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3869 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
3870 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
3875 @node Reply Followup and Post
3876 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3879 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3880 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3884 @node Summary Mail Commands
3885 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3887 @cindex composing mail
3889 Commands for composing a mail message:
3895 @kindex S r (Summary)
3897 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3898 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3899 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3900 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3901 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3906 @kindex S R (Summary)
3907 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3908 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3909 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3910 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3911 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3914 @kindex S w (Summary)
3915 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3916 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3917 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3918 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3919 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3922 @kindex S W (Summary)
3923 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3924 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3925 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3926 the process/prefix convention.
3929 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3930 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3931 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3932 Forward the current article to some other person
3933 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3934 headers of the forwarded article.
3939 @kindex S m (Summary)
3940 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3941 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3942 Send a mail to some other person
3943 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3946 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3947 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3948 @cindex bouncing mail
3949 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3950 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3951 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3952 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3953 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3954 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, gnus will try to fetch
3955 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3956 very well fail, though.
3959 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3960 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3961 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3962 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3963 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3964 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3965 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3966 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3967 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3968 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3970 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3971 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3972 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3973 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3974 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung mu
\e,A_
\e(B sein!
3976 This command understands the process/prefix convention
3977 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3980 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3981 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3982 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
3983 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
3984 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3987 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3988 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3989 @cindex crossposting
3990 @cindex excessive crossposting
3991 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3992 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3994 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3995 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
3996 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3997 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3998 command understands the process/prefix convention
3999 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4003 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4006 @node Summary Post Commands
4007 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4009 @cindex composing news
4011 Commands for posting a news article:
4017 @kindex S p (Summary)
4018 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4019 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4020 Post an article to the current group
4021 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4026 @kindex S f (Summary)
4027 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4028 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4029 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4033 @kindex S F (Summary)
4035 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4036 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4037 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4038 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4039 process/prefix convention.
4042 @kindex S n (Summary)
4043 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4044 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4045 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4048 @kindex S N (Summary)
4049 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4050 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4051 message through mail and include the original message
4052 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4053 the process/prefix convention.
4056 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4057 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4058 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4059 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
4060 headers of the forwarded article.
4063 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4064 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4066 @cindex making digests
4067 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4068 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4069 process/prefix convention.
4072 @kindex S u (Summary)
4073 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4074 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4075 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4076 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4079 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4082 @node Canceling and Superseding
4083 @section Canceling Articles
4084 @cindex canceling articles
4085 @cindex superseding articles
4087 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4088 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4090 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4092 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4094 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4095 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4096 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4097 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4098 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4099 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4101 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4102 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4105 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4106 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4107 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4109 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4110 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4111 your original article.
4113 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4115 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4116 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4117 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4120 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4121 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4122 have posted almost the same article twice.
4124 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4125 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4126 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4127 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4128 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4129 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4130 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4131 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4132 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4133 canceled/superseded.
4135 Just remember, kids: There is no `c' in `supersede'.
4138 @node Marking Articles
4139 @section Marking Articles
4140 @cindex article marking
4141 @cindex article ticking
4144 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4146 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4147 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4148 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4150 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4153 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4154 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4155 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4159 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4163 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4164 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4168 @node Unread Articles
4169 @subsection Unread Articles
4171 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
4176 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
4177 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
4179 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
4180 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
4181 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
4182 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
4183 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
4187 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
4188 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
4190 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
4191 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
4192 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
4195 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
4196 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
4198 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
4203 @subsection Read Articles
4204 @cindex expirable mark
4206 All the following marks mark articles as read.
4211 @vindex gnus-del-mark
4212 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
4213 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
4216 @vindex gnus-read-mark
4217 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
4220 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
4221 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
4222 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
4225 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
4226 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
4229 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
4230 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
4233 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
4234 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
4237 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
4238 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
4241 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4242 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4245 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4246 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4249 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4250 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4254 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4255 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4256 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4260 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4261 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4263 One more special mark, though:
4267 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4268 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4270 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4271 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4272 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4273 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by gnus at any time.
4278 @subsection Other Marks
4279 @cindex process mark
4282 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4288 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4289 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4290 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4291 in the article, and gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4292 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
4295 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4296 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4297 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4298 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4301 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4302 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4303 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4306 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4307 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4308 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4309 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4312 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4313 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4314 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4315 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4316 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4319 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4320 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4321 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4322 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4323 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4324 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4328 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4329 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4330 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4332 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4333 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4334 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4338 @subsection Setting Marks
4339 @cindex setting marks
4341 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4346 @kindex M c (Summary)
4347 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4348 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4349 @cindex mark as unread
4350 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4351 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4357 @kindex M t (Summary)
4358 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4359 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4360 @xref{Article Caching}.
4365 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4366 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4367 Mark the current article as dormant
4368 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
4372 @kindex M d (Summary)
4374 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4375 Mark the current article as read
4376 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4380 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4381 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4382 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4387 @kindex M k (Summary)
4388 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4389 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4390 and then select the next unread article
4391 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4395 @kindex M K (Summary)
4396 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4397 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4398 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4399 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4402 @kindex M C (Summary)
4403 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4404 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4405 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4408 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4409 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4410 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4411 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4414 @kindex M H (Summary)
4415 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4416 Catchup the current group to point
4417 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4420 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4421 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4422 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4423 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4426 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4427 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4428 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4429 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4433 @kindex M e (Summary)
4435 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4436 Mark the current article as expirable
4437 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4440 @kindex M b (Summary)
4441 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4442 Set a bookmark in the current article
4443 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4446 @kindex M B (Summary)
4447 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4448 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4449 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4452 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4453 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4454 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4455 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4458 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4459 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4460 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4461 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4464 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4465 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4466 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4467 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4468 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4471 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4472 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4473 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4474 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4475 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4476 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4477 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4478 The default is @code{t}.
4481 @node Setting Process Marks
4482 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4483 @cindex setting process marks
4490 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4491 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4492 Mark the current article with the process mark
4493 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4494 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4498 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4499 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4500 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4501 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4504 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4505 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4506 Remove the process mark from all articles
4507 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4510 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4511 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4512 Invert the list of process marked articles
4513 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4516 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4517 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4518 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
4519 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4522 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4523 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4524 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4527 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4528 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4529 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4530 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4533 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4534 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4535 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4536 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4539 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4540 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4541 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4542 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4545 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4546 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4547 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4550 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4551 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4552 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4553 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4556 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4557 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4558 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4561 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4562 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4563 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4564 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4567 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4568 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4569 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4570 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4573 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4574 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4575 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4576 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4579 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4580 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4581 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4582 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4591 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4592 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4593 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4596 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
4597 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
4598 additional articles.
4604 @kindex / / (Summary)
4605 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4606 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4607 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4610 @kindex / a (Summary)
4611 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4612 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4613 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4617 @kindex / u (Summary)
4619 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4620 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4621 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4622 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4623 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4626 @kindex / m (Summary)
4627 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4628 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
4629 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4632 @kindex / t (Summary)
4633 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4634 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4635 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4636 articles younger than that number of days.
4639 @kindex / n (Summary)
4640 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4641 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4642 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4643 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4646 @kindex / w (Summary)
4647 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4648 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4649 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4653 @kindex / v (Summary)
4654 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4655 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4656 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4660 @kindex M S (Summary)
4661 @kindex / E (Summary)
4662 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4663 Include all expunged articles in the limit
4664 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4667 @kindex / D (Summary)
4668 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4669 Include all dormant articles in the limit
4670 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4673 @kindex / * (Summary)
4674 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
4675 Include all cached articles in the limit
4676 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
4679 @kindex / d (Summary)
4680 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4681 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
4682 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4685 @kindex / T (Summary)
4686 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
4687 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
4690 @kindex / c (Summary)
4691 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4692 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
4693 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4696 @kindex / C (Summary)
4697 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4698 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4699 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4700 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4708 @cindex article threading
4710 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4711 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4712 hierarchical fashion.
4714 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4715 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4716 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4717 or simply missing. Weird news propagation excarcerbates the problem,
4718 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4719 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4720 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4722 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4726 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4729 A tree-like article structure.
4732 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4735 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4736 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4737 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
4738 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4739 called loose threads.
4741 @item thread gathering
4742 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4744 @item sparse threads
4745 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4746 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4752 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4753 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4757 @node Customizing Threading
4758 @subsection Customizing Threading
4759 @cindex customizing threading
4762 * Loose Threads:: How gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
4763 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
4764 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
4765 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
4770 @subsubsection Loose Threads
4773 @cindex loose threads
4776 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4777 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4778 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4779 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4780 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4781 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4783 When there is no real root of a thread, gnus will have to fudge
4784 something. This variable says what fudging method gnus should use.
4785 There are four possible values:
4789 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4790 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4791 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4792 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4793 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4798 @cindex adopting articles
4803 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4804 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4805 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4806 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4809 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4810 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4811 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4812 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4813 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4814 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4815 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4818 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4819 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4820 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4824 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4825 display them after one another.
4828 Don't gather loose threads.
4831 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4832 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4833 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4834 variable is @code{nil}, gnus requires an exact match between the
4835 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4836 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4837 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4838 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4839 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4840 variable to a really low number, you'll find that gnus will gather
4841 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4843 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4844 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, gnus will
4845 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4848 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4849 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4850 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4851 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4852 simplification is used.
4854 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4855 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4856 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4857 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4859 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4861 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4867 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4868 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4869 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4870 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4875 (mapconcat 'identity
4876 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4878 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4881 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4884 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4885 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
4886 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
4887 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
4888 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
4889 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
4891 Useful functions to put in this list include:
4894 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
4895 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
4896 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
4898 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4899 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
4902 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
4903 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
4904 Remove excessive whitespace.
4907 You may also write your own functions, of course.
4910 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4911 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4912 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4913 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4914 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4915 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4916 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
4917 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4919 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4920 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4921 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4922 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4923 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4924 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4925 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
4926 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
4927 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4931 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4932 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4933 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4934 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4936 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4937 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4938 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4941 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4945 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4946 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4952 @node Filling In Threads
4953 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
4956 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4957 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4958 If non-@code{nil}, gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4959 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you would
4960 like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still connect as
4961 many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable to
4962 @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than that
4963 number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case, fetching
4964 old headers only works if the backend you are using carries overview
4965 files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4966 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4967 expired by the server, there's not much gnus can do about that.
4969 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
4970 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
4971 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
4973 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4974 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4975 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4976 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4977 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4978 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
4979 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where gnus guesses that an article
4980 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4981 lines. If you select a gap, gnus will try to fetch the article in
4982 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, gnus will display all these
4983 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4984 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, gnus won't cut
4985 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4986 @code{nil} by default.
4991 @node More Threading
4992 @subsubsection More Threading
4995 @item gnus-show-threads
4996 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4997 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4998 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4999 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5000 slower and more awkward.
5002 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5003 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5004 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5007 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5008 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5009 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5010 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5011 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5012 threads are expunged.
5014 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5015 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5016 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5019 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5020 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5021 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5022 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
5023 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
5026 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5027 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5028 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5034 @node Low-Level Threading
5035 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5039 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5040 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5041 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
5042 @code{(gnus-set-summary-default-charset)}, which sets up local value of
5043 @code{default-mime-charset} in summary buffer based on variable
5044 @code{gnus-newsgroup-default-charset-alist}.
5046 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5047 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5048 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5049 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5050 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5051 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5052 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5053 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5054 meaningful. Here's one example:
5057 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5059 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5060 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5062 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5064 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5071 @node Thread Commands
5072 @subsection Thread Commands
5073 @cindex thread commands
5079 @kindex T k (Summary)
5080 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
5081 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
5082 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
5083 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
5084 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
5089 @kindex T l (Summary)
5090 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
5091 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
5092 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
5093 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
5096 @kindex T i (Summary)
5097 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
5098 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
5099 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
5102 @kindex T # (Summary)
5103 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5104 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
5105 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5108 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
5109 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5110 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
5111 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5114 @kindex T T (Summary)
5115 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
5116 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
5119 @kindex T s (Summary)
5120 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
5121 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
5122 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
5125 @kindex T h (Summary)
5126 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
5127 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
5130 @kindex T S (Summary)
5131 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
5132 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
5135 @kindex T H (Summary)
5136 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
5137 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
5140 @kindex T t (Summary)
5141 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
5142 Re-thread the current article's thread
5143 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
5144 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
5147 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
5148 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
5149 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
5150 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
5154 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
5155 understand the numeric prefix.
5160 @kindex T n (Summary)
5161 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
5162 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
5165 @kindex T p (Summary)
5166 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
5167 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
5170 @kindex T d (Summary)
5171 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
5172 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
5175 @kindex T u (Summary)
5176 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
5177 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
5180 @kindex T o (Summary)
5181 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
5182 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
5185 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
5186 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
5187 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
5188 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
5189 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
5190 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
5191 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
5192 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
5193 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
5194 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
5195 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
5196 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
5203 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
5204 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
5205 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
5206 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5207 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
5208 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5209 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
5210 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
5211 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
5212 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
5213 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
5215 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
5216 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
5217 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
5218 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
5219 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
5221 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
5222 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
5223 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
5225 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
5226 last function in the list. You should probably always include
5227 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
5228 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
5229 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
5230 ascending article order.
5232 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
5233 by number, you could do something like:
5236 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5237 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
5238 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
5239 (reverse gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
5242 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
5243 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
5244 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
5245 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
5246 which the articles arrived.
5248 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
5252 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
5254 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
5255 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
5258 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
5259 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
5260 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
5261 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
5264 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
5265 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
5266 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
5267 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
5268 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
5269 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
5270 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
5271 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
5272 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
5273 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
5274 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
5275 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
5276 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
5278 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
5282 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
5283 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
5284 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
5289 @node Asynchronous Fetching
5290 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
5291 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
5292 @cindex article pre-fetch
5295 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
5296 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
5297 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
5298 article appears. Why can't gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
5299 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
5301 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
5302 article fetching, especially the way gnus does it.
5304 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
5305 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
5306 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
5307 article 3, but since gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
5308 connection is blocked.
5310 To avoid these situations, gnus will open two (count 'em two)
5311 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
5312 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
5313 extra connection takes some time, so gnus startup will be slower.
5315 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
5316 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
5317 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
5318 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
5321 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
5324 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
5325 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
5326 happen automatically.
5328 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
5329 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
5330 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
5331 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
5332 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
5333 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
5334 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
5336 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
5337 @findex gnus-async-read-p
5338 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
5339 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
5340 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
5341 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
5342 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
5343 data structure as the only parameter.
5345 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter
5346 than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5349 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5350 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5351 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5352 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5355 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5358 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5359 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down gnus too much. It's
5360 probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5362 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5363 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5364 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5365 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5369 Remove articles when they are read.
5372 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5375 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5377 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5378 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5379 @c from the next group.
5382 @node Article Caching
5383 @section Article Caching
5384 @cindex article caching
5387 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5388 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5389 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5390 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5391 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5393 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5395 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5396 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5397 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5398 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5399 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5400 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5401 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5402 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5404 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5405 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5406 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5407 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5408 as dormant, and don't worry.
5410 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5412 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5413 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5414 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5415 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5416 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5417 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5418 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5419 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5420 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5421 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5423 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5424 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5425 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5426 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5427 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5428 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5429 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5430 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
5431 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
5432 not then be downloaded by this command.
5434 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5435 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
5436 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
5437 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5438 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5439 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
5441 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
5442 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
5443 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
5444 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
5445 variables, the group is not cached.
5447 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5448 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5449 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5450 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5451 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5452 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, gnus
5453 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5454 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5455 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5459 @node Persistent Articles
5460 @section Persistent Articles
5461 @cindex persistent articles
5463 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5464 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5465 useful in my opinion.
5467 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5468 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5469 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5470 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5471 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5472 the expiry going on at the news server.
5474 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5475 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5476 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5482 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5483 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5486 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5487 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5488 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5489 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5493 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5495 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5496 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5497 interested in persistent articles:
5500 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5504 @node Article Backlog
5505 @section Article Backlog
5507 @cindex article backlog
5509 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5510 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5511 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where gnus will buffer
5512 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5513 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5514 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5515 that, turning the backlog on will slow gnus down a little bit, and
5516 increase memory usage some.
5518 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5519 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, gnus will store
5520 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5521 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, gnus will store
5522 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5523 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5524 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5526 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5529 @node Saving Articles
5530 @section Saving Articles
5531 @cindex saving articles
5533 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5534 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5535 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5536 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5537 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5539 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5540 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, gnus will not delete
5541 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5543 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5544 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5545 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5546 deleted before saving.
5552 @kindex O o (Summary)
5554 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5555 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5556 Save the current article using the default article saver
5557 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5560 @kindex O m (Summary)
5561 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5562 Save the current article in mail format
5563 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5566 @kindex O r (Summary)
5567 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5568 Save the current article in rmail format
5569 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5572 @kindex O f (Summary)
5573 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5574 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5575 Save the current article in plain file format
5576 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5579 @kindex O F (Summary)
5580 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5581 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5582 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5585 @kindex O b (Summary)
5586 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5587 Save the current article body in plain file format
5588 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5591 @kindex O h (Summary)
5592 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5593 Save the current article in mh folder format
5594 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5597 @kindex O v (Summary)
5598 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5599 Save the current article in a VM folder
5600 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5603 @kindex O p (Summary)
5604 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5605 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5606 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5609 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5610 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5611 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5612 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5613 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5614 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5615 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5616 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5617 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5618 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5619 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5620 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5624 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5625 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5626 gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5627 functions below, or you can create your own.
5631 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5632 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5633 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5634 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5635 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5636 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5637 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5639 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5640 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5641 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5642 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5643 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5644 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5646 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5647 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5648 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5649 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5650 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5651 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5652 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5654 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5655 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5656 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5657 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5658 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5660 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5661 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5662 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5663 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5664 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5667 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5668 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5669 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5670 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5671 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5673 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5674 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5675 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5676 reader to use this setting.
5679 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5680 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5681 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5682 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5685 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5686 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5687 available functions that generate names:
5691 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5692 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5693 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5695 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5696 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5697 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5699 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5700 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5701 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5703 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5704 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5705 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5708 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5709 You can have gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp
5710 into the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would
5711 like to save articles related to gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and
5712 articles related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable
5716 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5717 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5718 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5719 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5722 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5723 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5724 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5725 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5726 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5727 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5728 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5729 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5730 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5732 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5733 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5734 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5735 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5737 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5738 means that gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5739 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file name.
5741 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5742 lots of mail groups called things like
5743 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5744 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5745 following will do just that:
5748 (defun my-save-name (group)
5749 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5750 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5752 (setq gnus-split-methods
5753 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5758 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5759 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5760 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5761 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5762 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5763 all the files in the top level directory
5764 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5765 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5766 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5767 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5769 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5770 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5771 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5772 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5773 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5776 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5780 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5781 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5784 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5785 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5786 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5787 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5790 @node Decoding Articles
5791 @section Decoding Articles
5792 @cindex decoding articles
5794 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5795 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5798 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5799 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5800 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5801 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5802 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5803 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5807 @cindex article series
5808 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5809 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5810 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5811 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5812 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5814 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5815 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5816 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5818 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, gnus
5819 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5820 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5822 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5823 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5824 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5827 @node Uuencoded Articles
5828 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5830 @cindex uuencoded articles
5835 @kindex X u (Summary)
5836 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5837 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5838 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5841 @kindex X U (Summary)
5842 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5843 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5844 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5847 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5848 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5849 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5852 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5853 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5854 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5855 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5859 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5860 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5861 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5862 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5863 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5865 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5866 @sc{GNUS 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5867 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5868 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5871 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5872 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5873 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5874 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5875 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5876 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5880 @node Shell Archives
5881 @subsection Shell Archives
5883 @cindex shell archives
5884 @cindex shared articles
5886 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5887 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5888 some commands to deal with these:
5893 @kindex X s (Summary)
5894 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5895 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5898 @kindex X S (Summary)
5899 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5900 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5903 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5904 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5905 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5908 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5909 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5910 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5911 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5915 @node PostScript Files
5916 @subsection PostScript Files
5922 @kindex X p (Summary)
5923 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5924 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5927 @kindex X P (Summary)
5928 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5929 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5930 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5933 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5934 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5935 View the current PostScript series
5936 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5939 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5940 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5941 View and save the current PostScript series
5942 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5947 @subsection Other Files
5951 @kindex X o (Summary)
5952 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
5953 Save the current series
5954 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
5957 @kindex X b (Summary)
5958 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
5959 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
5960 doesn't really work yet.
5964 @node Decoding Variables
5965 @subsection Decoding Variables
5967 Adjective, not verb.
5970 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5971 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5972 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5976 @node Rule Variables
5977 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5978 @cindex rule variables
5980 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5981 variables are of the form
5984 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5991 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5992 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5994 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5995 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5998 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5999 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
6002 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6003 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6004 This variable is consulted if gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6005 user and default view rules.
6007 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6008 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6009 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6014 @node Other Decode Variables
6015 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6018 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6020 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6021 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6022 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6023 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6024 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6028 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6029 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6032 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6033 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6034 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6037 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6038 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6039 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6040 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6041 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6044 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6045 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6046 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6048 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6049 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6050 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6051 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6052 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6055 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6056 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6057 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
6059 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6060 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
6061 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
6062 looking for files to display.
6064 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
6065 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
6066 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
6069 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6070 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
6071 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
6074 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6075 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
6076 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
6079 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6080 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
6081 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
6084 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6085 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
6086 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
6087 decoded articles as unread.
6089 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6090 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
6091 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
6092 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
6094 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6095 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
6096 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
6098 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6099 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
6101 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
6102 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
6103 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
6104 @code{metamail} for viewing.
6106 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6107 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
6108 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
6109 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
6110 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
6111 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
6112 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
6113 simply dropped them.
6118 @node Uuencoding and Posting
6119 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
6123 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6124 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
6125 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
6126 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
6127 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
6128 for you when you post the article.
6130 @item gnus-uu-post-length
6131 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
6132 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
6133 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
6135 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
6136 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
6137 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
6138 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
6139 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
6140 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
6141 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
6143 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6144 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
6145 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
6146 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
6147 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
6148 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
6149 Default is @code{t}.
6155 @subsection Viewing Files
6156 @cindex viewing files
6157 @cindex pseudo-articles
6159 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, gnus will attempt
6160 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
6161 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
6162 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, gnus will
6163 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
6164 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
6165 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
6167 Finally, gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
6168 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
6169 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
6170 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
6172 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
6173 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
6174 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
6176 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
6177 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
6178 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
6179 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
6180 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
6182 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
6183 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
6184 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
6185 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
6186 a list of parameters to that command.
6188 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
6189 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
6190 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
6192 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
6193 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
6194 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
6197 @node Article Treatment
6198 @section Article Treatment
6200 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
6201 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
6202 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
6203 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
6204 these articles easier.
6207 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
6208 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
6209 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
6210 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
6211 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
6212 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
6213 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
6217 @node Article Highlighting
6218 @subsection Article Highlighting
6219 @cindex highlighting
6221 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
6222 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
6227 @kindex W H a (Summary)
6228 @findex gnus-article-highlight
6229 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
6230 Do much highlighting of the current article
6231 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
6232 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
6234 Most users would prefer using @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight} in
6235 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}) instead.
6236 This is a bit less agressive---it highlights only the headers, the
6237 signature and adds buttons.
6240 @kindex W H h (Summary)
6241 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
6242 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
6243 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
6244 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
6245 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
6246 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
6247 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
6248 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
6249 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
6250 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
6253 @kindex W H c (Summary)
6254 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
6255 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
6257 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
6260 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6262 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
6263 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
6264 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
6266 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6267 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
6268 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
6270 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
6271 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
6272 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
6274 @item gnus-cite-face-list
6275 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
6276 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
6277 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
6278 gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
6279 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
6281 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
6282 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
6283 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
6285 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6286 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
6287 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
6289 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6290 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
6291 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
6292 that it's a citation.
6294 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6295 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
6296 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
6298 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6299 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
6300 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
6302 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
6303 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
6304 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
6305 cited text belonging to the attribution.
6311 @kindex W H s (Summary)
6312 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6313 @vindex gnus-signature-face
6314 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
6315 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
6316 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
6317 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
6318 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
6323 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to highlight articles automatically.
6326 @node Article Fontisizing
6327 @subsection Article Fontisizing
6329 @cindex article emphasis
6331 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
6332 @kindex W e (Summary)
6333 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
6334 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
6335 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
6336 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
6338 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
6339 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
6340 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
6341 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
6342 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
6343 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
6344 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
6345 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
6349 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
6350 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
6351 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
6354 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
6355 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
6356 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
6357 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
6358 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
6359 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
6360 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
6361 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
6362 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
6363 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
6364 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
6365 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
6366 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6368 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6369 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6370 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6374 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6377 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to fontize articles automatically.
6380 @node Article Hiding
6381 @subsection Article Hiding
6382 @cindex article hiding
6384 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6385 too much cruft in most articles.
6390 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6391 @findex gnus-article-hide
6392 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
6393 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
6394 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
6397 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6398 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6399 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6403 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6404 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6405 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6406 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6409 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6410 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6411 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6415 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6416 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6417 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6418 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6419 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6420 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
6421 articles that have signatures in them do:
6423 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
6425 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp)
6427 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
6428 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
6430 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6433 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
6438 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6439 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6440 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6441 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6444 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6445 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6446 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6447 customizing the hiding:
6451 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6452 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6453 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
6454 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
6455 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6456 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6457 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6462 Starting point of the hidden text.
6464 Ending point of the hidden text.
6466 Number of characters in the hidden region.
6468 Number of lines of hidden text.
6471 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6472 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6473 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6478 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
6479 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
6481 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
6482 following two variables:
6485 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6486 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6487 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6488 50), hide the cited text.
6490 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6491 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6492 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6497 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6498 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6499 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6500 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6501 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6502 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6506 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6507 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6508 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6510 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6511 citation customization.
6513 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to hide article elements
6517 @node Article Washing
6518 @subsection Article Washing
6520 @cindex article washing
6522 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6523 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6525 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6526 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6532 @kindex W l (Summary)
6533 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6534 Remove page breaks from the current article
6535 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article} for page
6539 @kindex W r (Summary)
6540 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6541 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6542 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6543 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6544 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
6545 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
6547 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
6548 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
6549 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
6550 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
6553 @kindex W t (Summary)
6554 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6555 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6556 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6559 @kindex W v (Summary)
6560 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6561 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6562 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6565 @kindex W m (Summary)
6566 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
6567 Toggle whether to display the article as @sc{mime} message
6568 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
6571 @kindex W o (Summary)
6572 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6573 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6576 @kindex W d (Summary)
6577 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
6578 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
6580 @cindex M******** sm*rtq**t*s
6582 Treat M******** sm*rtq**t*s according to
6583 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
6584 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}).
6587 @kindex W w (Summary)
6588 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6589 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
6590 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
6591 late and certainly after any highlighting.
6593 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6597 @kindex W c (Summary)
6598 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6599 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
6600 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
6601 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
6602 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6605 @kindex W f (Summary)
6607 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6608 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6609 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6610 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6616 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6617 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6618 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6619 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6620 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6621 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6622 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6623 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6624 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6625 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6626 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6627 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6628 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6629 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6633 @kindex W b (Summary)
6634 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6635 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6636 @xref{Article Buttons}.
6639 @kindex W B (Summary)
6640 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6641 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6642 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6645 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6646 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6647 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6648 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6651 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6652 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6653 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6654 lines with a single empty line.
6655 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6658 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6659 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6660 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6661 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6664 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6665 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6666 Do all the three commands above
6667 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6670 @kindex W E A (Summary)
6671 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
6672 Remove all blank lines
6673 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
6676 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6677 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6678 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6679 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6683 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to wash articles automatically.
6686 @node Article Buttons
6687 @subsection Article Buttons
6690 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6691 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6692 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6693 button on these references.
6695 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6696 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6697 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6702 @item gnus-button-alist
6703 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6704 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6707 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6713 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6714 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6715 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6718 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6719 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6720 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6723 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6724 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6725 avoid false matches.
6728 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6731 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6732 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6736 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6739 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6742 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6743 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6744 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6745 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6746 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6749 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6752 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6754 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6755 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6756 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6757 default values of the variables above.
6759 @item gnus-article-button-face
6760 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6761 Face used on buttons.
6763 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6764 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6765 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6769 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to buttonize articles automatically.
6773 @subsection Article Date
6775 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6776 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6777 when the article was sent.
6782 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6783 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6784 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6785 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6788 @kindex W T i (Summary)
6789 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
6791 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
6792 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
6795 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6796 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6797 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6800 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6801 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6802 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6803 @findex format-time-string
6804 Display the date using a user-defined format
6805 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6806 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6807 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6808 for a list of possible format specs.
6811 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6812 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6813 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
6814 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
6815 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6816 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). If you want to have this line
6817 updated continually, you can put
6820 (gnus-start-date-timer)
6823 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
6824 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
6828 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6829 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6830 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6831 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6832 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6833 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6834 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6838 @xref{Customizing Articles} for how to display the date in your
6839 preferred format automatically.
6842 @node Article Signature
6843 @subsection Article Signature
6845 @cindex article signature
6847 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6848 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6849 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6850 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6851 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6852 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6853 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6854 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6855 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6858 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6859 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6860 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6861 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6862 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6863 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6864 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6865 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6868 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6871 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6872 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6877 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6880 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6883 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6884 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6886 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6887 in question is not a signature.
6890 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6891 listed above. Here's an example:
6894 (setq gnus-signature-limit
6895 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
6898 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
6899 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
6900 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
6901 signature after all.
6905 @section MIME Commands
6906 @cindex MIME decoding
6910 @kindex W M w (Summary)
6911 Decode RFC2047-encoded words in the article headers
6912 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
6915 @kindex W M c (Summary)
6916 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
6917 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
6919 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
6920 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
6921 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
6922 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
6923 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
6924 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
6927 @kindex W M v (Summary)
6928 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
6929 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
6936 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
6937 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
6938 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
6939 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
6942 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
6945 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
6949 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
6950 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
6951 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
6952 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
6953 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
6954 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
6955 save all jpegs into some directory).
6957 Here's an example function the does the latter:
6960 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
6961 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
6963 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
6964 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
6965 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
6966 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
6967 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
6973 @node Article Commands
6974 @section Article Commands
6981 @kindex A P (Summary)
6982 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
6983 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
6984 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
6985 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
6986 run just before printing the buffer.
6991 @node Summary Sorting
6992 @section Summary Sorting
6993 @cindex summary sorting
6995 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6996 can't really see why you'd want that.
7001 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
7002 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
7003 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
7006 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
7007 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
7008 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
7011 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
7012 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
7013 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
7016 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
7017 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
7018 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
7021 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
7022 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
7023 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
7026 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
7027 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
7028 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
7031 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
7032 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
7033 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
7034 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
7035 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
7039 @node Finding the Parent
7040 @section Finding the Parent
7041 @cindex parent articles
7042 @cindex referring articles
7047 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
7048 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
7049 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
7050 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
7051 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
7052 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
7053 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
7054 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
7055 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
7057 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
7058 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
7059 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, gnus will fetch the parent, the
7060 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
7061 @kbd{-3 ^}, gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
7065 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
7066 @kindex A R (Summary)
7067 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
7068 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
7071 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
7072 @kindex A T (Summary)
7073 Display the full thread where the current article appears
7074 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
7075 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
7076 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
7077 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
7078 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
7079 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
7081 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
7082 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
7083 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
7084 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
7085 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
7086 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
7089 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
7090 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
7092 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
7093 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
7094 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
7095 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
7096 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
7097 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
7098 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
7101 The current select method will be used when fetching by
7102 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
7103 by giving this command a prefix.
7105 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
7106 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
7107 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
7108 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
7109 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
7110 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
7113 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
7114 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
7115 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
7116 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
7117 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
7118 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
7121 @node Alternative Approaches
7122 @section Alternative Approaches
7124 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
7125 gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
7128 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
7129 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
7134 @subsection Pick and Read
7135 @cindex pick and read
7137 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
7138 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
7139 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
7140 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
7142 @findex gnus-pick-mode
7143 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
7144 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
7145 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
7146 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
7147 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
7149 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
7154 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
7155 Pick the article or thread on the current line
7156 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7157 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
7158 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
7159 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
7160 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
7161 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
7164 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
7165 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
7166 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
7167 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
7171 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
7172 Unpick the thread or article
7173 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
7174 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
7175 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
7176 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
7177 the thread or article at that line.
7181 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
7182 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
7183 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
7184 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
7185 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
7186 will still be visible when you are reading.
7190 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
7191 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
7192 which is mapped to the same function
7193 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
7195 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
7198 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
7201 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
7202 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
7204 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
7205 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
7206 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
7208 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
7209 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
7210 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
7211 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
7212 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
7213 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
7214 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
7218 @subsection Binary Groups
7219 @cindex binary groups
7221 @findex gnus-binary-mode
7222 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
7223 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
7224 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
7225 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
7226 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
7227 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
7230 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
7231 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
7232 command, when you have turned on this mode
7233 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
7235 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
7236 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
7240 @section Tree Display
7243 @vindex gnus-use-trees
7244 If you don't like the normal gnus summary display, you might try setting
7245 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
7246 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
7249 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
7252 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
7253 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
7254 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
7256 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7257 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
7258 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
7259 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
7260 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
7262 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
7263 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
7264 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
7265 default is @code{modeline}.
7267 @item gnus-tree-line-format
7268 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
7269 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
7270 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
7271 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
7272 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
7273 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
7279 The name of the poster.
7281 The @code{From} header.
7283 The number of the article.
7285 The opening bracket.
7287 The closing bracket.
7292 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
7294 Variables related to the display are:
7297 @item gnus-tree-brackets
7298 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
7299 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
7300 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
7301 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
7302 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
7304 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7305 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
7306 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
7307 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
7311 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
7312 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
7313 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, gnus will try to keep the tree
7314 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other gnus
7315 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
7316 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
7317 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
7318 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
7319 other windows displayed next to it.
7321 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
7322 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
7323 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7324 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
7325 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
7326 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
7327 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
7331 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
7334 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
7344 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
7348 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
7349 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
7351 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
7353 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
7358 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
7359 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
7360 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
7363 (setq gnus-use-trees t
7364 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
7365 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
7366 (gnus-add-configuration
7370 (summary 0.75 point)
7375 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
7378 @node Mail Group Commands
7379 @section Mail Group Commands
7380 @cindex mail group commands
7382 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
7383 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
7385 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
7386 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7391 @kindex B e (Summary)
7392 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
7393 Expire all expirable articles in the group
7394 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
7397 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
7398 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
7399 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
7400 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
7401 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
7402 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
7405 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
7406 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
7407 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
7408 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
7409 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
7410 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
7413 @kindex B m (Summary)
7415 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
7416 Move the article from one mail group to another
7417 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
7420 @kindex B c (Summary)
7422 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
7423 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
7424 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
7425 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
7428 @kindex B B (Summary)
7429 @cindex crosspost mail
7430 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
7431 Crosspost the current article to some other group
7432 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
7433 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
7434 be properly updated.
7437 @kindex B i (Summary)
7438 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
7439 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
7440 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
7441 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
7444 @kindex B r (Summary)
7445 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
7446 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
7447 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
7448 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
7449 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
7453 @kindex B w (Summary)
7455 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
7456 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
7457 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
7458 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
7459 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
7460 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, gnus won't re-highlight the article.
7463 @kindex B q (Summary)
7464 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
7465 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
7466 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
7467 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
7470 @kindex B t (Summary)
7471 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
7472 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
7473 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
7476 @kindex B p (Summary)
7477 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
7478 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
7479 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
7480 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
7481 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
7482 article from your news server (or rather, from
7483 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
7484 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
7485 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
7486 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
7487 just not have arrived yet.
7491 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
7492 @cindex moving articles
7493 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have gnus
7494 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
7495 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
7496 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
7497 suggestions you find reasonable.
7500 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
7501 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
7502 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
7503 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
7507 @node Various Summary Stuff
7508 @section Various Summary Stuff
7511 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7512 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7513 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7514 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7518 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7519 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7520 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7522 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7523 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7524 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7525 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7526 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7527 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7530 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7531 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7532 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7533 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7534 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7536 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7537 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
7538 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
7541 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7542 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7543 When gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7544 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7545 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7546 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7547 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), gnus will rename the
7548 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7549 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7550 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7555 @node Summary Group Information
7556 @subsection Summary Group Information
7561 @kindex H f (Summary)
7562 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7563 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7564 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7565 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7566 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7567 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7568 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7569 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7570 be used for fetching the file.
7573 @kindex H d (Summary)
7574 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7575 Give a brief description of the current group
7576 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7577 rereading the description from the server.
7580 @kindex H h (Summary)
7581 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7582 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7583 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7586 @kindex H i (Summary)
7587 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7588 Go to the gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7592 @node Searching for Articles
7593 @subsection Searching for Articles
7598 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7599 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7600 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7601 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7604 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7605 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7606 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7607 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7611 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7612 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7613 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7614 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7618 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7619 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7620 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7621 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7624 @node Summary Generation Commands
7625 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7630 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7631 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7632 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7635 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7636 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7637 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7638 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7643 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7644 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7649 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7650 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7651 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7652 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7653 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7654 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7655 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7656 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7657 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7661 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7662 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7663 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7664 several documents into one biiig group
7665 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7666 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7667 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7668 command understands the process/prefix convention
7669 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7672 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7673 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7674 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7675 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7676 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7677 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7681 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7682 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7683 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7686 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
7687 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
7688 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
7689 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
7694 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7695 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7696 @cindex summary exit
7697 @cindex exiting groups
7699 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7700 group and return you to the group buffer.
7706 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7708 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7709 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7710 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7711 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7712 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7713 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7714 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7715 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7716 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7717 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7718 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7722 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7724 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7725 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7726 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7730 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7732 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7733 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7734 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7735 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7738 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7739 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7740 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7741 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7744 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7745 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7746 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7747 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7750 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7751 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7752 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7753 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7754 all articles, both read and unread.
7758 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7759 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7760 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7761 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7762 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7763 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7764 articles, both read and unread.
7767 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7768 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7769 Exit the group and go to the next group
7770 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7773 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7774 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7775 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7776 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
7779 @kindex Z s (Summary)
7780 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
7781 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
7782 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
7783 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
7784 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7787 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7788 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7791 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7792 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7793 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7794 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7795 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7796 If you do that, gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7797 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7798 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7799 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7800 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7801 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7802 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7804 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7806 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7807 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7808 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7809 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7810 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7811 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7812 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7813 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7814 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7817 @node Crosspost Handling
7818 @section Crosspost Handling
7822 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7823 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7824 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7825 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7826 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7827 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7830 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7831 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7832 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7833 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7834 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7836 @cindex cross-posting
7839 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7840 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7841 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7842 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7843 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7844 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7845 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7846 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7847 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7848 the cross reference mechanism.
7850 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7851 @cindex overview.fmt
7852 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7853 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7854 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7855 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7856 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7857 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7860 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7861 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7862 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7867 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7870 @node Duplicate Suppression
7871 @section Duplicate Suppression
7873 By default, gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7874 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7875 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7876 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various reasons.
7880 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7881 is evil and not very common.
7884 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7885 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7888 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7889 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7892 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
7895 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
7896 well, but these four are the most common situations.
7898 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
7899 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
7900 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
7901 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
7902 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
7903 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
7904 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
7907 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
7908 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
7909 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
7910 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
7911 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
7915 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
7916 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
7917 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
7919 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
7920 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
7921 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
7922 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
7923 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single gnus
7924 session are suppressed.
7926 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
7927 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
7928 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
7929 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7931 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7932 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7933 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
7934 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7937 If you have a tendency to stop and start gnus often, setting
7938 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7939 you leave gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7940 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7941 so that means that if you stop and start gnus often, you should set
7942 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7943 to you to figure out, I think.
7946 @node The Article Buffer
7947 @chapter The Article Buffer
7948 @cindex article buffer
7950 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7951 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7952 tell gnus otherwise.
7955 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7956 * Using MIME:: Pushing to mime articles as @sc{mime} messages.
7957 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7958 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7959 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7963 @node Hiding Headers
7964 @section Hiding Headers
7965 @cindex hiding headers
7966 @cindex deleting headers
7968 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7969 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7971 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7972 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7973 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7974 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7975 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7976 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7977 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7978 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7979 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7981 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7985 @item gnus-visible-headers
7986 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7987 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7988 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7989 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7991 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7992 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7995 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7998 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8001 @item gnus-ignored-headers
8002 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
8003 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
8004 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
8005 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
8006 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
8008 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} field
8009 and the @code{Xref} field, you might say:
8012 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
8015 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
8018 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
8019 variable will have no effect.
8023 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
8024 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
8025 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
8026 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
8027 the headers are to be displayed.
8029 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
8030 and then the subject, you might say something like:
8033 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
8036 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
8037 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed
8040 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
8041 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
8042 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
8043 You can hide further boring headers by entering
8044 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
8045 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
8046 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
8047 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
8048 @dfn{boring conditions} that gnus can check and remove from sight.
8050 These conditions are:
8053 Remove all empty headers.
8055 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
8056 @code{Newsgroups} header.
8058 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
8061 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
8064 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
8067 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
8069 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
8072 To include the four three elements, you could say something like;
8075 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
8076 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
8079 This is also the default value for this variable.
8083 @section Using @sc{mime}
8086 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
8087 while people stand around yawning.
8089 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
8090 while all newsreaders die of fear.
8092 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
8093 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
8094 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
8096 @vindex gnus-show-mime
8097 @vindex gnus-article-display-method-for-mime
8098 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
8099 @findex gnus-article-display-mime-message
8100 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
8101 @code{gnus-article-display-method-for-mime}, which is
8102 @code{gnus-article-display-mime-message} by default. This function
8103 calls the SEMI MIME-View program to actually do the work. For more
8104 information on SEMI MIME-View, see its manual page (however it is not
8105 existed yet, sorry).
8107 Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
8108 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
8109 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
8110 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
8111 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
8112 buffer. These can't be avoided.
8114 In GNUS or Gnus, it might be best to just use the toggling functions
8115 from the summary buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance,
8116 you enter the group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it,
8117 @sc{mime} has decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible
8118 sing-a-long song comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find
8119 the volume button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to
8120 look at you, and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you
8121 can't find the program to control the volume, and everybody else in the
8122 room suddenly decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel
8125 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
8127 To avoid such kind of situation, gnus stops to use
8128 @code{metamail-buffer}. So now, you can set @code{gnus-show-mime} to
8129 non-@code{nil} every-time, then you can push button in the article
8130 buffer when there are nobody else.
8133 @node Customizing Articles
8134 @section Customizing Articles
8135 @cindex article customization
8137 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
8138 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
8139 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
8140 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
8142 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
8143 @findex gnus-article-maybe-hide-headers
8144 By default this hook just contains
8145 @code{gnus-article-maybe-hide-headers},
8146 @code{gnus-hide-boring-headers}, @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike},
8147 and @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight} (and under XEmacs,
8148 @code{gnus-article-display-x-face}), but there are thousands, nay
8149 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
8150 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
8151 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
8152 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
8153 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
8155 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
8156 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
8157 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
8158 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
8159 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
8162 @node Article Keymap
8163 @section Article Keymap
8165 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
8166 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
8167 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
8168 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
8171 A few additional keystrokes are available:
8176 @kindex SPACE (Article)
8177 @findex gnus-article-next-page
8178 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
8181 @kindex DEL (Article)
8182 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
8183 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
8186 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
8187 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
8188 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
8189 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
8190 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
8193 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
8194 @findex gnus-article-mail
8195 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
8196 given a prefix, include the mail.
8200 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
8201 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
8202 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
8206 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
8207 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
8208 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
8211 @kindex TAB (Article)
8212 @findex gnus-article-next-button
8213 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
8214 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
8217 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
8218 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
8219 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
8225 @section Misc Article
8229 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
8230 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
8231 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
8232 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
8235 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
8236 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
8238 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
8239 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
8241 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
8242 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
8243 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
8244 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
8245 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
8246 the contents of the article buffer.
8248 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
8249 @item gnus-article-display-hook
8250 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
8251 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
8252 hiding headers, and the like.
8254 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
8255 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
8256 Hook called in article mode buffers.
8258 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8259 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
8260 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
8261 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
8263 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
8264 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
8265 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
8266 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
8267 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with one
8272 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
8273 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
8277 @vindex gnus-break-pages
8279 @item gnus-break-pages
8280 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
8281 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
8282 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
8283 paging will not be done.
8285 @item gnus-page-delimiter
8286 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
8287 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
8292 @node Composing Messages
8293 @chapter Composing Messages
8294 @cindex composing messages
8297 @cindex sending mail
8302 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
8303 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
8304 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
8305 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
8306 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
8307 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
8308 to make gnus try to post using the foreign server.
8311 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
8312 * Post:: Posting and following up.
8313 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
8314 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
8315 * Archived Messages:: Where gnus stores the messages you've sent.
8316 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
8317 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
8318 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
8321 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
8322 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
8328 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
8331 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
8332 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
8333 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
8334 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
8336 @item gnus-add-to-list
8337 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
8338 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
8339 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
8347 Variables for composing news articles:
8350 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8351 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
8352 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
8353 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
8354 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
8355 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
8356 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
8357 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
8358 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want gnus to keep a history
8361 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8362 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
8363 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
8364 file. It is 1000 by default.
8369 @node Posting Server
8370 @section Posting Server
8372 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
8373 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
8375 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
8377 @vindex gnus-post-method
8379 It can be quite complicated. Normally, gnus will use the same native
8380 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
8381 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
8382 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
8383 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
8386 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
8389 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
8390 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
8391 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
8392 the ``current'' server for posting.
8394 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
8395 gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
8397 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
8398 If that's the case, gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
8401 Finally, if you want to always post using the same select method as
8402 you're reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
8403 groups from different private servers), you can set this variable to
8408 @section Mail and Post
8410 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
8414 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
8415 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
8416 @cindex mailing lists
8418 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
8419 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
8420 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
8421 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
8422 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
8423 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
8424 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
8425 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
8426 still a pain, though.
8430 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
8431 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
8432 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
8435 @findex ispell-message
8437 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
8441 @node Archived Messages
8442 @section Archived Messages
8443 @cindex archived messages
8444 @cindex sent messages
8446 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
8447 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
8448 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
8449 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
8452 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
8453 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server gnus is to
8454 use to store sent messages. The default is:
8458 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
8459 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
8460 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
8461 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
8464 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
8465 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
8466 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
8467 directory chosen, you could say something like:
8470 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
8471 '(nnfolder "archive"
8472 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
8473 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
8474 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
8477 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
8479 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
8480 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
8481 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
8483 This variable can be used to do the following:
8487 Messages will be saved in that group.
8488 @item a list of strings
8489 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
8490 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
8491 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
8493 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
8498 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
8500 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
8503 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
8505 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
8508 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
8510 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8511 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
8512 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
8513 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
8518 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8519 '((if (message-news-p)
8524 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
8525 messages in one file per month:
8528 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
8529 '((if (message-news-p)
8531 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
8532 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
8535 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
8536 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
8538 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
8539 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
8540 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
8541 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
8542 gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
8543 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
8544 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
8545 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
8546 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
8547 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
8549 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
8550 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
8551 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
8552 this will disable archiving.
8555 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
8556 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
8557 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
8558 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8559 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8562 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8563 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8564 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8567 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8568 but the latter is the preferred method.
8572 @node Posting Styles
8573 @section Posting Styles
8574 @cindex posting styles
8577 All them variables, they make my head swim.
8579 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8580 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8581 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8584 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8585 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8586 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8587 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8588 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8593 (signature "Peace and happiness")
8594 (organization "What me?"))
8596 (signature "Death to everybody"))
8597 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8598 (organization "Emacs is it")))
8601 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8602 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8603 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8604 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8605 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8606 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8607 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8608 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8610 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8611 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8612 If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8613 arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8614 referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8615 any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8618 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8619 attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
8620 can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
8621 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
8622 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8623 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8626 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8627 return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8628 list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8630 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
8631 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
8632 of the two dynamically bound variables @code{message-this-is-news} and
8633 @code{message-this-is-mail}.
8635 @vindex message-this-is-mail
8636 @vindex message-this-is-news
8638 So here's a new example:
8641 (setq gnus-posting-styles
8643 (signature-file "~/.signature")
8645 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8646 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
8648 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8649 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8650 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
8651 (message-this-is-news
8652 (signature my-news-signature))
8653 (posting-from-work-p
8654 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
8655 (address "user@@bar.foo")
8656 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
8657 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
8659 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
8667 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8668 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8669 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8670 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8671 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8673 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8674 some sort using the gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8675 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8676 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8677 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8681 @vindex nndraft-directory
8682 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8683 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8684 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8685 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8686 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8687 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
8689 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
8690 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
8693 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
8694 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
8695 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
8696 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
8697 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
8698 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
8699 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
8700 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
8701 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
8702 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
8703 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
8704 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
8705 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
8706 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
8708 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
8709 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
8710 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
8712 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
8714 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
8715 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
8716 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
8718 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
8721 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
8722 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
8723 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
8724 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
8725 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
8726 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
8727 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
8730 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
8731 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
8732 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
8735 @node Rejected Articles
8736 @section Rejected Articles
8737 @cindex rejected articles
8739 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
8740 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
8741 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
8742 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
8744 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of gnus.
8745 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
8746 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
8747 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So gnus saves these
8748 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
8750 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
8751 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
8752 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
8755 @node Select Methods
8756 @chapter Select Methods
8757 @cindex foreign groups
8758 @cindex select methods
8760 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
8761 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
8762 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
8763 personal mail group.
8765 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
8766 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
8767 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
8768 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
8769 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
8770 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
8772 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
8773 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
8775 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
8778 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
8779 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
8780 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
8781 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
8782 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
8784 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
8787 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
8788 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
8789 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
8790 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
8791 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
8792 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
8796 @node The Server Buffer
8797 @section The Server Buffer
8799 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
8800 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
8801 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
8802 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
8803 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
8804 backend represents a virtual server.
8806 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
8807 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
8808 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
8809 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
8811 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
8812 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
8813 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
8814 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
8815 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
8816 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
8817 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
8819 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
8820 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
8823 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
8824 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
8825 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
8826 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
8827 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
8828 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
8829 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
8832 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
8833 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
8836 @node Server Buffer Format
8837 @subsection Server Buffer Format
8838 @cindex server buffer format
8840 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
8841 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
8842 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
8843 variable, with some simple extensions:
8848 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
8851 The name of this server.
8854 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
8857 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
8860 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
8861 The mode line can also be customized by using the
8862 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
8863 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
8873 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
8876 @node Server Commands
8877 @subsection Server Commands
8878 @cindex server commands
8884 @findex gnus-server-add-server
8885 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
8889 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
8890 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
8893 @kindex SPACE (Server)
8894 @findex gnus-server-read-server
8895 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
8899 @findex gnus-server-exit
8900 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
8904 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
8905 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
8909 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
8910 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
8914 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
8915 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
8919 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
8920 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
8924 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
8925 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
8926 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
8931 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
8932 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
8933 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
8934 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
8939 @node Example Methods
8940 @subsection Example Methods
8942 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
8945 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
8948 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
8954 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
8955 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
8958 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
8959 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
8961 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
8962 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
8966 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
8969 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
8970 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
8972 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
8973 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
8974 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
8978 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
8981 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
8984 Here's the method for a public spool:
8988 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
8989 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
8992 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
8993 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
8994 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
8995 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
8996 should probably look something like this:
9000 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
9001 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9002 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9003 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9004 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
9007 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
9008 compressed connection over the modem line, you could create a virtual
9009 server that would look something like this:
9013 (nntp-address "copper.uio.no")
9014 (nntp-rlogin-program "ssh")
9015 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
9016 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
9017 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
9018 ("telnet" "news.uio.no" "nntp")))
9021 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
9022 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
9023 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
9024 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
9027 @node Creating a Virtual Server
9028 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
9030 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
9031 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
9033 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
9034 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
9035 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
9037 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
9039 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
9040 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
9041 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
9042 will contain the following:
9052 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
9053 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
9054 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
9057 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
9058 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
9059 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
9062 @node Server Variables
9063 @subsection Server Variables
9065 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
9066 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
9067 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
9068 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
9069 won't change the "derived" variables.
9071 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
9072 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
9073 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
9074 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
9075 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
9076 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
9077 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
9078 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
9079 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
9083 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
9084 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
9085 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
9089 @node Servers and Methods
9090 @subsection Servers and Methods
9092 Wherever you would normally use a select method
9093 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
9094 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
9095 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
9099 @node Unavailable Servers
9100 @subsection Unavailable Servers
9102 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
9103 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
9104 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
9105 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
9106 actually the case or not.
9108 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
9109 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
9110 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
9111 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
9112 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
9113 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
9114 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
9115 it will regard that server as ``down''.
9117 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
9118 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
9120 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
9121 with the following commands:
9127 @findex gnus-server-open-server
9128 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
9129 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
9133 @findex gnus-server-close-server
9134 Close the connection (if any) to the server
9135 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
9139 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
9140 Mark the current server as unreachable
9141 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
9144 @kindex M-o (Server)
9145 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
9146 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
9147 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
9150 @kindex M-c (Server)
9151 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
9152 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
9153 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
9157 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
9158 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
9159 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
9165 @section Getting News
9166 @cindex reading news
9167 @cindex news backends
9169 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
9170 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
9171 or it can read from a local spool.
9174 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
9175 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
9180 @subsection @sc{nntp}
9183 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
9184 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
9185 server as the, uhm, address.
9187 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
9188 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
9189 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
9190 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9192 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
9193 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
9194 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
9196 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
9201 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
9202 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
9203 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
9205 @cindex authentification
9206 @cindex nntp authentification
9207 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9208 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
9209 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
9210 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
9211 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
9212 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
9213 present in this hook.
9215 @item nntp-authinfo-function
9216 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
9217 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
9218 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
9219 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
9220 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
9221 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
9222 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
9223 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
9224 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
9225 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
9226 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
9230 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
9233 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs. The
9234 valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
9235 @samp{default} and @samp{force}. (The latter is not a valid
9236 @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} token, which is the only way the
9237 @file{.authinfo} file format deviates from the @file{.netrc} file
9242 Here's an example file:
9245 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
9246 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
9249 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
9250 have to be first, for instance.
9252 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
9253 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
9254 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
9255 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
9256 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
9257 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
9258 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
9260 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
9261 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
9267 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
9268 previously mentioned.
9270 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
9272 @item nntp-server-action-alist
9273 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
9274 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
9275 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
9276 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
9279 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
9283 You probably don't want to do that, though.
9285 The default value is
9288 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
9289 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
9292 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
9293 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
9295 @item nntp-maximum-request
9296 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
9297 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
9298 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
9299 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
9300 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
9301 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
9302 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
9304 @item nntp-connection-timeout
9305 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
9306 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
9307 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
9308 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
9309 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
9310 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
9311 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
9312 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
9313 no timeouts are done.
9315 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
9316 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
9317 @c @cindex PPP connections
9318 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
9319 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
9320 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
9321 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
9322 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
9323 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
9324 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
9325 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
9326 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
9327 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
9329 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
9330 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
9331 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
9332 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
9335 @item nntp-server-hook
9336 @vindex nntp-server-hook
9337 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
9340 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
9341 @findex nntp-open-telnet
9342 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
9343 @item nntp-open-connection-function
9344 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
9345 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Four pre-made
9346 functions are supplied:
9349 @item nntp-open-network-stream
9350 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
9353 @item nntp-open-rlogin
9354 Does an @samp{rlogin} on the
9355 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
9358 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
9362 @item nntp-rlogin-program
9363 @vindex nntp-rlogin-program
9364 Program used to log in on remote machines. The default is @samp{rsh},
9365 but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
9367 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
9368 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
9369 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
9371 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9372 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9373 User name on the remote system.
9377 @item nntp-open-telnet
9378 Does a @samp{telnet} to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet}
9379 to get to the @sc{nntp} server.
9381 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
9384 @item nntp-telnet-command
9385 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
9386 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
9388 @item nntp-telnet-switches
9389 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
9390 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
9392 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
9393 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
9394 User name for log in on the remote system.
9396 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
9397 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
9398 Password to use when logging in.
9400 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
9401 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
9402 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
9405 @item nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9406 @vindex nntp-telnet-shell-prompt
9407 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the remote machine. The default is
9408 @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
9410 @item nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9411 @vindex nntp-open-telnet-envuser
9412 If non-@code{nil}, the @code{telnet} session (client and server both)
9413 will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for login name.
9414 This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
9418 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
9419 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
9420 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
9421 you must have SSLay installed
9422 (@file{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
9423 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distributeion, for instance). You then
9424 define a server as follows:
9427 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
9429 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
9431 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
9432 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
9433 (nntp-port-number "snews")
9434 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
9439 @item nntp-end-of-line
9440 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
9441 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
9442 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
9443 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
9445 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
9446 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
9447 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
9451 @vindex nntp-address
9452 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
9454 @item nntp-port-number
9455 @vindex nntp-port-number
9456 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
9459 @item nntp-buggy-select
9460 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
9461 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
9463 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
9464 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
9465 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
9466 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
9469 @item nntp-xover-commands
9470 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
9473 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
9474 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
9478 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
9479 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
9480 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
9481 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
9482 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
9483 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
9484 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
9485 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
9486 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
9487 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
9488 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
9490 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
9491 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
9492 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
9494 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9495 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
9496 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
9497 server closes connection.
9499 @item nntp-record-commands
9500 @vindex nntp-record-commands
9501 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
9502 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestep) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
9503 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
9504 that doesn't seem to work.
9510 @subsection News Spool
9514 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
9515 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
9516 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
9519 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
9520 anything else) as the address.
9522 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
9523 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
9524 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
9525 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
9529 @item nnspool-inews-program
9530 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
9531 Program used to post an article.
9533 @item nnspool-inews-switches
9534 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
9535 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
9537 @item nnspool-spool-directory
9538 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
9539 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
9540 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
9542 @item nnspool-nov-directory
9543 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
9544 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
9545 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
9547 @item nnspool-lib-dir
9548 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
9549 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
9551 @item nnspool-active-file
9552 @vindex nnspool-active-file
9553 The path to the active file.
9555 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
9556 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
9557 The path to the group descriptions file.
9559 @item nnspool-history-file
9560 @vindex nnspool-history-file
9561 The path to the news history file.
9563 @item nnspool-active-times-file
9564 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
9565 The path to the active date file.
9567 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
9568 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
9569 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
9572 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9573 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
9575 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
9576 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
9577 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
9583 @section Getting Mail
9584 @cindex reading mail
9587 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
9591 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
9592 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
9593 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
9594 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
9595 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
9596 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
9597 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
9598 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
9599 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
9600 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
9601 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
9605 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
9606 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
9608 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
9609 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
9610 and things will happen automatically.
9612 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
9613 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
9616 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
9617 '((nnml "private")))
9620 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
9621 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
9622 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
9623 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
9624 like any other group.
9626 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
9629 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9630 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9631 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9635 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
9636 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
9637 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
9640 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
9641 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
9642 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
9645 @node Splitting Mail
9646 @subsection Splitting Mail
9647 @cindex splitting mail
9648 @cindex mail splitting
9650 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
9651 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
9652 to be split into groups.
9655 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9656 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
9657 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
9661 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
9662 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
9663 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
9664 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
9665 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
9666 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
9667 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
9670 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
9673 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
9674 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
9675 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
9676 mail belongs in that group.
9678 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
9679 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9680 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9681 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9682 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9683 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9685 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9686 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9687 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9688 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
9689 thinks should carry this mail message.
9691 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
9692 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
9693 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
9694 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
9696 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
9697 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
9698 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
9699 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
9700 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
9702 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
9705 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
9706 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
9707 links. If that's the case for you, set
9708 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
9709 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
9711 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
9712 @kindex nnmail-split-history
9713 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
9714 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
9716 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
9717 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
9718 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
9719 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
9720 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
9721 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
9722 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
9723 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
9727 @node Mail Backend Variables
9728 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
9730 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
9734 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9735 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9736 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
9737 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
9739 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
9740 @item nnmail-spool-file
9744 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
9745 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
9746 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
9747 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
9748 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
9749 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
9750 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
9751 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
9752 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
9753 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
9754 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
9755 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
9756 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
9757 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
9758 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
9760 @code{nnmail-spool-file} can also be a list of mailboxes.
9762 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
9763 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
9766 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
9767 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
9768 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
9769 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
9770 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
9771 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
9773 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9774 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9775 @item nnmail-use-procmail
9776 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
9777 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
9778 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
9779 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
9782 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
9783 @item nnmail-crash-box
9784 When a mail backend reads a spool file, mail is first moved to this
9785 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
9786 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
9789 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
9790 @item nnmail-split-hook
9791 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
9792 @findex RFC1522 decoding
9793 @findex RFC2047 decoding
9794 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
9795 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
9796 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
9797 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
9798 in the buffer will show up in any files.
9799 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
9802 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9803 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9804 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9805 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9806 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
9807 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
9808 starting to handle the new mail) and
9809 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
9810 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
9811 default file modes the new mail files get:
9814 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9815 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
9817 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
9818 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
9821 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
9822 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
9823 This variable says where to move incoming mail to -- while processing
9824 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
9825 inhabits (e.g., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
9826 it will be used instead.
9828 @item nnmail-movemail-program
9829 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
9830 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
9831 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
9833 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
9834 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
9837 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
9838 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
9839 @cindex incoming mail files
9840 @cindex deleting incoming files
9841 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
9842 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{t} by
9845 @c This is @code{nil} by
9846 @c default for reasons of security.
9848 @c Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
9849 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
9850 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point. (Except certain versions
9851 of Red Gnus.)) By not deleting the Incoming* files, one can be sure not
9852 to lose mail -- if Gnus totally whacks out, one can always recover what
9855 You may delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
9857 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
9858 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
9859 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
9860 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
9861 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
9862 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
9863 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
9865 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
9866 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
9868 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
9870 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9871 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9872 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
9873 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
9874 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
9879 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
9880 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
9881 @cindex mail splitting
9882 @cindex fancy mail splitting
9884 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
9885 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
9886 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
9887 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
9888 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
9889 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
9891 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
9894 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
9895 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
9896 ;; from real errors.
9897 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
9899 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
9900 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
9901 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
9902 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
9903 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
9904 ;; Other mailing lists...
9905 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
9906 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
9908 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
9909 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
9913 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
9914 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
9915 the five possible split syntaxes:
9920 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
9921 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
9925 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
9926 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
9927 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
9930 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9931 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
9932 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
9933 be stored in one or more groups.
9936 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9937 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
9940 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
9941 this message. Use with extreme caution.
9944 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
9945 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
9946 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
9950 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
9954 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
9955 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
9956 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
9957 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
9958 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
9960 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
9961 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
9962 are expanded as specified by the variable
9963 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
9964 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
9967 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
9968 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
9969 when all this splitting is performed.
9971 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
9972 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
9973 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
9976 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
9979 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
9980 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
9981 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
9982 groupings 1 through 9.
9985 @node Mail and Procmail
9986 @subsection Mail and Procmail
9991 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
9992 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
9993 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
9994 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
9995 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
9997 If you have a combined @code{procmail}/POP/mailbox setup, you can do
9998 something like the following:
10000 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
10002 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
10003 (setq nnmail-spool-file
10004 '("/usr/spool/mail/my-name" "po:my-name"))
10007 This also means that you probably don't want to set
10008 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
10011 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
10012 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
10013 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends, except
10014 @code{nnmh}, actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
10015 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
10016 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
10018 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) by hand what
10021 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example:
10023 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
10024 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
10026 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
10027 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
10028 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
10029 to include all your mail groups.
10031 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
10032 method will be created automatically.
10034 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
10035 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
10036 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
10037 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
10038 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
10039 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
10040 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
10041 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
10043 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
10044 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
10045 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
10046 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
10047 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
10049 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
10050 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directly into an @code{nnmh}
10051 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
10052 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
10053 ever expiring the final article (i.e., the article with the highest
10054 article number) in a mail newsgroup. This is quite, quite important.
10056 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
10057 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i.e., the incoming
10058 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
10059 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
10060 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
10063 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
10064 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
10065 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
10066 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
10067 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
10071 @node Incorporating Old Mail
10072 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
10074 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
10075 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
10076 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
10079 Doing so can be quite easy.
10081 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
10082 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
10083 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
10084 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
10085 your @code{nnml} groups.
10091 Go to the group buffer.
10094 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
10095 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10098 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
10101 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
10102 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
10105 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
10106 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
10109 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
10110 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
10111 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
10112 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
10113 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
10115 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
10116 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
10117 using the new mail backend.
10120 @node Expiring Mail
10121 @subsection Expiring Mail
10122 @cindex article expiry
10124 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
10125 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
10126 different approach to mail reading.
10128 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
10129 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
10130 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
10131 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
10132 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
10133 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
10136 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
10137 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
10138 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
10139 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
10140 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
10141 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
10142 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
10143 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
10145 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10146 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
10147 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
10148 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
10149 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
10150 column in the summary buffer.
10152 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
10153 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
10154 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
10155 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
10158 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
10160 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
10161 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
10162 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
10165 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
10166 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
10167 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
10168 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
10169 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
10171 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
10172 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
10175 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
10176 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
10179 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
10180 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
10182 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
10183 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
10184 don't really mix very well.
10186 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
10187 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
10188 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
10189 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
10192 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
10193 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
10194 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
10195 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
10198 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10200 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
10202 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
10204 ((string= group "mail.junk")
10206 ((string= group "important")
10212 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
10213 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
10215 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
10216 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
10217 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
10220 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
10221 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
10223 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
10224 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
10225 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
10226 easier for procmail users.
10228 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
10229 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
10230 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
10231 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
10232 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
10233 caution. Even more dangerous is the
10234 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
10235 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
10236 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
10237 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
10238 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
10239 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
10240 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
10243 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
10245 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
10246 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
10247 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
10248 auto-expire turned on.
10252 @subsection Washing Mail
10253 @cindex mail washing
10254 @cindex list server brain damage
10255 @cindex incoming mail treatment
10257 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
10258 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
10259 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
10260 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
10261 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
10262 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
10264 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
10265 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
10266 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
10269 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
10270 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
10271 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
10272 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
10275 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10276 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
10277 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
10278 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
10279 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
10282 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10283 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
10284 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
10285 Emacs running on MS machines.
10289 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10290 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
10291 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
10292 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
10295 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10296 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
10297 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
10298 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
10300 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10301 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
10302 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
10303 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
10304 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
10305 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
10306 also be a list of regexp.
10308 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
10309 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
10312 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
10313 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
10316 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
10317 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
10318 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
10322 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10323 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
10324 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
10328 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
10329 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
10330 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
10337 @subsection Duplicates
10339 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
10340 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
10341 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
10342 @cindex duplicate mails
10343 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
10344 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
10345 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
10346 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
10347 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
10348 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
10349 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
10350 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
10351 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
10352 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
10353 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
10354 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
10355 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
10357 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
10358 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
10359 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
10360 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
10362 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
10365 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
10366 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
10370 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
10371 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
10372 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
10373 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
10374 (any mail "mail.misc")
10381 (setq nnmail-split-methods
10382 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
10387 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
10388 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
10389 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
10390 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
10391 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
10394 @node Not Reading Mail
10395 @subsection Not Reading Mail
10397 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
10398 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
10399 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
10401 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
10402 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
10404 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10405 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10406 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10407 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10408 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10409 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
10410 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
10411 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
10412 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
10413 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
10414 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
10416 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
10417 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
10421 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
10422 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
10424 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
10425 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
10426 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
10429 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
10430 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
10431 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
10432 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
10433 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
10437 @node Unix Mail Box
10438 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
10440 @cindex unix mail box
10442 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10443 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10444 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
10445 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
10446 which group it belongs in.
10448 Virtual server settings:
10451 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
10452 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
10453 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
10455 @item nnmbox-active-file
10456 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
10457 The name of the active file for the mail box.
10459 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
10460 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
10461 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
10467 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
10471 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10472 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10473 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
10474 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
10475 article to say which group it belongs in.
10477 Virtual server settings:
10480 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
10481 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
10482 The name of the rmail mbox file.
10484 @item nnbabyl-active-file
10485 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
10486 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
10488 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10489 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
10490 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
10495 @subsubsection Mail Spool
10497 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
10499 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
10500 format. It should be used with some caution.
10502 @vindex nnml-directory
10503 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
10504 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
10505 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
10506 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
10508 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
10511 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
10512 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
10513 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
10514 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
10515 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
10516 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
10517 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
10518 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
10520 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
10521 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
10522 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
10523 backend when it comes to reading mail.
10525 Virtual server settings:
10528 @item nnml-directory
10529 @vindex nnml-directory
10530 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
10532 @item nnml-active-file
10533 @vindex nnml-active-file
10534 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
10536 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
10537 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
10538 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
10541 @item nnml-get-new-mail
10542 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
10543 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
10545 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
10546 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
10547 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
10549 @item nnml-nov-file-name
10550 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
10551 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
10553 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10554 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
10555 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
10559 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
10560 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
10561 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
10562 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
10563 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
10564 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
10565 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
10570 @subsubsection MH Spool
10572 @cindex mh-e mail spool
10574 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
10575 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
10576 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
10577 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
10579 Virtual server settings:
10582 @item nnmh-directory
10583 @vindex nnmh-directory
10584 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
10586 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
10587 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
10588 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
10591 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
10592 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
10593 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
10594 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
10595 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
10596 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
10597 to set this variable to @code{t}.
10602 @subsubsection Mail Folders
10604 @cindex mbox folders
10605 @cindex mail folders
10607 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
10608 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
10609 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
10612 Virtual server settings:
10615 @item nnfolder-directory
10616 @vindex nnfolder-directory
10617 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
10619 @item nnfolder-active-file
10620 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
10621 The name of the active file.
10623 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10624 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
10625 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
10627 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
10628 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
10629 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
10631 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
10632 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
10633 @cindex backup files
10634 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
10635 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
10636 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
10637 your @file{.emacs} file:
10640 (defun turn-off-backup ()
10641 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
10643 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
10646 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
10647 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
10648 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
10649 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
10650 extract some information from it before removing it.
10655 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
10656 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
10657 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
10658 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
10659 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
10660 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
10663 @node Other Sources
10664 @section Other Sources
10666 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
10667 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
10671 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
10672 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
10673 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
10674 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
10675 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
10676 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
10680 @node Directory Groups
10681 @subsection Directory Groups
10683 @cindex directory groups
10685 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
10686 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
10689 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
10690 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
10691 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
10692 backend to read directories. Big deal.
10694 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
10695 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
10696 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
10697 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
10698 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
10700 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
10702 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
10703 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
10704 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
10705 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
10708 @node Anything Groups
10709 @subsection Anything Groups
10712 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
10713 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
10714 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
10717 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
10718 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
10719 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
10720 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
10721 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
10722 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
10723 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
10724 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
10725 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
10726 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
10729 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
10730 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
10731 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
10732 in the article buffer, just as usual.
10734 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
10735 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
10736 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
10737 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
10739 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
10740 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
10741 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
10742 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
10743 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
10744 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
10745 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
10746 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
10751 @item nneething-map-file-directory
10752 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
10753 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
10754 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
10756 @item nneething-exclude-files
10757 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
10758 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
10759 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
10761 @item nneething-map-file
10762 @vindex nneething-map-file
10763 Name of the map files.
10767 @node Document Groups
10768 @subsection Document Groups
10770 @cindex documentation group
10773 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
10774 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
10781 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
10786 The standard Unix mbox file.
10788 @cindex MMDF mail box
10790 The MMDF mail box format.
10793 Several news articles appended into a file.
10796 @cindex rnews batch files
10797 The rnews batch transport format.
10798 @cindex forwarded messages
10801 Forwarded articles.
10804 MIME multipart messages, besides digests.
10808 @cindex MIME digest
10809 @cindex 1153 digest
10810 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
10811 @cindex RFC 341 digest
10812 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
10814 @item standard-digest
10815 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
10818 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
10821 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
10822 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
10823 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
10826 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
10827 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
10828 group. And that's it.
10830 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
10831 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
10832 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
10833 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
10834 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
10835 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
10836 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
10837 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
10838 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
10839 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
10841 Virtual server variables:
10844 @item nndoc-article-type
10845 @vindex nndoc-article-type
10846 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
10847 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
10848 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{mime-digest},
10849 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs} or
10852 @item nndoc-post-type
10853 @vindex nndoc-post-type
10854 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
10855 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
10860 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
10864 @node Document Server Internals
10865 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
10867 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
10868 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
10869 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
10870 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
10872 First, here's an example document type definition:
10876 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
10877 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
10880 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
10881 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
10882 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
10883 types can be defined with very few settings:
10886 @item first-article
10887 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
10888 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
10891 @item article-begin
10892 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
10893 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
10895 @item head-begin-function
10896 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
10899 @item nndoc-head-begin
10900 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
10903 @item nndoc-head-end
10904 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
10905 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
10907 @item body-begin-function
10908 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
10912 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
10915 @item body-end-function
10916 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
10920 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
10923 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
10924 regexp will be totally ignored.
10928 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
10929 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
10930 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
10931 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
10932 something that's palatable for Gnus:
10935 @item prepare-body-function
10936 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
10937 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
10938 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
10940 @item article-transform-function
10941 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
10942 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
10943 body of the article.
10945 @item generate-head-function
10946 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
10947 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
10948 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
10949 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
10953 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
10958 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10959 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10960 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
10961 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
10962 (head-end . "^ ?$")
10963 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
10964 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
10965 (subtype digest guess))
10968 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
10969 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
10970 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
10971 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
10972 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
10974 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
10975 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
10976 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
10977 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
10978 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
10979 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
10980 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
10981 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
10982 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
10983 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
10991 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
10992 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
10993 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
10995 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
10996 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
10997 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
11000 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
11001 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
11002 that interested in doing things properly.
11004 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
11005 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
11008 First some terminology:
11013 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
11014 get news and/or mail from.
11017 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
11018 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
11021 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
11025 @item message packets
11026 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
11027 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
11028 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11030 @item response packets
11031 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
11032 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
11033 default, where @var{X} is a number.
11043 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
11044 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
11045 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
11046 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
11049 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
11052 You put the packet in your home directory.
11055 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
11056 the native or secondary server.
11059 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
11060 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
11063 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
11067 You transfer this packet to the server.
11070 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
11073 You then repeat until you die.
11077 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
11078 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
11081 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
11082 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
11083 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
11087 @node SOUP Commands
11088 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
11090 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
11094 @kindex G s b (Group)
11095 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
11096 Pack all unread articles in the current group
11097 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
11098 process/prefix convention.
11101 @kindex G s w (Group)
11102 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
11103 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
11106 @kindex G s s (Group)
11107 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
11108 Send all replies from the replies packet
11109 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
11112 @kindex G s p (Group)
11113 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
11114 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
11117 @kindex G s r (Group)
11118 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
11119 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
11122 @kindex O s (Summary)
11123 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
11124 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
11125 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
11126 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
11131 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
11136 @item gnus-soup-directory
11137 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
11138 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
11139 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
11141 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
11142 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
11143 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
11144 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
11146 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
11147 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
11148 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
11149 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
11151 @item gnus-soup-packer
11152 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
11153 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11154 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
11156 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
11157 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
11158 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
11159 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11161 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
11162 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
11163 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
11165 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11166 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
11167 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
11168 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
11174 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
11177 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
11178 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
11179 you can read them at leisure.
11181 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
11185 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
11186 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
11187 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
11188 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
11190 @item nnsoup-directory
11191 @vindex nnsoup-directory
11192 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
11193 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
11195 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
11196 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
11197 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
11198 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
11200 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
11201 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
11202 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
11203 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
11204 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
11206 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
11207 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
11208 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
11209 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
11211 @item nnsoup-active-file
11212 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
11213 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
11214 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
11215 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
11216 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
11218 @item nnsoup-packer
11219 @vindex nnsoup-packer
11220 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
11221 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
11223 @item nnsoup-unpacker
11224 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
11225 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
11226 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
11228 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
11229 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
11230 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
11233 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
11234 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
11235 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
11238 @item nnsoup-always-save
11239 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
11240 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
11246 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
11248 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
11249 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
11250 more for that to happen.
11252 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
11253 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
11254 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
11257 In specific, this is what it does:
11260 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
11261 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
11264 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
11265 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
11266 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
11270 @subsection Web Searches
11274 @cindex InReference
11275 @cindex Usenet searches
11276 @cindex searching the Usenet
11278 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
11279 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
11280 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
11281 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
11282 searches without having to use a browser.
11284 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
11285 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
11286 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
11287 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
11288 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
11290 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
11291 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
11292 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
11293 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
11294 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
11295 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
11296 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
11297 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
11298 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
11299 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
11302 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
11303 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
11304 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'
\e,Aj
\e(Btre} is to
11305 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
11306 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
11307 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
11309 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
11310 to use @code{nnweb}.
11312 Virtual server variables:
11317 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
11318 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
11322 @vindex nnweb-search
11323 The search string to feed to the search engine.
11325 @item nnweb-max-hits
11326 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
11327 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
11330 @item nnweb-type-definition
11331 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
11332 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
11333 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
11338 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
11342 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
11345 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
11348 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
11352 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
11359 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
11360 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
11361 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
11364 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
11365 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
11366 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
11368 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
11374 @item nngateway-address
11375 @vindex nngateway-address
11376 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
11378 @item nngateway-header-transformation
11379 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
11380 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
11381 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
11382 transformation should be called, and defaults to
11383 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
11384 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
11387 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
11388 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
11389 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
11392 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
11395 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
11398 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
11401 The following pre-defined functions exist:
11403 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11406 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
11407 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11408 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
11410 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11412 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
11413 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
11414 @code{nngateway-address}.
11419 (setq gnus-post-method
11420 '(nngateway "mail2news@@replay.com"
11421 (nngateway-header-transformation
11422 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
11430 So, to use this, simply say something like:
11433 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
11437 @node Combined Groups
11438 @section Combined Groups
11440 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
11444 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
11445 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
11449 @node Virtual Groups
11450 @subsection Virtual Groups
11452 @cindex virtual groups
11453 @cindex merging groups
11455 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
11458 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
11459 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
11460 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
11462 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
11463 regexp to match component groups.
11465 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
11466 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
11467 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
11468 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
11469 the virtual group.)
11471 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
11472 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
11475 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
11478 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
11479 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
11481 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
11482 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
11483 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
11484 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
11487 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
11490 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
11491 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
11492 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
11494 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
11495 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
11496 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
11497 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
11498 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
11500 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
11501 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
11502 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
11504 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
11505 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
11506 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
11507 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
11508 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
11509 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
11510 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
11511 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
11512 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
11513 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
11514 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
11516 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
11517 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
11518 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
11519 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
11520 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
11521 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
11522 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
11524 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
11525 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
11529 @node Kibozed Groups
11530 @subsection Kibozed Groups
11534 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
11535 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
11536 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
11537 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
11539 @kindex G k (Group)
11540 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
11543 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
11544 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
11545 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
11546 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
11548 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
11549 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
11550 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
11552 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
11553 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
11554 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
11555 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
11556 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
11557 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
11558 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
11559 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
11561 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
11562 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
11563 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
11564 Stranger things have happened.
11566 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
11567 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
11569 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
11570 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
11571 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
11572 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
11573 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
11574 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
11576 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
11577 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
11580 @node Gnus Unplugged
11581 @section Gnus Unplugged
11586 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
11588 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
11589 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
11590 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
11591 read news. Believe it or not.
11593 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
11594 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
11595 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
11596 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
11597 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
11599 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
11600 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
11601 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
11602 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
11603 reading news on a machine.
11605 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
11609 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
11610 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
11614 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
11615 @file{.gnus.el} file:
11622 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
11624 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
11627 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
11628 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
11629 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
11630 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
11631 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
11632 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
11633 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
11634 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
11635 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
11640 @subsection Agent Basics
11642 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
11644 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
11645 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
11646 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
11647 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
11649 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
11650 connected to the net continuously.
11652 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
11653 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
11655 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
11660 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
11661 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
11662 already fetched while in this mode.
11665 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
11666 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
11667 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
11670 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
11671 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
11672 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
11673 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
11676 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
11677 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
11678 then you read the news offline.
11681 And then you go to step 2.
11684 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
11690 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
11691 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
11692 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
11693 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
11694 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
11695 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
11698 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
11705 @node Agent Categories
11706 @subsection Agent Categories
11708 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
11709 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
11710 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
11711 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
11712 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
11713 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
11714 you're interested in the articles anyway.
11716 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
11717 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
11718 Gnus has its own buffer for creating and managing categories.
11721 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
11722 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
11723 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
11727 @node Category Syntax
11728 @subsubsection Category Syntax
11730 A category consists of two things.
11734 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
11735 are eligible for downloading; and
11738 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
11739 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
11740 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
11743 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
11744 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
11745 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
11746 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
11748 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
11749 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
11750 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as descibed below.
11752 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
11753 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
11754 operators sprinkled in between.
11756 Perhaps some examples are in order.
11758 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
11759 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
11765 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
11766 short (for some value of ``short'').
11768 Here's a more complex predicate:
11777 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
11778 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
11781 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
11782 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
11783 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
11785 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
11786 you want to do, you can write your own.
11790 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
11791 lines; default 100.
11794 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
11795 lines; default 200.
11798 True iff the article has a download score less than
11799 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
11802 True iff the article has a download score greater than
11803 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
11806 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
11807 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
11808 checksum and sees whether articles match.
11817 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
11818 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
11819 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
11822 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
11823 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
11824 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
11825 something along the lines of the following:
11828 (defun my-article-old-p ()
11829 "Say whether an article is old."
11830 (< (time-to-day (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
11831 (- (time-to-day (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
11834 with the predicate then defined as:
11837 (not my-article-old-p)
11840 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
11841 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
11842 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
11843 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
11846 (defvar gnus-category-predicate-alist
11847 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
11848 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
11851 and simply specify your predicate as:
11857 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
11858 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
11859 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
11860 just don't give a damm.
11863 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
11864 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
11865 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
11866 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
11867 parameters like so:
11870 (agent-predicate . short)
11873 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category
11874 default. Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this,
11875 the @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair
11878 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
11881 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
11884 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
11885 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
11886 predicate is assumed to be a list.
11889 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
11890 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
11891 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
11892 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
11893 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
11894 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
11896 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
11897 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
11898 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
11899 if it's to be specific to that group.
11901 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
11908 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
11909 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
11915 Category specification
11919 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
11925 Group Parameter specification
11928 (agent-score ("from"
11929 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
11934 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
11940 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
11947 Category specification
11950 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
11956 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
11960 Group Parameter specification
11963 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
11966 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
11971 Use @code{normal} score files
11973 If you dont want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
11974 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
11975 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
11976 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
11978 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
11979 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
11980 files for a group, *filtering out* those those sections that do not
11981 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
11985 Category Specification
11992 Group Parameter specification
11995 (agent-score . file)
12000 @node The Category Buffer
12001 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
12003 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
12004 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
12005 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
12007 The following commands are available in this buffer:
12011 @kindex q (Category)
12012 @findex gnus-category-exit
12013 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
12016 @kindex k (Category)
12017 @findex gnus-category-kill
12018 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
12021 @kindex c (Category)
12022 @findex gnus-category-copy
12023 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
12026 @kindex a (Category)
12027 @findex gnus-category-add
12028 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
12031 @kindex p (Category)
12032 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
12033 Edit the predicate of the current category
12034 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
12037 @kindex g (Category)
12038 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
12039 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
12040 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
12043 @kindex s (Category)
12044 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
12045 Edit the download score rule of the current category
12046 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
12049 @kindex l (Category)
12050 @findex gnus-category-list
12051 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
12055 @node Category Variables
12056 @subsubsection Category Variables
12059 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
12060 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
12061 Hook run in category buffers.
12063 @item gnus-category-line-format
12064 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
12065 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
12066 Variables}). Valid elements are:
12070 The name of the category.
12073 The number of groups in the category.
12076 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
12077 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
12078 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
12080 @item gnus-agent-short-article
12081 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
12082 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
12084 @item gnus-agent-long-article
12085 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
12086 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
12088 @item gnus-agent-low-score
12089 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
12090 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
12093 @item gnus-agent-high-score
12094 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
12095 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
12101 @node Agent Commands
12102 @subsection Agent Commands
12104 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
12105 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
12106 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
12110 * Group Agent Commands::
12111 * Summary Agent Commands::
12112 * Server Agent Commands::
12115 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
12116 following incantation:
12118 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12120 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
12125 @node Group Agent Commands
12126 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
12130 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
12131 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
12132 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
12133 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
12136 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
12137 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
12138 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
12141 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
12142 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
12143 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
12144 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
12147 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
12148 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
12149 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
12150 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}.
12153 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
12154 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
12155 Add the current group to an Agent category
12156 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}).
12161 @node Summary Agent Commands
12162 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
12166 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
12167 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
12168 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
12171 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
12172 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
12173 Remove the downloading mark from the article
12174 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
12177 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
12178 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
12179 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
12182 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
12183 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
12184 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
12189 @node Server Agent Commands
12190 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
12194 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
12195 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
12196 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
12197 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
12200 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
12201 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
12202 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
12203 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
12209 @subsection Agent Expiry
12211 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
12212 @findex gnus-agent-expire
12213 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
12214 @cindex Agent expiry
12215 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
12218 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
12219 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
12220 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
12221 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
12222 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
12223 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
12225 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
12226 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
12227 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
12228 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
12229 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
12232 @node Outgoing Messages
12233 @subsection Outgoing Messages
12235 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
12236 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
12237 after posting, and edit them at will.
12239 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
12240 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
12241 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
12242 messages in the draft group.
12246 @node Agent Variables
12247 @subsection Agent Variables
12250 @item gnus-agent-directory
12251 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
12252 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
12253 @file{~/News/agent/}.
12255 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
12256 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
12257 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
12258 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
12259 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
12262 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12263 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
12264 Hook run when connecting to the network.
12266 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12267 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
12268 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
12273 @node Example Setup
12274 @subsection Example Setup
12276 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
12277 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
12278 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
12281 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over NNTP
12282 ;;; from your ISP's server.
12283 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "nntp.your-isp.com"))
12285 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
12286 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
12287 (setenv "MAILHOST" "pop.your-isp.com")
12288 (setq nnmail-spool-file "po:username")
12290 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
12291 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12293 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
12297 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
12298 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
12301 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
12302 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
12303 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
12304 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
12305 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
12308 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
12309 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
12310 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
12311 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
12312 back all the killed groups.)
12314 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
12315 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
12316 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
12319 @node Batching Agents
12320 @subsection Batching Agents
12322 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
12323 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
12324 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
12328 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
12332 @node Agent Caveats
12333 @subsection Agent Caveats
12335 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
12336 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
12340 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
12345 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
12346 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
12352 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
12353 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
12360 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
12361 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
12362 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
12365 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
12366 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
12367 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
12368 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
12369 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
12371 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
12372 before generating the summary buffer.
12374 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
12375 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
12376 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
12378 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
12379 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
12380 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
12381 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
12384 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
12385 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
12386 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
12387 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
12388 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
12389 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
12390 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
12391 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
12392 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
12393 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
12394 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
12395 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
12396 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
12397 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
12398 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
12399 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
12403 @node Summary Score Commands
12404 @section Summary Score Commands
12405 @cindex score commands
12407 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
12408 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
12409 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
12410 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
12411 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
12413 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
12414 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
12415 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
12416 score file the current one.
12418 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
12423 @kindex V s (Summary)
12424 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
12425 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
12428 @kindex V S (Summary)
12429 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
12430 Display the score of the current article
12431 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
12434 @kindex V t (Summary)
12435 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
12436 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
12437 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
12440 @kindex V R (Summary)
12441 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
12442 Run the current summary through the scoring process
12443 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
12444 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
12445 effect you're having.
12448 @kindex V c (Summary)
12449 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
12450 Make a different score file the current
12451 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
12454 @kindex V e (Summary)
12455 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
12456 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
12457 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
12461 @kindex V f (Summary)
12462 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
12463 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
12464 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
12467 @kindex V F (Summary)
12468 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12469 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
12470 after editing score files.
12473 @kindex V C (Summary)
12474 @findex gnus-score-customize
12475 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
12476 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
12480 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
12485 @kindex V m (Summary)
12486 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
12487 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
12488 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
12491 @kindex V x (Summary)
12492 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
12493 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
12494 expunge all articles below this score
12495 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
12498 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
12499 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
12502 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
12503 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
12507 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
12508 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
12510 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
12511 keys are available:
12515 Score on the author name.
12518 Score on the subject line.
12521 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
12524 Score on the References line.
12530 Score on the number of lines.
12533 Score on the Message-ID.
12536 Score on followups.
12550 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
12551 what headers you are scoring on.
12563 Substring matching.
12566 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
12595 Greater than number.
12600 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
12601 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
12602 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
12606 Temporary score entry.
12609 Permanent score entry.
12612 Immediately scoring.
12617 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
12618 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
12619 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
12620 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
12622 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
12623 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
12624 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
12625 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
12626 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
12628 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
12629 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
12630 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
12631 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
12632 current score file.
12634 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
12635 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
12636 pretend they are keymaps or not.
12639 @node Group Score Commands
12640 @section Group Score Commands
12641 @cindex group score commands
12643 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
12648 @kindex W f (Group)
12649 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
12650 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
12651 all the time. This command will flush the cache
12652 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
12656 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
12658 @findex gnus-batch-score
12659 @cindex batch scoring
12661 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
12665 @node Score Variables
12666 @section Score Variables
12667 @cindex score variables
12671 @item gnus-use-scoring
12672 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
12673 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
12674 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
12676 @item gnus-kill-killed
12677 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
12678 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
12679 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
12680 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
12681 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
12682 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
12683 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
12685 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
12686 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
12687 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
12688 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
12689 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
12691 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
12692 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
12693 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
12694 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
12696 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12697 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
12698 @cindex score cache
12699 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
12700 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
12701 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
12702 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
12703 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
12704 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
12707 @item gnus-save-score
12708 @vindex gnus-save-score
12709 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
12710 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
12711 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
12713 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12714 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
12715 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
12716 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
12717 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
12718 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
12719 manually entered data.
12721 @item gnus-summary-default-score
12722 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
12723 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
12725 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
12726 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
12727 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
12728 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
12729 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
12730 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
12732 @item gnus-score-over-mark
12733 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
12734 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
12735 default. Default is @samp{+}.
12737 @item gnus-score-below-mark
12738 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
12739 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
12740 default. Default is @samp{-}.
12742 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12743 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
12744 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
12745 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
12747 Predefined functions available are:
12750 @item gnus-score-find-single
12751 @findex gnus-score-find-single
12752 Only apply the group's own score file.
12754 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
12755 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
12756 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
12757 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
12758 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
12759 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
12760 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
12761 then a regexp match is done.
12763 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
12764 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
12766 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
12767 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
12768 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
12769 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
12771 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12772 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
12773 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
12774 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
12775 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
12778 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
12779 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
12780 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
12781 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
12782 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
12783 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
12786 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
12787 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
12788 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
12789 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
12790 are expired. It's 7 by default.
12792 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12793 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
12794 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
12795 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
12796 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
12797 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
12798 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
12801 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12802 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
12803 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
12805 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
12806 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
12807 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
12808 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
12809 threading---according to the current value of
12810 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
12811 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
12812 simplified in this manner.
12817 @node Score File Format
12818 @section Score File Format
12819 @cindex score file format
12821 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
12822 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
12823 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
12825 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
12829 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
12831 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
12833 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
12835 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
12840 (mark-and-expunge -10)
12844 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
12845 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
12846 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
12847 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
12851 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
12852 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
12854 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
12855 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
12856 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
12858 Six keys are supported by this alist:
12863 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
12864 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
12865 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
12866 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
12867 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
12868 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
12869 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
12870 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
12871 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
12872 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
12873 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
12874 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
12875 to articles that matches these score entries.
12877 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
12878 score entry has one to four elements.
12882 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
12883 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
12887 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
12888 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
12889 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
12890 is successful. If this element is not present, the
12891 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
12892 instead. This is 1000 by default.
12895 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
12896 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
12897 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
12898 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
12899 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
12902 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
12903 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
12904 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
12905 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
12908 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
12909 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
12910 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
12911 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
12912 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
12913 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
12914 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
12915 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
12916 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
12917 instead, if you feel like.
12920 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
12921 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
12923 These predicates are true if
12926 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
12929 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
12930 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
12937 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
12938 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
12939 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
12940 it's not. I think.)
12942 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
12943 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
12944 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
12945 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
12948 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
12949 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
12950 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
12951 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
12952 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
12953 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
12954 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
12958 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
12959 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
12960 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
12961 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
12962 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
12963 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
12964 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
12965 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
12968 @item Head, Body, All
12969 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
12973 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
12974 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
12975 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
12976 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
12977 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
12978 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
12979 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
12983 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
12984 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
12985 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
12986 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
12987 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
12988 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
12989 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
12990 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
12991 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
12992 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
12996 @cindex Score File Atoms
12998 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
12999 lower than this number will be marked as read.
13002 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13003 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
13005 @item mark-and-expunge
13006 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
13007 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
13010 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
13011 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
13012 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
13013 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
13014 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
13017 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
13018 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
13021 @item exclude-files
13022 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
13023 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
13027 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
13028 ignored when handling global score files.
13031 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
13032 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
13033 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
13034 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
13037 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
13038 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
13039 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
13040 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
13042 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
13046 (mark-and-expunge -100)
13049 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
13050 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
13051 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
13052 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
13053 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
13055 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
13056 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
13057 ordinary scoring rules.
13060 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
13061 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
13062 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
13063 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
13064 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
13065 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
13066 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13067 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
13068 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
13069 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
13070 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
13074 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
13075 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
13076 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
13077 file for a number of groups.
13080 @cindex local variables
13081 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
13082 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
13083 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
13084 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
13085 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
13089 @node Score File Editing
13090 @section Score File Editing
13092 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
13093 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
13094 with a mode for that.
13096 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
13097 additional commands:
13102 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
13103 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
13104 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
13105 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
13108 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
13109 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
13110 Insert the current date in numerical format
13111 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
13112 you were wondering.
13115 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
13116 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
13117 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
13118 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
13119 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
13124 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
13126 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
13127 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
13129 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
13130 e} to begin editing score files.
13133 @node Adaptive Scoring
13134 @section Adaptive Scoring
13135 @cindex adaptive scoring
13137 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
13138 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
13139 stupidity, to be precise.
13141 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
13142 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
13143 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
13144 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
13145 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
13146 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
13147 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
13148 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
13149 variable to @code{(word line)}.
13151 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13152 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
13153 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
13154 might look something like this:
13157 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
13158 '((gnus-unread-mark)
13159 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
13160 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
13161 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
13162 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
13163 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
13164 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
13165 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
13166 (gnus-ancient-mark)
13167 (gnus-low-score-mark)
13168 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
13171 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
13172 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
13173 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
13174 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
13175 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
13176 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
13179 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
13180 will be applied to each article.
13182 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
13183 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
13184 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
13185 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
13187 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
13188 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
13189 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
13190 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
13192 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
13193 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
13194 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
13195 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
13197 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
13198 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
13199 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
13200 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
13201 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
13202 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
13204 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
13205 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
13206 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
13207 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
13208 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
13209 aspirins afterwards.)
13211 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
13212 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
13213 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
13215 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
13216 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
13217 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
13219 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
13220 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
13221 let you use different rules in different groups.
13223 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
13224 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
13225 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
13228 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
13229 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
13230 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
13231 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
13232 the length of the match is less than
13233 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
13234 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
13237 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13238 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
13239 headers. If you adapt on words, the
13240 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
13241 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
13244 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
13245 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
13246 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
13247 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
13248 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
13251 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
13252 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
13253 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
13254 score with 30 points.
13256 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
13257 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
13258 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
13259 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
13260 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
13262 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
13263 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
13264 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
13265 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
13267 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
13268 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
13269 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
13270 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
13272 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
13273 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
13274 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
13275 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
13276 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
13278 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
13279 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
13280 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
13282 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
13283 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
13284 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
13285 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
13288 @node Home Score File
13289 @section Home Score File
13291 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
13292 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
13293 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
13294 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
13296 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
13297 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
13298 could perhaps use the same home score file.
13300 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
13301 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
13306 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
13310 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
13311 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
13315 A list. The elements in this list can be:
13319 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
13320 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
13323 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
13324 the home score file.
13327 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
13330 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
13335 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
13338 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13339 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
13342 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
13343 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
13345 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
13347 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13348 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
13351 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
13352 Other functions include
13355 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
13356 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
13357 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
13358 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
13362 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
13363 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
13364 their own home score files:
13367 (setq gnus-home-score-file
13368 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
13369 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
13370 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
13371 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
13374 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
13375 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
13376 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
13377 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
13378 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
13380 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
13381 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
13382 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
13383 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
13384 precedence over this variable.
13387 @node Followups To Yourself
13388 @section Followups To Yourself
13390 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
13391 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
13392 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
13393 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
13394 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
13395 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
13399 @item gnus-score-followup-article
13400 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
13401 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
13404 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
13405 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
13406 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
13410 @vindex message-sent-hook
13411 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
13412 @code{message-sent-hook}.
13414 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
13415 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
13419 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
13420 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
13423 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
13424 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
13429 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
13433 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
13434 is system-dependent.
13438 @section Scoring Tips
13439 @cindex scoring tips
13445 @cindex scoring crossposts
13446 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
13447 the @code{Xref} header.
13449 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
13452 @item Multiple crossposts
13453 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
13454 more than, say, 3 groups:
13456 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
13459 @item Matching on the body
13460 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
13461 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
13462 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
13463 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
13464 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
13465 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
13466 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
13469 @item Marking as read
13470 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
13471 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
13472 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
13476 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
13478 @item Negated character classes
13479 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
13480 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
13481 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
13485 @node Reverse Scoring
13486 @section Reverse Scoring
13487 @cindex reverse scoring
13489 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
13490 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
13491 like this in your score file:
13495 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
13500 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
13501 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
13504 @node Global Score Files
13505 @section Global Score Files
13506 @cindex global score files
13508 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
13509 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
13510 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
13512 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
13513 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
13514 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
13516 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
13517 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
13518 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
13519 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
13520 files are applicable to which group.
13522 Say you want to use the score file
13523 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
13524 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
13527 (setq gnus-global-score-files
13528 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
13529 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
13532 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
13533 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
13534 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
13535 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
13536 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
13538 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
13539 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
13541 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
13542 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
13543 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
13544 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
13545 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
13546 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
13548 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
13554 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
13556 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
13558 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
13560 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
13561 lowered out of existence.
13563 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
13564 articles completely.
13567 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
13568 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
13569 old articles for a long time.
13572 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
13573 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
13574 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
13575 holding our breath yet?
13579 @section Kill Files
13582 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
13583 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
13584 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
13586 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
13587 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
13588 files into score files.
13590 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
13591 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
13592 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
13593 that isn't a very good idea.
13595 Normal kill files look like this:
13598 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13599 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
13603 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
13604 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
13606 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
13607 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
13610 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
13615 @kindex M-k (Summary)
13616 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
13617 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
13620 @kindex M-K (Summary)
13621 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
13622 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
13625 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
13630 @kindex M-k (Group)
13631 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
13632 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
13635 @kindex M-K (Group)
13636 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
13637 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
13640 Kill file variables:
13643 @item gnus-kill-file-name
13644 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
13645 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
13646 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
13647 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
13648 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
13649 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
13651 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13652 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
13653 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
13654 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
13657 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
13658 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
13659 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
13660 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
13661 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
13662 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
13663 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
13664 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
13665 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
13667 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13668 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
13669 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
13674 @node Converting Kill Files
13675 @section Converting Kill Files
13677 @cindex converting kill files
13679 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
13680 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
13681 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
13684 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
13685 You can fetch it from
13686 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
13688 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
13689 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
13690 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
13698 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
13699 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
13700 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
13702 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
13703 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
13704 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
13705 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
13706 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
13707 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
13708 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
13709 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
13713 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
13714 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
13715 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
13716 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
13720 @node Using GroupLens
13721 @subsection Using GroupLens
13723 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
13725 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
13726 better bit in town at the moment.
13728 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
13732 @item gnus-use-grouplens
13733 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
13734 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
13735 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
13737 @item grouplens-pseudonym
13738 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
13739 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
13740 with the Better Bit Bureau.
13742 @item grouplens-newsgroups
13743 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
13744 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
13748 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
13749 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
13750 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
13751 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
13752 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
13753 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
13756 @node Rating Articles
13757 @subsection Rating Articles
13759 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
13760 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
13761 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
13762 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
13765 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
13770 @kindex r (GroupLens)
13771 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
13772 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
13775 @kindex k (GroupLens)
13776 @findex grouplens-score-thread
13777 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
13778 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
13779 threads in rec.humor.
13783 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
13784 the score of the article you're reading.
13789 @kindex n (GroupLens)
13790 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
13791 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
13794 @kindex , (GroupLens)
13795 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
13796 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
13800 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
13801 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
13804 @node Displaying Predictions
13805 @subsection Displaying Predictions
13807 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
13808 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
13809 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
13810 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
13811 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
13813 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
13814 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
13815 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
13816 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
13817 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
13818 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
13819 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
13820 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
13821 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
13822 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
13823 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
13824 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
13825 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
13827 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
13828 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
13829 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
13830 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
13832 The following are valid values for that variable.
13835 @item prediction-spot
13836 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
13839 @item confidence-interval
13840 A numeric confidence interval.
13842 @item prediction-bar
13843 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
13845 @item confidence-bar
13846 Numerical confidence.
13848 @item confidence-spot
13849 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
13851 @item prediction-num
13852 Plain-old numeric value.
13854 @item confidence-plus-minus
13855 Prediction +/- confidence.
13860 @node GroupLens Variables
13861 @subsection GroupLens Variables
13865 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
13866 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
13867 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
13868 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
13871 @item grouplens-bbb-host
13872 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
13875 @item grouplens-bbb-port
13876 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
13878 @item grouplens-score-offset
13879 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
13880 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
13883 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
13884 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
13885 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
13890 @node Advanced Scoring
13891 @section Advanced Scoring
13893 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
13894 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
13895 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
13896 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
13897 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
13899 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
13903 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
13904 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
13905 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
13909 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
13910 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
13912 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
13913 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
13914 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
13915 non-@code{nil} value.
13917 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
13918 operator, and various match operators.
13925 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13926 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
13927 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
13932 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
13933 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
13934 then this operator will return @code{false}.
13939 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
13940 logical negation of the value of its argument.
13944 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
13945 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
13946 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
13947 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
13948 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
13949 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
13950 the ancestry you want to go.
13952 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
13953 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
13954 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
13955 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
13956 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
13959 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
13960 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
13962 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
13963 when he's talking about Gnus:
13967 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13968 ("subject" "Gnus"))
13974 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
13978 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13985 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
13986 really don't want to read what he's written:
13990 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
13991 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
13995 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
13996 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
13997 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
14004 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
14005 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
14006 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
14007 ("body" "white.*socks"))
14011 The possibilities are endless.
14014 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
14015 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
14017 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
14018 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
14019 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
14020 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
14021 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
14022 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
14023 @samp{subject}) first.
14025 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
14026 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
14037 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
14038 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
14044 ("subject" "Gnus")))
14051 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
14052 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
14057 @section Score Decays
14058 @cindex score decays
14061 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
14062 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
14063 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
14064 use them in any sensible way.
14066 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
14067 @findex gnus-decay-score
14068 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
14069 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
14070 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
14071 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
14072 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
14073 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
14074 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
14075 definition of that function:
14078 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
14080 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
14081 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
14084 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
14086 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
14088 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
14091 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
14092 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
14093 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
14094 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
14098 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
14101 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
14104 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
14108 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
14109 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
14110 the new score, which should be an integer.
14112 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
14113 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
14120 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
14121 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
14122 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
14123 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
14124 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
14125 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
14126 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
14127 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
14128 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
14129 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
14130 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
14131 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
14132 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
14133 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
14134 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
14135 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
14136 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
14137 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
14141 @node Process/Prefix
14142 @section Process/Prefix
14143 @cindex process/prefix convention
14145 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
14146 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
14148 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
14149 command to be performed on.
14153 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
14154 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
14155 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
14156 with the current one.
14158 @vindex transient-mark-mode
14159 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
14160 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
14162 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
14163 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
14166 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
14167 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
14169 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
14172 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
14173 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
14174 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
14175 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14177 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
14178 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
14179 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
14180 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
14181 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
14182 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
14183 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
14184 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
14188 @section Interactive
14189 @cindex interaction
14193 @item gnus-novice-user
14194 @vindex gnus-novice-user
14195 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
14196 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
14197 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
14198 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
14201 @item gnus-expert-user
14202 @vindex gnus-expert-user
14203 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
14204 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
14205 matter how strange.
14207 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
14208 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
14209 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
14210 is @code{t} by default.
14212 @item gnus-interactive-exit
14213 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
14214 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14219 @node Symbolic Prefixes
14220 @section Symbolic Prefixes
14221 @cindex symbolic prefixes
14223 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
14224 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
14225 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
14226 rule of 900 to the current article.
14228 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
14229 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
14230 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
14231 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
14232 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
14233 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
14234 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
14236 @kindex M-i (Summary)
14237 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
14238 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
14239 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
14240 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
14241 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
14242 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
14243 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
14244 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
14246 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
14247 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
14248 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
14250 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
14254 @node Formatting Variables
14255 @section Formatting Variables
14256 @cindex formatting variables
14258 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
14259 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
14260 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
14261 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
14262 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
14265 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
14266 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
14267 lots of percentages everywhere.
14270 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
14271 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
14272 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
14273 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
14274 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
14277 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
14278 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
14279 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
14280 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
14281 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
14282 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
14283 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
14284 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
14286 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
14287 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
14289 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
14290 @findex gnus-update-format
14291 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
14292 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
14293 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
14294 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
14298 @node Formatting Basics
14299 @subsection Formatting Basics
14301 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
14302 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
14303 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
14305 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
14306 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
14307 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
14308 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
14309 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
14312 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
14313 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
14314 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
14315 less than 4 characters wide.
14318 @node Mode Line Formatting
14319 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
14321 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
14322 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
14323 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
14324 with the following two differences:
14329 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
14332 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
14333 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
14334 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
14335 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
14336 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
14337 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
14338 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
14343 @node Advanced Formatting
14344 @subsection Advanced Formatting
14346 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
14347 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
14348 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
14349 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
14351 These are the valid modifiers:
14356 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
14360 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
14365 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
14368 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
14373 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
14376 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
14379 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
14382 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
14386 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
14387 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
14388 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
14389 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
14390 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
14391 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
14392 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
14394 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
14395 last operation, padding.
14397 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
14398 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
14399 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
14400 @xref{Compilation}.
14403 @node User-Defined Specs
14404 @subsection User-Defined Specs
14406 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
14407 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
14408 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
14409 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
14410 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
14411 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
14412 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
14413 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
14414 should protect against that.
14416 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
14417 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
14418 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
14419 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
14423 @node Formatting Fonts
14424 @subsection Formatting Fonts
14426 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
14427 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
14428 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
14429 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
14432 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
14433 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
14434 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
14435 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
14436 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
14437 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
14439 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
14440 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you say
14441 @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
14442 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or
14443 symbols naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
14444 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
14445 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
14446 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
14448 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
14451 ;; Create three face types.
14452 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
14453 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
14455 ;; We want the article count to be in
14456 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
14457 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
14458 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
14460 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
14461 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
14463 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
14464 (setq gnus-group-line-format
14465 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
14468 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
14469 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
14471 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
14472 mode-line variables.
14475 @node Windows Configuration
14476 @section Windows Configuration
14477 @cindex windows configuration
14479 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
14481 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
14482 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
14483 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
14484 @code{t} by default.
14486 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
14487 glitches. Use at your own peril.
14489 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
14490 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
14491 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
14494 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
14495 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
14496 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
14500 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
14501 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
14502 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
14503 possible names is listed below.
14505 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
14506 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
14509 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
14513 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
14514 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
14515 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
14516 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
14517 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
14518 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
14519 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
14520 size spec per split.
14522 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
14523 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
14524 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
14525 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
14526 present) gets focus.
14528 Here's a more complicated example:
14531 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
14532 (summary 0.25 point)
14533 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
14537 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
14538 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
14539 occupy, not a percentage.
14541 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
14542 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
14543 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
14544 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
14545 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
14548 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
14551 (article (horizontal 1.0
14556 (summary 0.25 point)
14561 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
14562 @code{horizontal} thingie?
14564 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
14565 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
14566 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
14567 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
14568 the screen is to be given to this strip.
14570 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
14571 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
14572 lines from the splits.
14574 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
14578 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
14579 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
14580 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
14581 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
14582 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
14583 size = number | frame-params
14584 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
14587 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
14588 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
14589 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
14590 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
14592 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
14593 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
14594 @cindex window height
14595 @cindex window width
14596 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
14597 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
14598 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
14599 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
14600 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
14601 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
14603 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
14604 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
14605 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
14606 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
14608 @findex gnus-configure-frame
14609 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
14610 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
14611 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
14612 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
14613 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
14614 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
14615 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
14616 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
14617 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
14618 configuration list.
14621 (gnus-configure-frame
14625 (article 0.3 point))
14633 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
14634 @code{frame} split:
14637 (gnus-configure-frame
14640 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
14642 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
14643 (user-position . t)
14644 (left . -1) (top . 1))
14649 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
14650 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
14651 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
14652 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
14653 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
14654 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
14655 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
14656 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
14659 Here's a list of all possible keys for
14660 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
14662 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
14663 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
14664 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
14665 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
14666 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft}, @code{pipe},
14667 @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}, and @code{score-trace}.
14669 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
14670 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
14671 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
14675 (message (horizontal 1.0
14676 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
14678 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
14683 @findex gnus-add-configuration
14684 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
14685 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
14686 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
14687 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
14690 (gnus-add-configuration
14691 '(article (vertical 1.0
14693 (summary .25 point)
14697 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
14698 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
14699 Gnus has been loaded.
14701 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
14702 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
14703 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
14704 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
14705 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
14707 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
14708 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
14709 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
14713 @node Faces and Fonts
14714 @section Faces and Fonts
14719 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
14720 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
14721 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
14726 @section Compilation
14727 @cindex compilation
14728 @cindex byte-compilation
14730 @findex gnus-compile
14732 Remember all those line format specification variables?
14733 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
14734 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
14735 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
14736 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
14737 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
14740 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
14741 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
14742 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
14743 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
14744 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
14745 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
14746 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
14750 @section Mode Lines
14753 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
14754 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
14755 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
14756 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
14757 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
14758 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
14759 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
14762 @cindex display-time
14764 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
14765 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
14766 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
14767 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
14768 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
14769 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
14770 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
14771 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
14774 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
14776 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
14777 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
14779 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
14780 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
14781 (length display-time-string)))))
14784 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
14785 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
14786 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
14787 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
14788 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
14791 @node Highlighting and Menus
14792 @section Highlighting and Menus
14794 @cindex highlighting
14797 @vindex gnus-visual
14798 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
14799 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
14800 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
14803 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
14804 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
14807 @item group-highlight
14808 Do highlights in the group buffer.
14809 @item summary-highlight
14810 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
14811 @item article-highlight
14812 Do highlights according to @code{gnus-article-display-hook} in the
14815 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
14817 Create menus in the group buffer.
14819 Create menus in the summary buffers.
14821 Create menus in the article buffer.
14823 Create menus in the browse buffer.
14825 Create menus in the server buffer.
14827 Create menus in the score buffers.
14829 Create menus in all buffers.
14832 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
14833 buffers, you could say something like:
14836 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
14839 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
14842 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
14845 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
14846 in all Gnus buffers.
14848 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
14851 @item gnus-mouse-face
14852 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
14853 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
14854 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
14858 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
14862 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
14863 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
14864 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
14866 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
14867 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
14868 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
14870 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
14871 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
14872 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
14874 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
14875 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
14876 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
14878 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
14879 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
14880 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
14882 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
14883 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
14884 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
14895 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
14896 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
14897 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
14898 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
14899 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
14903 @vindex gnus-carpal
14904 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
14905 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
14906 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
14911 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14912 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
14913 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
14915 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
14916 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
14917 Face used on buttons.
14919 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
14920 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
14921 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
14923 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14924 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
14925 Buttons in the group buffer.
14927 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14928 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
14929 Buttons in the summary buffer.
14931 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14932 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
14933 Buttons in the server buffer.
14935 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14936 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
14937 Buttons in the browse buffer.
14940 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
14941 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
14942 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
14950 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
14951 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
14952 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
14953 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
14954 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
14956 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
14957 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
14958 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
14960 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
14961 been idle for thirty minutes:
14964 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
14967 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
14971 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
14974 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
14975 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
14976 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14978 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
14979 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
14980 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
14981 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
14983 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
14984 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
14985 @var{idle} minutes.
14987 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
14988 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
14991 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
14992 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
14993 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
14995 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
14996 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
14997 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
14998 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
15000 @vindex gnus-use-demon
15001 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
15002 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
15004 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
15005 your @file{.gnus} file:
15007 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
15009 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
15012 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
15013 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
15014 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
15015 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
15016 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
15017 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
15018 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
15019 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
15020 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
15021 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
15022 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
15024 @findex gnus-demon-init
15025 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
15026 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
15027 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
15028 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
15029 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
15031 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
15032 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
15033 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
15042 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
15043 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
15045 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
15046 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
15047 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
15048 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
15051 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
15052 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
15053 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
15054 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
15056 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
15057 this will make spam disappear.
15059 There are some variables to customize, of course:
15062 @item gnus-use-nocem
15063 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
15064 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
15067 @item gnus-nocem-groups
15068 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
15069 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
15070 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
15071 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
15073 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
15074 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
15075 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
15076 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
15077 "rbraver@@ohww.norman.ok.us" "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca"
15078 "jem@@xpat.com" "snowhare@@xmission.com" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
15079 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
15081 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
15084 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
15085 @cindex Chris Lewis
15086 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
15087 usenet abuse than anybody else.
15090 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
15091 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
15092 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
15094 @item jem@@xpat.com;
15096 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
15099 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
15100 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
15101 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
15104 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
15105 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
15106 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
15107 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
15108 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
15109 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
15110 @var{(issuer conditions ...)} elements in the list. Each condition is
15111 either a string (which is a regexp that matches types you want to use)
15112 or a list on the form @code{(not STRING)}, where @var{string} is a
15113 regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
15115 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
15116 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
15119 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
15122 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
15123 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
15126 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
15129 The specs are applied left-to-right.
15132 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
15133 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
15135 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
15136 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
15137 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
15138 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
15140 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
15141 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
15144 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
15146 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
15154 This might be dangerous, though.
15156 @item gnus-nocem-directory
15157 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
15158 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
15159 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
15161 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15162 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
15163 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
15164 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
15165 might then see old spam.
15169 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
15170 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
15171 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
15172 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
15179 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
15180 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
15181 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
15183 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
15184 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
15185 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
15186 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
15187 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
15188 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
15189 @code{undo} function.
15191 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
15192 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
15193 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
15194 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
15195 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
15196 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
15197 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
15198 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
15199 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
15200 never be totally undoable.
15202 @findex gnus-undo-mode
15203 @vindex gnus-use-undo
15205 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
15206 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
15207 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
15208 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
15213 @section Moderation
15216 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
15217 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
15218 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
15221 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
15225 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
15228 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
15230 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
15235 You split your incoming mail by matching on
15236 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
15237 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
15240 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
15241 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
15244 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
15245 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
15249 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
15252 (setq gnus-moderated-list
15253 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
15257 @node XEmacs Enhancements
15258 @section XEmacs Enhancements
15261 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
15265 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
15266 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
15267 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
15268 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
15281 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
15282 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
15283 over your shoulder as you read news.
15286 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
15287 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
15288 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
15289 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
15290 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
15295 @subsubsection Picon Basics
15297 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
15306 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
15307 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
15308 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
15309 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
15310 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
15311 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
15312 @code{GIF} formats.
15315 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15316 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
15317 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
15318 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
15319 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
15321 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15322 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
15323 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
15324 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
15325 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
15326 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
15329 @node Picon Requirements
15330 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
15332 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
15333 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
15336 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
15337 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
15338 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
15340 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15341 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
15342 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
15343 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
15344 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
15348 @subsubsection Easy Picons
15350 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
15351 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
15354 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
15355 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
15356 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
15357 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
15358 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
15361 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
15362 containing the Picons databases.
15364 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
15367 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15368 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
15373 @subsubsection Hard Picons
15381 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
15382 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
15383 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
15384 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
15385 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
15390 @item gnus-picons-database
15391 @vindex gnus-picons-database
15392 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
15393 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
15394 subdirectories. This is only useful if
15395 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
15396 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
15398 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15399 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
15400 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
15401 engine is @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
15402 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
15403 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
15404 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
15406 @item gnus-picons-display-where
15407 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
15408 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
15409 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
15410 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
15411 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
15412 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
15413 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
15415 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
15416 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
15417 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
15422 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
15423 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
15425 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
15426 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
15429 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
15430 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
15432 @item gnus-article-display-picons
15433 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
15434 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
15435 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to the
15436 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
15438 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
15439 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
15440 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
15441 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
15445 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
15446 for the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
15449 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
15453 @node Picon Useless Configuration
15454 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
15462 The following variables offer further control over how things are
15463 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
15464 don't need to worry about.
15468 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
15469 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
15470 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
15471 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
15473 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
15474 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
15475 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
15476 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
15478 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
15479 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
15480 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
15481 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
15482 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
15484 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15485 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
15486 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
15487 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
15488 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
15489 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
15490 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
15492 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
15493 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
15494 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
15495 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
15497 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
15498 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
15499 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
15500 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
15501 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
15502 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
15503 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
15505 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
15506 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
15507 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
15508 Defaults to @code{nil}.
15510 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
15511 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
15512 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
15513 Defaults to @code{t}.
15515 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
15516 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
15517 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
15518 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
15520 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
15521 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
15522 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
15523 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
15525 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
15526 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
15527 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
15528 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
15529 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
15530 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
15531 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
15532 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
15543 @subsection Smileys
15548 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
15553 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
15554 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
15556 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
15557 @file{.gnus.el} file:
15560 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-smiley-display t)
15563 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
15564 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
15565 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
15566 text and maps that to file names.
15568 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
15569 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
15570 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
15571 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
15572 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
15573 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
15575 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
15576 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
15578 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
15579 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
15580 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
15582 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
15583 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
15587 @item smiley-data-directory
15588 @vindex smiley-data-directory
15589 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
15591 @item smiley-flesh-color
15592 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
15593 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
15595 @item smiley-features-color
15596 @vindex smiley-features-color
15597 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15599 @item smiley-tongue-color
15600 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
15601 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
15603 @item smiley-circle-color
15604 @vindex smiley-circle-color
15605 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
15607 @item smiley-mouse-face
15608 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
15609 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
15615 @subsection Toolbar
15625 @item gnus-use-toolbar
15626 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
15627 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
15628 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
15629 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
15631 @item gnus-group-toolbar
15632 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
15633 The toolbar in the group buffer.
15635 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
15636 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
15637 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
15639 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15640 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
15641 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
15647 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
15650 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15651 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
15652 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
15653 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
15654 unusual directory structure.
15656 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15657 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
15658 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
15659 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
15661 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15662 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
15663 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
15664 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
15665 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
15666 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
15668 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15669 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
15670 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
15684 @node Fuzzy Matching
15685 @section Fuzzy Matching
15686 @cindex fuzzy matching
15688 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
15689 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
15691 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
15692 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
15693 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
15695 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
15696 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
15697 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
15698 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
15699 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
15702 @node Thwarting Email Spam
15703 @section Thwarting Email Spam
15707 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
15709 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
15710 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
15711 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
15712 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
15713 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
15714 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
15715 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
15716 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
15719 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
15720 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
15721 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
15722 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
15723 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
15724 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
15728 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
15729 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
15731 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
15732 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
15733 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
15734 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
15735 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
15736 part of the mail address.)
15739 (setq message-default-news-headers
15740 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
15743 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
15744 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
15749 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
15750 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
15751 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
15757 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
15758 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
15759 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
15760 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
15762 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
15763 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
15764 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
15765 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
15766 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
15767 your fancy split rule in this way:
15772 (to "larsi" "misc")
15776 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
15777 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
15778 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
15779 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
15780 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
15782 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
15783 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
15784 at @* @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
15785 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
15786 cosmic balance somewhat.
15788 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
15789 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
15790 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
15791 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
15794 @node Various Various
15795 @section Various Various
15801 @item gnus-home-directory
15802 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
15803 defaults to @file{~/}.
15805 @item gnus-directory
15806 @vindex gnus-directory
15807 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
15808 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
15809 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
15811 Note that gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
15812 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
15813 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
15814 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
15816 @item gnus-default-directory
15817 @vindex gnus-default-directory
15818 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
15819 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
15820 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
15821 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15822 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
15823 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
15826 @vindex gnus-verbose
15827 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
15828 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
15829 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
15830 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
15831 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
15833 @item gnus-verbose-backends
15834 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
15835 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
15836 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
15838 @item nnheader-max-head-length
15839 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
15840 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
15841 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
15842 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
15843 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
15844 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
15845 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
15846 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
15847 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
15849 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
15850 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
15851 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
15852 read when doing the operation described above.
15854 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15855 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15857 @cindex invalid characters in file names
15858 @cindex characters in file names
15859 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
15860 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
15861 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
15864 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
15868 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
15869 Windows (phooey) systems.
15871 @item gnus-hidden-properties
15872 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
15873 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
15874 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
15875 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
15877 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
15878 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
15879 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
15880 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
15881 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
15883 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
15884 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
15885 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
15894 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
15895 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
15897 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
15899 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
15905 Not because of victories @*
15908 but for the common sunshine,@*
15910 the largess of the spring.
15914 but for the day's work done@*
15915 as well as I was able;@*
15916 not for a seat upon the dais@*
15917 but at the common table.@*
15922 @chapter Appendices
15925 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
15926 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
15927 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
15928 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
15929 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
15930 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
15931 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
15939 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
15940 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
15942 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
15943 can point your (feh!) web browser to
15944 @file{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
15945 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
15946 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
15948 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
15949 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
15950 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
15951 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
15952 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
15953 appropriate name, don't you think?)
15955 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
15956 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
15957 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
15958 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
15960 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
15961 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
15962 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
15964 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
15965 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
15967 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
15968 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
15970 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37
15971 releases. If was released as ``Gnus 5.6 on March 8th 1998.
15973 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
15974 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
15975 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
15976 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
15977 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
15981 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
15982 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
15983 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
15984 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
15985 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
15986 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
15987 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
15994 What's the point of Gnus?
15996 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
15997 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
15998 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
15999 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
16000 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
16001 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
16002 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
16003 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
16004 keep track of millions of people who post?
16006 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
16007 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
16008 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
16009 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
16010 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
16011 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
16012 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
16013 every one of you to explore and invent.
16015 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
16016 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
16019 @node Compatibility
16020 @subsection Compatibility
16022 @cindex compatibility
16023 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
16024 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
16025 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
16030 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
16034 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
16037 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
16040 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
16041 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
16042 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
16043 important variables have their values copied into their global
16044 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
16045 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
16047 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
16048 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
16049 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
16050 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
16051 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
16055 @cindex highlighting
16056 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
16057 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
16058 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
16059 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
16060 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
16061 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
16064 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
16065 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
16066 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
16067 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
16069 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
16070 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
16071 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
16072 to stop doing it the old way.
16074 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
16076 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
16078 @cindex reporting bugs
16080 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
16081 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
16082 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
16084 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
16085 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
16086 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
16087 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
16092 @subsection Conformity
16094 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
16095 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
16102 There are no known breaches of this standard.
16106 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
16108 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
16109 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
16110 We do have some breaches to this one.
16115 Gnus does not yet fully handle MIME, and this standard-to-be seems to
16116 think that MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
16119 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
16120 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
16121 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
16122 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
16123 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
16128 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
16129 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
16130 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
16131 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
16135 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
16136 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
16141 @subsection Emacsen
16147 Gnus should work on :
16155 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
16159 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
16160 reliably, at least.
16162 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
16163 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
16164 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
16169 @subsection Contributors
16170 @cindex contributors
16172 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
16173 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
16174 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
16175 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
16176 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
16177 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
16178 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
16179 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
16180 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
16181 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
16183 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
16189 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
16192 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
16193 well as numerous other things).
16196 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
16199 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
16202 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el and many other things
16203 connected with @sc{mime} and other types of en/decoding.
16206 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
16207 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
16210 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
16213 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
16214 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16217 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
16220 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
16223 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
16226 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
16229 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
16230 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
16233 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
16236 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
16239 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
16242 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
16246 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
16249 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
16252 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
16255 Fran
\e,Ag
\e(Bois Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
16256 well as autoconf support.
16260 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
16261 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
16263 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
16268 David K
\e,Ae
\e(Bgedal,
16272 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
16276 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
16298 Massimo Campostrini,
16306 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
16312 Michael Welsh Duggan,
16315 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
16319 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
16326 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
16328 Michelangelo Grigni,
16331 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
16333 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
16335 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
16340 Fran
\e,Ag
\e(Bois Felix Ingrand,
16341 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
16343 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
16352 Peter Skov Knudsen,
16353 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
16354 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
16355 Thor Kristoffersen,
16358 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
16375 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
16376 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
16383 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
16387 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
16390 John McClary Prevost,
16396 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
16401 Christian von Roques,
16403 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
16410 Philippe Schnoebelen,
16412 Randal L. Schwartz,
16442 Katsumi Yamaoka, @c Yamaoka.
16444 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
16445 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
16446 (550kB and counting).
16448 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
16451 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
16452 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
16456 @subsection New Features
16457 @cindex new features
16460 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
16461 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
16462 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
16463 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
16466 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
16467 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
16468 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
16472 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
16474 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
16479 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
16480 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
16483 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
16484 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
16487 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
16490 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
16491 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
16492 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
16495 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
16496 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
16497 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
16498 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
16501 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
16502 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16505 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
16506 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
16507 (@pxref{The Active File}).
16510 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
16511 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
16514 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
16515 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
16516 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
16519 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
16520 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
16521 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
16524 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
16525 the @file{.emacs} file.
16528 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
16529 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16532 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
16533 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
16536 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
16537 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16540 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
16541 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
16544 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
16545 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
16548 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
16551 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
16552 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
16555 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
16556 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
16559 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
16560 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
16563 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
16566 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
16567 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
16570 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
16574 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
16578 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
16579 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
16582 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
16588 @node September Gnus
16589 @subsubsection September Gnus
16593 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
16597 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
16602 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
16603 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
16607 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
16608 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
16612 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
16616 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
16617 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
16620 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
16624 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
16627 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
16630 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
16633 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
16637 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
16638 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
16641 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
16645 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
16649 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
16653 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
16657 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
16660 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
16661 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
16664 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
16668 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
16669 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
16672 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
16675 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
16676 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
16677 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
16680 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
16684 The Gnus cache is much faster.
16687 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
16691 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
16692 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
16695 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
16696 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
16699 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
16700 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
16703 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
16704 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
16705 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
16708 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
16709 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
16712 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
16715 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16718 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16719 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
16723 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
16726 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
16729 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
16730 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
16733 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
16737 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
16740 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
16745 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
16748 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
16752 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
16755 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
16759 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
16762 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
16765 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
16766 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
16769 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
16770 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
16774 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
16775 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
16778 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
16782 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
16783 buffer to allow easier treatment.
16786 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
16789 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
16793 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
16797 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
16798 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
16801 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
16805 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
16806 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
16809 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
16810 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16813 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
16817 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
16820 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16821 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
16825 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
16828 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
16834 @subsubsection Red Gnus
16836 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
16840 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
16847 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
16850 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
16851 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
16854 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
16855 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
16859 Article washing status can be displayed in the
16860 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
16863 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
16866 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
16867 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
16870 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
16874 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
16875 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
16879 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
16880 Server Internals}).
16883 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
16887 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
16890 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
16891 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
16894 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
16895 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
16896 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
16899 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
16900 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16903 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
16904 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
16907 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
16911 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
16912 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16915 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
16916 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
16919 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
16923 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
16926 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
16930 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
16931 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
16934 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
16935 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
16938 A new command for reading collections of documents
16939 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
16940 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
16943 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
16947 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
16948 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
16951 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
16952 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
16953 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
16956 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
16957 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
16961 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
16965 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
16969 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
16974 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
16978 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
16982 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
16983 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
16986 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
16989 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
16990 'gnus-article-emphasize)
16997 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
16999 New features in Gnus 5.6:
17004 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
17005 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
17006 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
17009 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
17010 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
17011 group, which is created automatically.
17014 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
17018 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
17021 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
17022 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
17025 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
17029 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
17032 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
17033 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
17036 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
17039 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
17040 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
17043 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
17044 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
17047 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
17048 control over simplification.
17051 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
17054 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
17058 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
17061 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
17064 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
17065 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
17066 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
17069 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
17070 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
17073 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
17077 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
17078 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
17081 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
17082 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
17085 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
17089 A history of where mails have been split is available.
17092 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
17095 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
17096 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
17099 A new function for citing in Message has been
17100 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
17103 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
17106 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
17110 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
17111 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
17114 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
17115 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
17118 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
17121 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
17126 @node Newest Features
17127 @subsection Newest Features
17130 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
17133 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
17135 (That a feature appears in this list doesn't necessarily mean that I've
17136 decided to actually implement it. It just means that I think it sounds
17139 (Yes, this is the actual, up-to-the-second todo list.)
17144 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
17147 Really do unbinhexing.
17150 I would like the zombie-page to contain an URL to the source of the
17151 latest version of gnus or some explanation on where to find it.
17154 A way to continue editing the latest Message composition.
17157 http://www.sonicnet.com/feature/ari3/
17160 facep is not declared.
17163 Include a section in the manual on why the number of articles
17164 isn't the same in the group buffer and on the SPC prompt.
17167 Interacting with rmail fcc isn't easy.
17172 <URL:http://www.falch.no/people/pepper/DSSSL-Lite/archives/>
17173 <URL:http://www.eit.com/software/hypermail/hypermail.html>
17174 <URL:http://homer.ncm.com/>
17175 <URL:http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/World_Wide_Web/HTML_Converters/>
17176 http://www.uwsg.indiana.edu/hypermail/linux/kernel/9610/index.html
17177 <URL:http://union.ncsa.uiuc.edu/HyperNews/get/www/html/converters.html>
17178 http://www.miranova.com/gnus-list/
17183 @samp{^-- } is made into - in LaTeX.
17186 gnus-kill is much slower than it was in GNUS 4.1.3.
17189 when expunging articles on low score, the sparse nodes keep hanging on?
17191 starting the first time seems to hang Gnus on some systems. Does
17192 NEWGROUPS answer too fast?
17194 nndir doesn't read gzipped files.
17196 FAQ doesn't have an up node?
17198 when moving mail from a procmail spool to the crash-box,
17199 the crash-box is only appropriate to one specific group.
17201 `t' `t' makes X-Faces disappear.
17203 nnmh-be-safe means that crossposted articles will
17204 be marked as unread.
17206 Orphan score entries don't show on "V t" score trace
17208 when clearing out data, the cache data should also be reset.
17210 rewrite gnus-summary-limit-children to be non-recursive
17211 to avoid exceeding lisp nesting on huge groups.
17213 expunged articles are counted when computing scores.
17215 implement gnus-batch-brew-soup
17217 ticked articles aren't easy to read in pick mode -- `n' and
17218 stuff just skips past them. Read articles are the same.
17220 topics that contain just groups with ticked
17221 articles aren't displayed.
17223 nndoc should always allocate unique Message-IDs.
17225 If there are mail groups the first time you use Gnus, Gnus'll
17226 make the mail groups killed.
17228 no "no news is good news" when using topics.
17230 when doing crosspost marking, the cache has to be consulted
17231 and articles have to be removed.
17233 nnweb should fetch complete articles when they are split into several
17236 scoring on head immediate doesn't work.
17238 finding short score file names takes forever.
17240 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17242 nntp-open-rlogin no longer works.
17244 C-u C-x C-s (Summary) switches to the group buffer.
17246 move nnmail-split-history out to the backends.
17248 nnweb doesn't work properly.
17250 using a virtual server name as `gnus-select-method' doesn't work?
17252 when killing/yanking a group from one topic to another in a slave, the
17253 master will yank it first to one topic and then add it to another.
17257 warn user about `=' redirection of a group in the active file?
17259 really unbinhex binhex files.
17261 take over the XEmacs menubar and offer a toggle between the XEmacs
17262 bar and the Gnus bar.
17265 push active file and NOV file parsing down into C code.
17266 `(canonize-message-id id)'
17267 `(mail-parent-message-id references n)'
17268 `(parse-news-nov-line &optional dependency-hashtb)'
17269 `(parse-news-nov-region beg end &optional dependency-hashtb fullp)'
17270 `(parse-news-active-region beg end hashtb)'
17275 nnml .overview directory with splits.
17279 postponed commands.
17281 the selected article show have its Subject displayed in its summary line.
17283 when entering groups, get the real number of unread articles from
17286 sort after gathering threads -- make false roots have the
17287 headers of the oldest orphan with a 0 article number?
17289 nndoc groups should inherit the score files of their parents? Also
17290 inherit copy prompts and save files.
17292 command to start up Gnus (if not running) and enter a mail mode buffer.
17294 allow editing the group description from the group buffer
17295 for backends that support that.
17297 gnus-hide,show-all-topics
17299 groups and sub-topics should be allowed to mingle inside each topic,
17300 and not just list all subtopics at the end.
17302 a command to remove all read articles that are not needed to connect
17303 threads -- `gnus-summary-limit-to-sparse-unread'?
17305 a variable to turn off limiting/cutting of threads in the tree buffer.
17307 a variable to limit how many files are uudecoded.
17309 add zombie groups to a special "New Groups" topic.
17311 server mode command: close/open all connections
17313 put a file date in gnus-score-alist and check whether the file
17314 has been changed before using it.
17316 on exit from a digest group, go to the next article in the parent group.
17318 hide (sub)threads with low score.
17320 when expiring, remove all marks from expired articles.
17322 gnus-summary-limit-to-body
17324 a regexp alist that says what level groups are to be subscribed
17325 on. Eg. -- `(("nnml:" . 1))'.
17327 easier interface to nnkiboze to create ephemeral groups that
17328 contain groups that match a regexp.
17330 allow newlines in <URL:> urls, but remove them before using
17333 If there is no From line, the mail backends should fudge one from the
17336 fuzzy simplifying should strip all non-alpha-numerical info
17337 from subject lines.
17339 gnus-soup-brew-soup-with-high-scores.
17341 nntp-ping-before-connect
17343 command to check whether NOV is evil. "list overview.fmt".
17345 when entering a group, Gnus should look through the score
17346 files very early for `local' atoms and set those local variables.
17348 message annotations.
17350 topics are always yanked before groups, and that's not good.
17352 (set-extent-property extent 'help-echo "String to display in minibuf")
17353 to display help in the minibuffer on buttons under XEmacs.
17355 allow group line format spec to say how many articles there
17360 support qmail maildir spools
17362 `run-with-idle-timer' in gnus-demon.
17364 stop using invisible text properties and start using overlays instead
17366 C-c C-f C-e to add an Expires header.
17368 go from one group to the next; everything is expunged; go to the
17369 next group instead of going to the group buffer.
17371 gnus-renumber-cache -- to renumber the cache using "low" numbers.
17373 record topic changes in the dribble buffer.
17375 `nnfolder-generate-active-file' should look at the folders it
17376 finds and generate proper active ranges.
17378 nneething-look-in-files-for-article-heads variable to control
17379 whether nneething should sniff all files in the directories.
17381 gnus-fetch-article -- start Gnus, enter group, display article
17383 gnus-dont-move-articles-to-same-group variable when respooling.
17385 when messages are crossposted between several auto-expirable groups,
17386 articles aren't properly marked as expirable.
17388 nneething should allow deletion/moving.
17390 TAB on the last button should go to the first button.
17392 if the car of an element in `mail-split-methods' is a function,
17393 and the function returns non-nil, use that as the name of the group(s) to
17396 command for listing all score files that have been applied.
17398 a command in the article buffer to return to `summary' config.
17400 `gnus-always-post-using-current-server' -- variable to override
17401 `C-c C-c' when posting.
17403 nnmail-group-spool-alist -- says where each group should use
17406 when an article is crossposted to an auto-expirable group, the article
17407 should be marker as expirable.
17409 article mode command/menu for "send region as URL to browser".
17411 on errors, jump to info nodes that explain the error. For instance,
17412 on invalid From headers, or on error messages from the nntp server.
17414 when gathering threads, make the article that has no "Re: " the parent.
17415 Also consult Date headers.
17417 a token in splits to call shrink-window-if-larger-than-buffer
17419 `1 0 A M' to do matches on the active hashtb.
17421 duplicates -- command to remove Gnus-Warning header, use the read
17422 Message-ID, delete the "original".
17424 when replying to several messages at once, put the "other" message-ids
17425 into a See-Also header.
17427 support setext: URL:http://www.bsdi.com/setext/
17429 support ProleText: <URL:http://proletext.clari.net/prole/proletext.html>
17431 when browsing a foreign server, the groups that are already subscribed
17432 should be listed as such and not as "K".
17434 generate font names dynamically.
17436 score file mode auto-alist.
17438 allow nndoc to change/add/delete things from documents. Implement
17439 methods for each format for adding an article to the document.
17441 `gnus-fetch-old-headers' `all' value to incorporate
17442 absolutely all headers there is.
17444 function like `|', but concatenate all marked articles
17445 and pipe them to the process.
17447 cache the list of killed (or active) groups in a separate file. Update
17448 the file whenever we read the active file or the list
17449 of killed groups in the .eld file reaches a certain length.
17451 function for starting to edit a file to put into
17452 the current mail group.
17454 score-find-trace should display the total score of the article.
17456 "ghettozie" -- score on Xref header and nix it out after using it
17457 to avoid marking as read in other groups it has been crossposted to.
17459 look at procmail splitting. The backends should create
17460 the groups automatically if a spool file exists for that group.
17462 function for backends to register themselves with Gnus.
17464 when replying to several process-marked articles,
17465 have all the From end up in Cc headers? Variable to toggle.
17467 command to delete a crossposted mail article from all
17468 groups it has been mailed to.
17470 `B c' and `B m' should be crosspost aware.
17472 hide-pgp should also hide PGP public key blocks.
17474 Command in the group buffer to respool process-marked groups.
17476 `gnus-summary-find-matching' should accept
17477 pseudo-"headers" like "body", "head" and "all"
17479 When buttifying <URL: > things, all white space (including
17480 newlines) should be ignored.
17482 Process-marking all groups in a topic should process-mark
17483 groups in subtopics as well.
17485 Add non-native groups to the list of killed groups when killing them.
17487 nntp-suggest-kewl-config to probe the nntp server and suggest
17490 add edit and forward secondary marks.
17492 nnml shouldn't visit its .overview files.
17494 allow customizing sorting within gathered threads.
17496 `B q' shouldn't select the current article.
17498 nnmbox should support a newsgroups file for descriptions.
17500 allow fetching mail from several pop servers.
17502 Be able to specify whether the saving commands save the original
17503 or the formatted article.
17505 a command to reparent with the child process-marked (cf. `T ^'.).
17507 I think the possibility to send a password with nntp-open-rlogin
17508 should be a feature in Red Gnus.
17510 The `Z n' command should be possible to execute from a mouse click.
17512 more limiting functions -- date, etc.
17514 be able to limit on a random header; on body; using reverse matches.
17516 a group parameter (`absofucking-total-expiry') that will make Gnus expire
17517 even unread articles.
17519 a command to print the article buffer as postscript.
17521 variable to disable password fetching when opening by nntp-open-telnet.
17523 manual: more example servers -- nntp with rlogin, telnet
17525 checking for bogus groups should clean topic alists as well.
17527 canceling articles in foreign groups.
17529 article number in folded topics isn't properly updated by
17532 Movement in the group buffer to the next unread group should go to the
17533 next closed topic with unread messages if no group can be found.
17535 Extensive info pages generated on the fly with help everywhere --
17536 in the "*Gnus edit*" buffers, for instance.
17538 Topic movement commands -- like thread movement. Up, down, forward, next.
17540 a way to tick/mark as read Gcc'd articles.
17542 a way to say that all groups within a specific topic comes
17543 from a particular server? Hm.
17545 `gnus-article-fill-if-long-lines' -- a function to fill
17546 the article buffer if there are any looong lines there.
17548 `T h' should jump to the parent topic and fold it.
17550 a command to create an ephemeral nndoc group out of a file,
17551 and then splitting it/moving it to some other group/backend.
17553 a group parameter for nnkiboze groups that says that
17554 all kibozed articles should be entered into the cache.
17556 It should also probably be possible to delimit what
17557 `gnus-jog-cache' does -- for instance, work on just some groups, or on
17558 some levels, and entering just articles that have a score higher than
17561 nnfolder should append to the folder instead of re-writing
17562 the entire folder to disk when accepting new messages.
17564 allow all backends to do the proper thing with .gz files.
17566 a backend for reading collections of babyl files nnbabylfolder?
17568 a command for making the native groups into foreign groups.
17570 server mode command for clearing read marks from all groups
17573 when following up multiple articles, include all To, Cc, etc headers
17576 a command for deciding what the total score of the current
17577 thread is. Also a way to highlight based on this.
17579 command to show and edit group scores
17581 a gnus-tree-minimize-horizontal to minimize tree buffers
17584 command to generate nnml overview file for one group.
17586 `C-u C-u a' -- prompt for many crossposted groups.
17588 keep track of which mail groups have received new articles (in this session).
17589 Be able to generate a report and perhaps do some marking in the group
17592 gnus-build-sparse-threads to a number -- build only sparse threads
17593 that are of that length.
17595 have nnmh respect mh's unseen sequence in .mh_profile.
17597 cache the newsgroups descriptions locally.
17599 asynchronous posting under nntp.
17601 be able to control word adaptive scoring from the score files.
17603 a variable to make `C-c C-c' post using the "current" select method.
17605 `limit-exclude-low-scored-articles'.
17607 if `gnus-summary-show-thread' is a number, hide threads that have
17608 a score lower than this number.
17610 split newsgroup subscription variable up into "order" and "method".
17612 buttonize ange-ftp file names.
17614 a command to make a duplicate copy of the current article
17615 so that each copy can be edited separately.
17617 nnweb should allow fetching from the local nntp server.
17619 record the sorting done in the summary buffer so that
17620 it can be repeated when limiting/regenerating the buffer.
17622 nnml-generate-nov-databses should generate for
17625 when the user does commands in the group buffer, check
17626 the modification time of the .newsrc.eld file and use
17627 ask-user-about-supersession-threat. Also warn when trying
17628 to save .newsrc.eld and it has changed.
17630 M-g on a topic will display all groups with 0 articles in
17633 command to remove all topic stuff.
17635 allow exploding incoming digests when reading incoming mail
17636 and splitting the resulting digests.
17638 nnsoup shouldn't set the `message-' variables.
17640 command to nix out all nnoo state information.
17642 nnmail-process-alist that calls functions if group names
17643 matches an alist -- before saving.
17645 use buffer-invisibility-spec everywhere for hiding text.
17647 variable to activate each group before entering them
17648 to get the (new) number of articles. `gnus-activate-before-entering'.
17650 command to fetch a Message-ID from any buffer, even
17651 starting Gnus first if necessary.
17653 when posting and checking whether a group exists or not, just
17654 ask the nntp server instead of relying on the active hashtb.
17656 buttonize the output of `C-c C-a' in an apropos-like way.
17658 `G p' should understand process/prefix, and allow editing
17659 of several groups at once.
17661 command to create an ephemeral nnvirtual group that
17662 matches some regexp(s).
17664 nndoc should understand "Content-Type: message/rfc822" forwarded messages.
17666 it should be possible to score "thread" on the From header.
17668 hitting RET on a "gnus-uu-archive" pseudo article should unpack it.
17670 `B i' should display the article at once in the summary buffer.
17672 remove the "*" mark at once when unticking an article.
17674 `M-s' should highlight the matching text.
17676 when checking for duplicated mails, use Resent-Message-ID if present.
17678 killing and yanking groups in topics should be better. If killing one copy
17679 of a group that exists in multiple topics, only that copy should
17680 be removed. Yanking should insert the copy, and yanking topics
17681 should be possible to be interspersed with the other yankings.
17683 command for enter a group just to read the cached articles. A way to say
17684 "ignore the nntp connection; just read from the cache."
17686 `X u' should decode base64 articles.
17688 a way to hide all "inner" cited text, leaving just the most
17689 recently cited text.
17691 nnvirtual should be asynchronous.
17693 after editing an article, gnus-original-article-buffer should
17696 there should probably be a way to make Gnus not connect to the
17697 server and just read the articles in the server
17699 allow a `set-default' (or something) to change the default
17700 value of nnoo variables.
17702 a command to import group infos from a .newsrc.eld file.
17704 groups from secondary servers have the entire select method
17705 listed in each group info.
17707 a command for just switching from the summary buffer to the group
17710 a way to specify that some incoming mail washing functions
17711 should only be applied to some groups.
17713 Message `C-f C-t' should ask the user whether to heed
17714 mail-copies-to: never.
17716 new group parameter -- `post-to-server' that says to post
17717 using the current server. Also a variable to do the same.
17719 the slave dribble files should auto-save to the slave file names.
17721 a group parameter that says what articles to display on group entry, based
17724 a way to visually distinguish slave Gnusae from masters. (Whip instead
17727 Use DJ Bernstein "From " quoting/dequoting, where applicable.
17729 Why is hide-citation-maybe and hide-citation different? Also
17732 group user-defined meta-parameters.
17736 From: John Griffith <griffith@@sfs.nphil.uni-tuebingen.de>
17738 I like the option for trying to retrieve the FAQ for a group and I was
17739 thinking it would be great if for those newsgroups that had archives
17740 you could also try to read the archive for that group. Part of the
17741 problem is that archives are spread all over the net, unlike FAQs.
17742 What would be best I suppose is to find the one closest to your site.
17744 In any case, there is a list of general news group archives at @*
17745 ftp://ftp.neosoft.com/pub/users/claird/news.lists/newsgroup_archives.html
17752 From: Jason L Tibbitts III <tibbs@@hpc.uh.edu>
17753 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
17755 (gnus-group-add-parameter group
17756 (cons 'gnus-group-date-last-entered (list (current-time-string))))))
17758 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
17759 "Return the date the group was last read."
17760 (cond ((car (gnus-group-get-parameter gnus-tmp-group 'gnus-group-date-last-entered)))
17765 tanken var at n
\e,Ae
\e(Br du bruker `gnus-startup-file' som prefix (FOO) til ilete
17766 opp en fil FOO-SERVER, FOO-SERVER.el, FOO-SERVER.eld, kan du la den v
\e,Af
\e(Bre en
17767 liste hvor du bruker hvert element i listen som FOO, istedet. da kunne man
17768 hatt forskjellige serveres startup-filer forskjellige steder.
17772 LMI> Well, nnbabyl could alter the group info to heed labels like
17773 LMI> answered and read, I guess.
17775 It could also keep them updated (the same for the Status: header of
17778 They could be used like this:
17782 `M l <name> RET' add label <name> to current message.
17783 `M u <name> RET' remove label <name> from current message.
17784 `/ l <expr> RET' limit summary buffer according to <expr>.
17786 <expr> would be a boolean expression on the labels, e.g.
17788 `/ l bug & !fixed RET'
17791 would show all the messages which are labeled `bug' but not labeled
17794 One could also imagine the labels being used for highlighting, or
17795 affect the summary line format.
17799 Sender: abraham@@dina.kvl.dk
17801 I'd like a gnus-find-file which work like find file, except that it
17802 would recognize things that looks like messages or folders:
17804 - If it is a directory containing numbered files, create an nndir
17807 - For other directories, create a nneething summary buffer.
17809 - For files matching "\\`From ", create a nndoc/mbox summary.
17811 - For files matching "\\`BABYL OPTIONS:", create a nndoc/baby summary.
17813 - For files matching "\\`[^ \t\n]+:", create an *Article* buffer.
17815 - For other files, just find them normally.
17817 I'd like `nneething' to use this function, so it would work on a
17818 directory potentially containing mboxes or babyl files.
17821 Please send a mail to bwarsaw@@cnri.reston.va.us (Barry A. Warsaw) and
17822 tell him what you are doing.
17825 Currently, I get prompted:
17829 decend into sci.something ?
17833 The problem above is that since there is really only one subsection of
17834 science, shouldn't it prompt you for only descending sci.something? If
17835 there was a sci.somethingelse group or section, then it should prompt
17836 for sci? first the sci.something? then sci.somethingelse?...
17839 Ja, det burde v
\e,Af
\e(Bre en m
\e,Ae
\e(Bte
\e,Ae
\e(B si slikt. Kanskje en ny variabel?
17840 `gnus-use-few-score-files'? S
\e,Ae
\e(B kunne score-regler legges til den
17841 "mest" lokale score-fila. F. eks. ville no-gruppene betjenes av
17842 "no.all.SCORE", osv.
17845 What i want is for Gnus to treat any sequence or combination of the following
17846 as a single spoiler warning and hide it all, replacing it with a "Next Page"
17852 more than n blank lines
17854 more than m identical lines
17855 (which should be replaced with button to show them)
17857 any whitespace surrounding any of the above
17861 Well, we could allow a new value to `gnus-thread-ignore-subject' --
17862 `spaces', or something. (We could even default to that.) And then
17863 subjects that differ in white space only could be considered the
17864 "same" subject for threading purposes.
17867 Modes to preprocess the contents (e.g. jka-compr) use the second form
17868 "(REGEXP FUNCTION NON-NIL)" while ordinary modes (e.g. tex) use the first
17869 form "(REGEXP . FUNCTION)", so you could use it to distinguish between
17870 those two types of modes. (auto-modes-alist, insert-file-contents-literally.)
17873 Under XEmacs -- do funny article marks:
17876 soup - bowl of soup
17877 score below - dim light bulb
17878 score over - bright light bulb
17881 Yes. I think the algorithm is as follows:
17886 show-list-of-articles-in-group
17887 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17888 if (no-more-articles-in-group-to-select)
17889 if (articles-selected)
17890 start-reading-selected-articles;
17891 junk-unread-articles;
17896 else if (key-pressed = '.')
17897 if (consolidated-menus) # same as hide-thread in Gnus
17898 select-thread-under-cursor;
17900 select-article-under-cursor;
17904 if (key-pressed == SPACE)
17905 if (more-pages-in-article)
17907 else if (more-selected-articles-to-read)
17914 My precise need here would have been to limit files to Incoming*.
17915 One could think of some `nneething-only-files' variable, but I guess
17916 it would have been unacceptable if one was using many unrelated such
17919 A more useful approach would be to, in response to the `G D' prompt, be
17920 allowed to say something like: `~/.mail/Incoming*', somewhat limiting
17921 the top-level directory only (in case directories would be matched by
17922 the wildcard expression).
17925 It would be nice if it also handled
17927 <URL:news://sunsite.auc.dk/>
17929 which should correspond to `B nntp RET sunsite.auc.dk' in *Group*.
17934 Take a look at w3-menu.el in the Emacs-W3 distribution - this works out
17935 really well. Each menu is 'named' by a symbol that would be on a
17936 gnus-*-menus (where * would be whatever, but at least group, summary, and
17937 article versions) variable.
17939 So for gnus-summary-menus, I would set to '(sort mark dispose ...)
17941 A value of '1' would just put _all_ the menus in a single 'GNUS' menu in
17942 the main menubar. This approach works really well for Emacs-W3 and VM.
17946 nndoc should take care to create unique Message-IDs for all its
17949 gnus-score-followup-article only works when you have a summary buffer
17950 active. Make it work when posting from the group buffer as well.
17951 (message-sent-hook).
17953 rewrite gnus-demon to use run-with-idle-timers.
17956 * Enhancements to Gnus:
17960 * gnus-servers (gnus-start-server-buffer?)--enters Gnus and goes
17961 straight to the server buffer, without opening any connections to
17964 * gnus-server-read-server-newsrc--produces a buffer very similar to
17965 the group buffer, but with only groups from that server listed;
17966 quitting this buffer returns to the server buffer.
17969 add a command to check the integrity of an nnfolder folder --
17970 go through the article numbers and see that there are no duplicates,
17974 `unsmileyfy-buffer' to undo smileification.
17977 a command to give all relevant info on an article, including all
17981 when doing `-request-accept-article', the backends should do
17982 the nnmail duplicate checking.
17985 allow `message-signature-file' to be a function to return the
17986 value of the signature file.
17989 In addition, I would love it if I could configure message-tab so that it
17990 could call `bbdb-complete-name' in other headers. So, some sort of
17993 (setq message-tab-alist
17994 '((message-header-regexp message-expand-group)
17995 ("^\\(To\\|[cC]c\\|[bB]cc\\)" bbdb-complete-name)))
17997 then you could run the relevant function to complete the information in
18001 cache the newsgroups file locally to avoid reloading it all the time.
18004 a command to import a buffer into a group.
18007 nnweb should allow fetching by Message-ID from servers.
18010 point in the article buffer doesn't always go to the
18011 beginning of the buffer when selecting new articles.
18014 a command to process mark all unread articles.
18017 `gnus-gather-threads-by-references-and-subject' -- first
18018 do gathering by references, and then go through the dummy roots and
18019 do more gathering by subject.
18022 gnus-uu-mark-in-numerical-order -- process mark articles in
18023 article numerical order.
18026 (gnus-thread-total-score
18027 (gnus-id-to-thread (mail-header-id (gnus-summary-article-header))))
18031 sorting by score is wrong when using sparse threads.
18034 a command to fetch an arbitrary article -- without having to be
18035 in the summary buffer.
18038 a new nncvs backend. Each group would show an article, using
18039 version branches as threading, checkin date as the date, etc.
18042 http://www.dejanews.com/forms/dnsetfilter_exp.html ?
18043 This filter allows one to construct advance queries on the Dejanews
18044 database such as specifying start and end dates, subject, author,
18045 and/or newsgroup name.
18048 new Date header scoring type -- older, newer
18051 use the summary toolbar in the article buffer.
18054 a command to fetch all articles that are less than X days old.
18057 in pick mode, `q' should save the list of selected articles in the
18058 group info. The next time the group is selected, these articles
18059 will automatically get the process mark.
18062 Isn't it possible to (also?) allow M-^ to automatically try the
18063 default server if it fails on the current server? (controlled by a
18064 user variable, (nil, t, 'ask)).
18067 make it possible to cancel articles using the select method for the
18071 `gnus-summary-select-article-on-entry' or something. It'll default
18072 to t and will select whatever article decided by `gnus-auto-select-first'.
18075 a new variable to control which selection commands should be unselecting.
18076 `first', `best', `next', `prev', `next-unread', `prev-unread' are
18080 be able to select groups that have no articles in them
18081 to be able to post in them (using the current select method).
18084 be able to post via DejaNews.
18087 `x' should retain any sortings that have been performed.
18090 allow the user to specify the precedence of the secondary marks. Also
18091 allow them to be displayed separately.
18094 gnus-summary-save-in-pipe should concatenate the results from
18095 the processes when doing a process marked pipe.
18098 a new match type, like Followup, but which adds Thread matches on all
18099 articles that match a certain From header.
18102 a function that can be read from kill-emacs-query-functions to offer
18103 saving living summary buffers.
18106 a function for selecting a particular group which will contain
18107 the articles listed in a list of article numbers/id's.
18110 a battery of character translation functions to translate common
18111 Mac, MS (etc) characters into ISO 8859-1.
18114 (defun article-fix-m$word ()
18115 "Fix M$Word smartquotes in an article."
18118 (let ((buffer-read-only nil))
18119 (goto-char (point-min))
18120 (while (search-forward "\221" nil t)
18121 (replace-match "`" t t))
18122 (goto-char (point-min))
18123 (while (search-forward "\222" nil t)
18124 (replace-match "'" t t))
18125 (goto-char (point-min))
18126 (while (search-forward "\223" nil t)
18127 (replace-match "\"" t t))
18128 (goto-char (point-min))
18129 (while (search-forward "\224" nil t)
18130 (replace-match "\"" t t)))))
18135 (add-hook 'gnus-exit-query-functions
18137 (if (and (file-exists-p nnmail-spool-file)
18138 (> (nnheader-file-size nnmail-spool-file) 0))
18139 (yes-or-no-p "New mail has arrived. Quit Gnus anyways? ")
18140 (y-or-n-p "Are you sure you want to quit Gnus? "))))
18144 allow message-default-headers to be a function.
18147 new Date score match types -- < > = (etc) that take floating point
18148 numbers and match on the age of the article.
18152 > > > If so, I've got one gripe: It seems that when I fire up gnus 5.2.25
18153 > > > under xemacs-19.14, it's creating a new frame, but is erasing the
18154 > > > buffer in the frame that it was called from =:-O
18156 > > Hm. How do you start up Gnus? From the toolbar or with
18157 > > `M-x gnus-other-frame'?
18159 > I normally start it up from the toolbar; at
18160 > least that's the way I've caught it doing the
18165 all commands that react to the process mark should push
18166 the current process mark set onto the stack.
18169 gnus-article-hide-pgp
18170 Selv ville jeg nok ha valgt islette den dersom teksten matcher
18172 "\\(This\s+\\)?[^ ]+ has been automatically signed by"
18174 og det er maks hundre tegn mellom match-end og ----linja. Men -det-
18175 er min type heuristikk og langt fra alles.
18178 `gnus-subscribe-sorted' -- insert new groups where they would have been
18179 sorted to if `gnus-group-sort-function' were run.
18182 gnus-(group,summary)-highlight should respect any `face' text props set
18186 use run-with-idle-timer for gnus-demon instead of the
18187 home-brewed stuff for better reliability.
18190 add a way to select which NoCeM type to apply -- spam, troll, etc.
18193 nndraft-request-group should tally auto-save files.
18196 implement nntp-retry-on-break and nntp-command-timeout.
18199 gnus-article-highlight-limit that says when not to highlight (long)
18203 (nnoo-set SERVER VARIABLE VALUE)
18209 interrupitng agent fetching of articles should save articles.
18212 command to open a digest group, and copy all the articles there to the
18216 a variable to disable article body highlights if there's more than
18217 X characters in the body.
18220 handle 480/381 authinfo requests separately.
18223 include the texi/dir file in the distribution.
18226 format spec to "tab" to a position.
18229 Move all prompting to the new `M-n' default style.
18232 command to display all dormant articles.
18235 gnus-auto-select-next makeover -- list of things it should do.
18238 a score match type that adds scores matching on From if From has replied
18239 to something someone else has said.
18242 Read Netscape discussion groups:
18243 snews://secnews.netscape.com/netscape.communicator.unix
18246 One command to edit the original version if an article, and one to edit
18247 the displayed version.
18250 @kbd{T v} -- make all process-marked articles the children of the
18254 Switch from initial text to the new default text mechanism.
18257 How about making it possible to expire local articles? Will it be
18258 possible to make various constraints on when an article can be
18259 expired, e.g. (read), (age > 14 days), or the more interesting (read
18263 New limit command---limit to articles that have a certain string
18264 in the head or body.
18267 Allow breaking lengthy NNTP commands.
18270 gnus-article-highlight-limit, to disable highlighting in big articles.
18273 Editing an article should put the article to be edited
18274 in a special, unique buffer.
18277 A command to send a mail to the admin-address group param.
18280 A Date scoring type that will match if the article
18281 is less than a certain number of days old.
18284 New spec: %~(tab 56) to put point on column 56
18287 Allow Gnus Agent scoring to use normal score files.
18290 Rething the Agent active file thing. `M-g' doesn't update the active
18291 file, for instance.
18294 With dummy roots, `^' and then selecing the first article
18295 in any other dummy thread will make gnus highlight the
18296 dummy root instead of the first article.
18299 Propagate all group properties (marks, article numbers, etc) up to the
18300 topics for displaying.
18303 `n' in the group buffer with topics should go to the next group
18304 with unread articles, even if that group is hidden in a topic.
18307 gnus-posting-styles doesn't work in drafts.
18310 gnus-summary-limit-include-cached is slow when there are
18311 many articles in the cache, since it regenerates big parts of the
18312 summary buffer for each article.
18315 Implement gnus-batch-brew-soup.
18318 Group parameters and summary commands for un/subscribing to mailing
18322 Introduce nnmail-home-directory.
18325 gnus-fetch-group and friends should exit Gnus when the user
18329 The jingle is only played on the second invocation of Gnus.
18332 Bouncing articles should do MIME.
18335 Crossposted articles should "inherit" the % or @ mark from the other
18336 groups it has been crossposted to, or something. (Agent.)
18339 `S D r' should allow expansion of aliases.
18342 If point is on a group that appears multiple times in topics, and
18343 you press `l', point will move to the first instance of the group.
18346 The documentation should mention pop3.el, fetchmail, smtpmail and why
18347 po:username often fails.
18350 Fetch by Message-ID from dejanews.
18352 <URL:http://search.dejanews.com/msgid.xp?MID=%3C62h9l9$hm4@@basement.replay.com%3E&fmt=raw>
18355 Solve the halting problem.
18364 @section The Manual
18368 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
18369 either @code{texi2dvi}
18371 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
18372 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
18374 to get what you hold in your hands now.
18376 The following conventions have been used:
18381 This is a @samp{string}
18384 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
18387 This is a @file{file}
18390 This is a @code{symbol}
18394 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
18398 (setq flargnoze "yes")
18401 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
18404 (setq flumphel 'yes)
18407 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
18408 ever get them confused.
18412 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
18413 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
18414 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
18415 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
18416 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
18417 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
18418 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
18426 @section Terminology
18428 @cindex terminology
18433 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
18434 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
18435 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
18436 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
18437 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
18441 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
18442 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
18443 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
18444 not posting, and replying is not following up.
18448 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
18452 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
18457 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
18458 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
18459 is all done by the backends.
18463 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
18464 default, way of getting news.
18468 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
18469 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
18474 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
18475 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
18479 A message that has been posted as news.
18482 @cindex mail message
18483 A message that has been mailed.
18487 A mail message or news article
18491 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
18496 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
18501 A line from the head of an article.
18505 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
18506 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
18510 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
18511 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
18512 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
18513 normal @sc{head} format.
18517 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
18518 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
18519 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
18520 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
18521 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
18522 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
18524 @item killed groups
18525 @cindex killed groups
18526 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
18527 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
18529 @item zombie groups
18530 @cindex zombie groups
18531 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
18534 @cindex active file
18535 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
18536 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
18537 is rather large, as you might surmise.
18540 @cindex bogus groups
18541 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
18542 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
18543 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
18546 @cindex activating groups
18547 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
18548 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
18549 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
18553 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
18555 @item select method
18556 @cindex select method
18557 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
18560 @item virtual server
18561 @cindex virtual server
18562 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
18563 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
18564 whole is a virtual server.
18568 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
18569 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
18572 @item ephemeral groups
18573 @cindex ephemeral groups
18574 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
18575 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
18576 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
18579 @cindex solid groups
18580 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
18581 group buffer are solid groups.
18583 @item sparse articles
18584 @cindex sparse articles
18585 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
18586 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
18590 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
18591 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
18595 @cindex thread root
18596 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
18597 articles in the thread.
18601 An article that has responses.
18605 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
18609 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
18610 specified by RFC1153.
18616 @node Customization
18617 @section Customization
18618 @cindex general customization
18620 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
18621 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
18622 for some quite common situations.
18625 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
18626 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
18627 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
18628 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
18632 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
18633 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
18635 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
18636 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
18637 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
18641 @item gnus-read-active-file
18642 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
18643 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
18644 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18645 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
18646 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
18648 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
18649 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
18650 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
18651 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
18655 @node Slow Terminal Connection
18656 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
18658 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
18659 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
18660 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
18664 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
18665 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
18666 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
18667 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
18668 horizontal and vertical recentering.
18670 @item gnus-visible-headers
18671 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
18672 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
18673 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
18674 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
18676 @item gnus-article-display-hook
18677 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
18679 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
18680 '(gnus-article-hide-headers
18681 gnus-article-hide-signature
18682 gnus-article-hide-citation))
18685 @item gnus-use-full-window
18686 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
18687 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
18688 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
18689 want to read them anyway.
18691 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
18692 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
18695 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
18696 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
18697 lines, which might save some time.
18701 @node Little Disk Space
18702 @subsection Little Disk Space
18705 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
18706 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
18710 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
18711 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
18712 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
18713 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18716 @item gnus-save-killed-list
18717 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
18718 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
18719 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
18720 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
18726 @subsection Slow Machine
18727 @cindex slow machine
18729 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
18730 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
18732 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
18733 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
18735 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
18736 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
18737 summary buffer faster.
18739 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
18740 processing a bit faster.
18744 @node Troubleshooting
18745 @section Troubleshooting
18746 @cindex troubleshooting
18748 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
18756 Make sure your computer is switched on.
18759 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
18760 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
18764 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
18765 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
18766 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
18767 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
18770 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
18774 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
18775 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
18776 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
18777 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
18778 something like that.
18781 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
18784 @cindex reporting bugs
18786 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
18788 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
18789 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
18790 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
18791 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
18793 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
18794 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
18795 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
18796 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
18799 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
18800 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
18801 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
18802 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
18803 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
18804 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
18806 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
18807 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
18808 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
18811 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
18812 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
18814 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
18815 @cindex ding mailing list
18816 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
18817 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
18821 @node Gnus Reference Guide
18822 @section Gnus Reference Guide
18824 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
18825 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
18826 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
18827 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
18830 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
18831 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
18832 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
18833 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
18834 and general methods of operation.
18837 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
18838 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
18839 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
18840 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
18841 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
18842 * Group Info:: The group info format.
18843 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
18844 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
18845 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
18849 @node Gnus Utility Functions
18850 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
18851 @cindex Gnus utility functions
18852 @cindex utility functions
18854 @cindex internal variables
18856 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
18857 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
18858 Below is a list of the most common ones.
18862 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
18863 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
18864 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
18866 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
18867 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
18868 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
18870 @item gnus-group-real-name
18871 @findex gnus-group-real-name
18872 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
18875 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
18876 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
18877 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
18878 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
18880 @item gnus-get-info
18881 @findex gnus-get-info
18882 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
18884 @item gnus-group-unread
18885 @findex gnus-group-unread
18886 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
18890 @findex gnus-active
18891 The active entry for @var{group}.
18893 @item gnus-set-active
18894 @findex gnus-set-active
18895 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
18897 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18898 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
18899 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
18902 @item gnus-continuum-version
18903 @findex gnus-continuum-version
18904 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
18905 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
18908 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
18909 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
18910 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
18912 @item gnus-news-group-p
18913 @findex gnus-news-group-p
18914 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
18916 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18917 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
18918 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
18920 @item gnus-server-to-method
18921 @findex gnus-server-to-method
18922 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
18924 @item gnus-server-equal
18925 @findex gnus-server-equal
18926 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
18928 @item gnus-group-native-p
18929 @findex gnus-group-native-p
18930 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
18932 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
18933 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
18934 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
18936 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
18937 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
18938 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
18940 @item group-group-find-parameter
18941 @findex group-group-find-parameter
18942 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
18943 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
18945 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
18946 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
18947 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
18949 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
18950 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
18951 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
18953 @item gnus-check-backend-function
18954 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
18955 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
18956 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
18959 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
18963 @item gnus-read-method
18964 @findex gnus-read-method
18965 Prompts the user for a select method.
18970 @node Backend Interface
18971 @subsection Backend Interface
18973 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
18974 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
18975 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
18976 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
18977 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
18978 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
18980 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
18981 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
18982 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
18983 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
18984 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
18985 been opened, the function should fail.
18987 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
18988 name. Take this example:
18992 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
18993 (nntp-port-number 4324))
18996 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
18997 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
18999 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
19000 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
19001 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
19003 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
19004 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
19005 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
19007 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
19008 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
19009 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
19010 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
19011 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
19012 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
19015 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
19016 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
19017 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
19018 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
19021 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
19024 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
19027 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
19028 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
19029 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
19030 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
19031 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
19032 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
19036 @node Required Backend Functions
19037 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
19041 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
19043 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
19044 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
19045 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
19046 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
19048 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
19049 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
19050 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
19051 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
19053 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
19054 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
19055 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
19056 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
19057 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
19058 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
19059 number, do maximum fetches.
19061 Here's an example HEAD:
19064 221 1056 Article retrieved.
19065 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
19066 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
19067 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
19068 Subject: Re: Something very droll
19069 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
19070 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
19072 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
19073 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
19074 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
19078 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
19079 these in the data buffer.
19081 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
19085 head = error / valid-head
19086 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
19087 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
19088 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
19089 header = <text> eol
19092 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
19093 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
19097 nov-buffer = *nov-line
19098 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
19099 field = <text except TAB>
19102 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
19106 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
19108 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
19109 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
19111 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
19112 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
19113 server. In fact, it should do so.
19115 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
19116 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
19119 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
19121 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
19122 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
19125 There should be no data returned.
19128 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
19130 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
19131 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
19132 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
19133 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
19135 There should be no data returned.
19138 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
19140 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
19141 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
19142 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
19143 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
19145 There should be no data returned.
19148 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
19150 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
19152 There should be no data returned.
19155 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
19157 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
19158 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
19159 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
19160 it would be nice if that were possible.
19162 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
19163 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
19164 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
19165 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
19166 into its article buffer.
19168 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
19169 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
19170 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
19171 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
19172 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
19173 on successful article retrieval.
19176 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
19178 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
19179 making @var{group} the current group.
19181 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
19184 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
19187 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
19190 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
19191 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
19192 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
19193 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
19194 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
19195 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
19196 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
19197 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
19200 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
19201 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
19202 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
19206 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19208 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
19209 a no-op on most backends.
19211 There should be no data returned.
19214 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
19216 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
19219 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
19222 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
19223 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
19226 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
19227 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
19230 active-file = *active-line
19231 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
19233 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
19236 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
19237 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
19238 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
19241 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
19243 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
19244 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
19245 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
19246 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
19247 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
19248 clear if the posting could not be completed.
19250 There should be no result data from this function.
19255 @node Optional Backend Functions
19256 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
19260 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
19262 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
19263 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
19264 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
19266 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
19267 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
19268 former is in the same format as the data from
19269 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
19270 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
19273 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
19277 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
19279 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
19280 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
19281 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
19282 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
19283 should return the (altered) group info.
19285 There should be no result data from this function.
19288 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
19290 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
19291 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
19292 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
19293 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
19294 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
19295 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
19296 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
19297 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
19299 There should be no result data from this function.
19302 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
19304 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
19305 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
19306 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as IMAP) however carry all
19307 information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to propagate
19308 the mark information to the server.
19310 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
19313 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
19316 Range is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. Action is
19317 @code{set}, @code{add} or @code{del}, respectively used for removing all
19318 existing marks and setting them as specified, adding (preserving the
19319 marks not mentioned) mark and removing (preserving the marks not
19320 mentioned) marks. Mark is a list of marks; where each mark is a
19321 symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read}, @code{tick}, @code{reply},
19322 @code{expire}, @code{killed}, @code{dormant}, @code{save},
19323 @code{download} and @code{unsend}, but your backend should, if possible,
19324 not limit itself to theese.
19326 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
19327 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
19328 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
19329 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
19331 An example action list:
19334 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
19335 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
19336 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
19339 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
19340 mark on (currently not used for anything).
19342 There should be no result data from this function.
19344 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
19346 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
19347 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
19348 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
19349 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
19350 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
19352 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
19353 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
19354 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
19357 There should be no result data from this function.
19360 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
19362 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
19363 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
19364 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
19365 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
19366 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
19367 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
19368 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
19370 There should be no result data from this function.
19373 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
19375 The result data from this function should be a description of
19379 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
19381 description = <text>
19384 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
19386 The result data from this function should be the description of all
19387 groups available on the server.
19390 description-buffer = *description-line
19394 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
19396 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
19397 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
19398 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
19401 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
19403 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
19405 There should be no return data.
19408 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
19410 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
19411 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
19412 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
19413 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
19414 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
19417 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
19420 There should be no result data returned.
19423 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
19426 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
19427 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
19429 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
19430 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
19431 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
19432 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
19433 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
19434 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
19436 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
19437 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
19440 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
19441 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
19443 There should be no data returned.
19446 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
19448 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
19449 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
19450 this function in short order.
19452 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
19453 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
19455 There should be no data returned.
19458 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
19460 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
19461 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
19463 There should be no data returned.
19466 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
19468 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
19469 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
19470 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
19472 There should be no data returned.
19475 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
19477 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
19478 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
19480 There should be no data returned.
19485 @node Error Messaging
19486 @subsubsection Error Messaging
19488 @findex nnheader-report
19489 @findex nnheader-get-report
19490 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
19491 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
19492 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
19493 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
19494 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
19495 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
19498 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
19500 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
19503 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
19504 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
19505 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
19506 takes one argument---the server symbol.
19508 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
19509 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
19510 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
19513 @node Writing New Backends
19514 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
19516 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
19517 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
19518 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
19519 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
19520 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
19523 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
19524 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
19525 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
19527 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
19528 package called @code{nnoo}.
19530 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
19531 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
19537 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
19538 parameters. For instance:
19541 (nnoo-declare nndir
19545 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
19546 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
19549 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
19550 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
19551 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
19553 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
19554 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
19555 a function in those backends.
19558 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
19559 "Where nndir will look for groups."
19560 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
19563 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
19564 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
19565 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
19567 @item nnoo-define-basics
19568 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
19572 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
19576 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
19577 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
19578 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
19580 @item nnoo-map-functions
19581 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
19582 functions from the parent backends.
19585 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
19586 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19587 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
19590 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
19591 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
19592 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
19593 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
19596 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
19597 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
19598 haven't already been defined.
19604 nnmh-request-newgroups)
19608 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
19609 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
19610 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
19615 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
19618 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
19619 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
19623 (require 'nnheader)
19627 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
19629 (nnoo-declare nndir
19632 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
19633 "Where nndir will look for groups."
19634 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
19636 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
19637 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
19640 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
19641 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
19642 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
19644 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
19645 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
19647 ;;; Interface functions.
19649 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
19651 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
19652 (setq nndir-directory
19653 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
19655 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
19656 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
19657 (push `(nndir-current-group
19658 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19660 (push `(nndir-top-directory
19661 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
19663 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
19665 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
19666 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19667 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
19668 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
19669 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
19673 nnmh-status-message
19675 nnmh-request-newgroups))
19681 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
19682 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
19684 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
19685 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
19686 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
19687 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
19689 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
19690 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
19695 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
19698 The abilities can be:
19702 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
19704 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
19706 This backend supports both mail and news.
19708 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
19711 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
19712 articles and groups.
19714 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
19715 true for almost all backends.
19716 @item prompt-address
19717 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
19718 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
19719 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
19723 @node Mail-like Backends
19724 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
19726 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
19727 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
19728 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
19729 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
19732 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
19733 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
19734 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
19737 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
19738 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
19741 This function takes four parameters.
19745 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
19748 @item exit-function
19749 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
19751 @item temp-directory
19752 Where the temporary files should be stored.
19755 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
19756 performed for one group only.
19759 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
19760 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
19761 find the article number assigned to this article.
19763 The function also uses the following variables:
19764 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
19765 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
19766 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
19767 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
19771 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
19772 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
19776 @node Score File Syntax
19777 @subsection Score File Syntax
19779 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
19780 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
19781 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
19783 Here's a typical score file:
19787 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
19794 BNF definition of a score file:
19797 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
19798 element = rule / atom
19799 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
19800 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
19801 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
19802 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
19804 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
19805 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
19806 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
19807 date-header = "date"
19808 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19809 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19810 score = "nil" / <integer>
19811 date = "nil" / <natural number>
19812 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
19813 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
19814 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
19815 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
19816 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19817 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19818 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
19819 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
19820 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
19821 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
19822 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
19823 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
19824 exclude-files / read-only / touched
19825 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
19826 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
19827 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
19828 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
19829 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
19830 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
19831 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
19832 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
19833 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
19834 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
19835 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
19836 eval = "eval" space <form>
19837 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
19840 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
19843 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
19844 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
19845 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
19846 one looong line, then that's ok.
19848 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
19849 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
19853 @subsection Headers
19855 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
19856 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
19857 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
19858 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
19860 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
19861 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
19862 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
19863 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
19864 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
19865 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
19866 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
19868 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
19869 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
19870 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
19871 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
19872 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
19874 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
19875 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
19881 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
19882 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
19884 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
19885 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
19886 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
19887 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
19889 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
19893 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
19896 is transformed into
19899 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
19902 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
19903 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
19906 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
19909 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
19910 is slightly tricky:
19913 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
19919 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
19922 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
19928 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
19935 and is equal to the previous range.
19937 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
19938 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
19939 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
19943 range = simple-range / normal-range
19944 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
19945 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
19946 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
19947 number *[ " " contents ]
19950 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
19951 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
19952 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
19953 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
19954 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
19959 @subsection Group Info
19961 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
19962 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
19963 describes the group.
19965 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
19966 second is a more complex one:
19969 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
19971 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
19972 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
19974 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
19977 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
19978 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
19979 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
19980 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
19981 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
19982 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
19983 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
19984 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
19985 this section is about.
19987 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
19988 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
19989 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
19991 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
19994 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
19995 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
19996 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
19997 group = quote <string> quote
19998 ralevel = rank / level
19999 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20000 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
20001 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
20003 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
20004 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
20005 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
20006 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
20009 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
20010 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
20013 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
20014 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
20017 @item gnus-info-group
20018 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
20019 @findex gnus-info-group
20020 @findex gnus-info-set-group
20021 Get/set the group name.
20023 @item gnus-info-rank
20024 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
20025 @findex gnus-info-rank
20026 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
20027 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
20029 @item gnus-info-level
20030 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
20031 @findex gnus-info-level
20032 @findex gnus-info-set-level
20033 Get/set the group level.
20035 @item gnus-info-score
20036 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
20037 @findex gnus-info-score
20038 @findex gnus-info-set-score
20039 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
20041 @item gnus-info-read
20042 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
20043 @findex gnus-info-read
20044 @findex gnus-info-set-read
20045 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
20047 @item gnus-info-marks
20048 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
20049 @findex gnus-info-marks
20050 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
20051 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
20053 @item gnus-info-method
20054 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
20055 @findex gnus-info-method
20056 @findex gnus-info-set-method
20057 Get/set the group select method.
20059 @item gnus-info-params
20060 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
20061 @findex gnus-info-params
20062 @findex gnus-info-set-params
20063 Get/set the group parameters.
20066 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
20067 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
20069 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
20070 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
20071 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
20072 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
20075 @node Extended Interactive
20076 @subsection Extended Interactive
20077 @cindex interactive
20078 @findex gnus-interactive
20080 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
20081 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
20082 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
20085 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
20086 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
20091 The best thing to do would have been to implement
20092 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
20093 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
20094 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
20095 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
20096 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
20097 @code{interactive}.
20099 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
20104 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
20105 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
20109 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
20110 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
20111 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
20114 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
20118 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
20122 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
20128 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
20129 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
20133 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
20134 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
20135 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
20137 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
20138 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
20139 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
20140 Gnus, that's very useful.
20142 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
20143 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
20144 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
20145 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
20146 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
20147 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
20148 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
20149 following function:
20152 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
20156 (,function ,@@args))
20160 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
20161 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
20162 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
20165 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
20166 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
20167 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
20169 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
20170 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
20171 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
20174 @node Various File Formats
20175 @subsection Various File Formats
20178 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
20179 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
20183 @node Active File Format
20184 @subsubsection Active File Format
20186 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
20187 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
20190 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
20193 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
20194 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
20195 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
20196 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
20197 no.general 1000 900 y
20200 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
20203 active = *group-line
20204 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
20205 group = <non-white-space string>
20207 high-number = <non-negative integer>
20208 low-number = <positive integer>
20209 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
20212 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
20213 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
20216 @node Newsgroups File Format
20217 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
20219 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
20220 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
20221 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
20224 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
20225 Here's the definition:
20229 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
20230 group = <non-white-space string>
20232 description = <string>
20237 @node Emacs for Heathens
20238 @section Emacs for Heathens
20240 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
20241 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
20242 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
20243 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
20244 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
20245 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
20246 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
20250 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
20251 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
20256 @subsection Keystrokes
20260 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
20263 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
20266 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
20267 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
20268 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
20269 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
20270 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
20271 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
20273 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
20274 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
20275 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
20276 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
20277 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
20278 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
20279 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
20281 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
20282 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
20283 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
20284 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
20285 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
20286 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
20287 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
20289 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
20290 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
20291 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
20292 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
20293 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
20299 @subsection Emacs Lisp
20301 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
20302 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
20303 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
20304 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
20306 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
20307 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
20308 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
20309 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
20310 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
20311 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
20312 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
20315 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
20316 write the following:
20319 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
20322 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
20323 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
20324 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
20327 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
20328 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
20329 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
20330 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
20331 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
20333 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
20334 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
20335 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
20339 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
20343 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
20346 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
20347 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
20350 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
20353 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
20354 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
20357 @include gnus-faq.texi