10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
15 @setchapternewpage odd
19 \documentclass[twoside,a4paper,openright,11pt]{book}
20 \usepackage[latin1]{inputenc}
21 \usepackage{pagestyle}
24 \input{gnusconfig.tex}
26 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
28 \usepackage[pdftex,bookmarks]{hyperref}
35 \newcommand{\gnusversionname}{Oort Gnus v0.05}
36 \newcommand{\gnuschaptername}{}
37 \newcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
39 \newcommand{\gnusbackslash}{/}
41 \newcommand{\gnusref}[1]{``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
42 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
43 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
45 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\href{#1}{\gnustt{#1}}}
47 \newcommand{\gnusxref}[1]{See ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
48 \newcommand{\gnuspxref}[1]{see ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
50 \newcommand{\gnuskindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
51 \newcommand{\gnusindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
53 \newcommand{\gnustt}[1]{{\gnusselectttfont{}#1}}
54 \newcommand{\gnuscode}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
55 \newcommand{\gnussamp}[1]{``{\fontencoding{OT1}\gnusselectttfont{}#1}''}
56 \newcommand{\gnuslisp}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
57 \newcommand{\gnuskbd}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
58 \newcommand{\gnusfile}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
59 \newcommand{\gnusdfn}[1]{\textit{#1}}
60 \newcommand{\gnusi}[1]{\textit{#1}}
61 \newcommand{\gnusstrong}[1]{\textbf{#1}}
62 \newcommand{\gnusemph}[1]{\textit{#1}}
63 \newcommand{\gnusvar}[1]{{\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont\textsl{\textsf{#1}}}}
64 \newcommand{\gnussc}[1]{\textsc{#1}}
65 \newcommand{\gnustitle}[1]{{\huge\textbf{#1}}}
66 \newcommand{\gnusversion}[1]{{\small\textit{#1}}}
67 \newcommand{\gnusauthor}[1]{{\large\textbf{#1}}}
68 \newcommand{\gnusresult}[1]{\gnustt{=> #1}}
70 \newcommand{\gnusbullet}{{${\bullet}$}}
71 \newcommand{\gnusdollar}{\$}
72 \newcommand{\gnusampersand}{\&}
73 \newcommand{\gnuspercent}{\%}
74 \newcommand{\gnushash}{\#}
75 \newcommand{\gnushat}{\symbol{"5E}}
76 \newcommand{\gnusunderline}{\symbol{"5F}}
77 \newcommand{\gnusnot}{$\neg$}
78 \newcommand{\gnustilde}{\symbol{"7E}}
79 \newcommand{\gnusless}{{$<$}}
80 \newcommand{\gnusgreater}{{$>$}}
81 \newcommand{\gnusbraceleft}{{$>$}}
82 \newcommand{\gnusbraceright}{{$>$}}
84 \newcommand{\gnushead}{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-head,height=1cm}}}
85 \newcommand{\gnusinteresting}{
86 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\gnushead]{\gnushead}
89 \newcommand{\gnuscleardoublepage}{\ifodd\count0\mbox{}\clearpage\thispagestyle{empty}\mbox{}\clearpage\else\clearpage\fi}
91 \newcommand{\gnuspagechapter}[1]{
98 \newcommand{\gnuschapter}[2]{
100 \ifdim \gnusdimen = 0pt\setcounter{page}{1}\pagestyle{gnus}\pagenumbering{arabic} \gnusdimen 1pt\fi
102 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
103 \renewcommand{\gnuschaptername}{#2}
104 \thispagestyle{empty}
106 \begin{picture}(500,500)(0,0)
107 \put(480,350){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{#1}}
108 \put(40,300){\makebox(500,50)[bl]{{\Huge\bf{#2}}}}
113 \newcommand{\gnusfigure}[3]{
115 \mbox{}\ifodd\count0\hspace*{-0.8cm}\else\hspace*{-3cm}\fi\begin{picture}(440,#2)
122 \newcommand{\gnusicon}[1]{
123 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\raisebox{-1.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1.5cm}}]{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1cm}}}
126 \newcommand{\gnuspicon}[1]{
127 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=2cm}}
130 \newcommand{\gnusxface}[2]{
131 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=1cm}\epsfig{figure=#2,width=1cm}}
134 \newcommand{\gnussmiley}[2]{
135 \margindex{\makebox[2cm]{\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,width=0.5cm}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#2,width=0.5cm}\hfill}}
138 \newcommand{\gnusitemx}[1]{\mbox{}\vspace*{-\itemsep}\vspace*{-\parsep}\item#1}
140 \newcommand{\gnussection}[1]{
141 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{#1}
145 \newenvironment{codelist}%
150 \newenvironment{kbdlist}%
156 \newenvironment{dfnlist}%
161 \newenvironment{stronglist}%
166 \newenvironment{samplist}%
171 \newenvironment{varlist}%
176 \newenvironment{emphlist}%
181 \newlength\gnusheadtextwidth
182 \setlength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{\headtextwidth}
183 \addtolength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{1cm}
185 \newpagestyle{gnuspreamble}%
190 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\mbox{}}\textbf{\hfill\roman{page}}}
194 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\roman{page}\hfill\mbox{}}}
203 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
205 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
210 \newpagestyle{gnusindex}%
215 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\gnuschaptername\hfill\arabic{page}}}}
219 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}
227 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
229 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
239 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{3.1cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{chapter}.\arabic{section}} \textbf{\gnussectionname\hfill\arabic{page}}}}}
243 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{-2.95cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}}
251 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
253 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
258 \pagenumbering{roman}
259 \pagestyle{gnuspreamble}
269 %\addtolength{\oddsidemargin}{-5cm}
270 %\addtolength{\evensidemargin}{-5cm}
272 \addtolength{\textheight}{2cm}
274 \gnustitle{\gnustitlename}\hfill\gnusversion{\gnusversionname}\\
277 \hspace*{0cm}\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=15cm}
280 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
287 \thispagestyle{empty}
289 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
290 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
293 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
294 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
295 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
296 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
297 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
298 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
299 License'' in the Emacs manual.
301 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
302 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
303 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
305 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
306 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
307 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
308 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
316 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
318 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
319 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
321 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
322 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
323 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
324 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
325 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
326 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
327 License'' in the Emacs manual.
329 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
330 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
331 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
333 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
334 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
335 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
336 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
344 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
347 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
348 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001
349 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
351 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
352 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
353 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
354 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
355 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
356 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
357 License'' in the Emacs manual.
359 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
360 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
361 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
363 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
364 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
365 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
366 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
375 @top The Gnus Newsreader
379 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
380 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
381 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
384 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.05
395 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
396 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
398 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
399 being accused of plagiarism:
401 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
402 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
403 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
404 can even read news with it!
406 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
407 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
408 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
409 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
410 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
416 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
417 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
418 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
419 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
420 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
421 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
422 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
423 * Various:: General purpose settings.
424 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
425 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
426 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
427 * Key Index:: Key Index.
430 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
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 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
441 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
442 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
443 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
444 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
448 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
449 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
450 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
454 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
455 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
456 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
457 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
458 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
459 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
460 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
461 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
462 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
463 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
464 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
465 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
466 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
467 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
468 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
469 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
470 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
474 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
475 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
476 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
480 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
481 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
482 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
483 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
484 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
488 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
489 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
490 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
491 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
492 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
496 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
497 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
498 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
499 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
500 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
502 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
503 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
504 * Threading:: How threads are made.
505 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
506 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
507 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
508 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
509 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
510 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
511 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
512 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
513 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
514 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
515 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
516 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
517 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
518 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
519 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
520 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
521 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
522 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
523 or reselecting the current group.
524 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
525 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
526 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
527 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
529 Summary Buffer Format
531 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
532 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
533 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
534 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
538 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
539 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
541 Reply, Followup and Post
543 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
544 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
545 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
546 * Canceling and Superseding::
550 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
551 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
552 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
554 * Generic Marking Commands::
555 * Setting Process Marks::
559 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
560 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
561 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
565 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
566 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
568 Customizing Threading
570 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
571 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
572 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
573 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
577 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
578 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
579 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
580 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
581 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
582 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
586 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
587 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
588 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
592 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
593 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
594 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
595 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
596 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
597 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
598 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
599 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
600 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
601 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
603 Alternative Approaches
605 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
606 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
608 Various Summary Stuff
610 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
611 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
612 * Summary Generation Commands::
613 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
617 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
618 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
619 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
620 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
621 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
625 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
626 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
627 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
628 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
629 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
630 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
631 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
632 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
636 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
637 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
638 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
639 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
640 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
641 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
642 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
643 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
647 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
648 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
649 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
650 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
651 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
652 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
653 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
657 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
658 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
662 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
663 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
664 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
668 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
669 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
670 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
671 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
672 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
673 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
674 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
675 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
676 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
677 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
678 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
679 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
680 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
684 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
685 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
686 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
688 Choosing a Mail Back End
690 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
691 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
692 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
693 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
694 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
695 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
700 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
701 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
702 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
703 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
704 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
705 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
709 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
710 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
711 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
715 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
716 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
717 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
718 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
719 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
723 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
727 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
728 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
729 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
733 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
734 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
738 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
739 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
740 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
741 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
742 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
743 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
744 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
745 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
746 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
747 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
751 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
752 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
753 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
757 * Group Agent Commands::
758 * Summary Agent Commands::
759 * Server Agent Commands::
763 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
764 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
765 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
766 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
767 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
768 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
769 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
770 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
771 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
772 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
773 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
774 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
775 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
776 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
777 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
778 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
779 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
783 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
784 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
785 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
786 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
790 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
791 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
792 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
796 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
797 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
798 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
799 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
800 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
801 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
802 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
803 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
804 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
805 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
806 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
807 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
808 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
809 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
810 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
811 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
812 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
813 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
814 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
818 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
819 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
820 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
821 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
822 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
823 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
824 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
825 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
829 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
830 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
831 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
832 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
833 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
837 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
838 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
839 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
840 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
841 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
845 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
846 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
847 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
848 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
849 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
850 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
851 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
852 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
853 * Frequently Asked Questions::
857 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
858 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
859 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
860 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
861 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
862 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
863 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
864 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
865 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
869 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
870 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
871 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
872 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
873 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
877 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
878 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
879 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
880 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
884 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
885 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
886 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
887 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
888 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
889 * Group Info:: The group info format.
890 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
891 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
892 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
896 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
897 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
898 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
899 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
900 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
901 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
905 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
906 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
910 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
911 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
917 @chapter Starting Gnus
922 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
923 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
926 @findex gnus-other-frame
927 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
928 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
929 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
931 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
932 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
933 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
935 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
936 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
939 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
940 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
941 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
942 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
943 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
944 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
945 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
946 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
947 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
948 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
949 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
953 @node Finding the News
954 @section Finding the News
957 @vindex gnus-select-method
959 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
960 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
961 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
962 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
965 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
966 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
969 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
972 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
975 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
978 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
979 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
980 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
982 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
984 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
985 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
986 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
987 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
988 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
989 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
991 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
992 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
993 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
994 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
996 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
997 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
998 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
999 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1000 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1001 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1002 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1003 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1004 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1007 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1009 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1010 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1011 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1012 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1013 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1014 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1016 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1018 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1019 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1020 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1021 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1022 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1023 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1026 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1027 you would typically set this variable to
1030 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1034 @node The First Time
1035 @section The First Time
1036 @cindex first time usage
1038 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1039 be subscribed by default.
1041 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1042 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1043 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1044 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1047 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1048 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1049 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1051 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1052 help you with most common problems.
1054 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1055 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1059 @node The Server is Down
1060 @section The Server is Down
1061 @cindex server errors
1063 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1064 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1065 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1067 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1068 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1069 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1070 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1071 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1072 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1073 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1075 @findex gnus-no-server
1076 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1078 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1079 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1080 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1081 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1082 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1083 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1084 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1088 @section Slave Gnusae
1091 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1092 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1093 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1094 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1096 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1097 @code{.newsrc} file.
1099 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1100 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1101 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1102 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1103 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1104 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1105 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1107 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1108 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1109 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1110 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1111 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1112 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1113 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1114 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1116 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1117 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1120 @node Fetching a Group
1121 @section Fetching a Group
1122 @cindex fetching a group
1124 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1125 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1126 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1127 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1128 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1129 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1135 @cindex subscription
1137 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1138 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1139 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1140 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1141 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1142 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1143 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1144 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1145 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1148 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1149 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1150 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1154 @node Checking New Groups
1155 @subsection Checking New Groups
1157 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1158 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1159 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1160 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1161 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1162 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1163 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1164 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1165 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1166 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1168 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1169 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1170 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1171 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1172 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1173 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1174 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1175 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1176 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1177 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1178 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1180 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1181 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1182 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1183 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1184 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1185 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1188 @node Subscription Methods
1189 @subsection Subscription Methods
1191 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1192 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1193 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1195 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1196 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1198 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1202 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1203 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1204 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1205 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1206 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1208 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1209 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1210 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1211 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1213 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1214 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1215 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1217 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1218 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1219 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1220 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1221 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1222 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1223 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1224 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1225 up. Or something like that.
1227 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1228 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1229 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1230 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1231 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1233 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1234 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1235 Kill all new groups.
1237 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1238 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1239 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1240 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1241 topic parameter that looks like
1247 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1250 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1255 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1256 A closely related variable is
1257 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1258 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1259 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1260 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1263 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1264 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1265 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1266 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1269 @node Filtering New Groups
1270 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1272 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1273 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1274 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1277 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1280 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1281 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1282 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1283 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1284 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1285 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1286 subscribing these groups.
1287 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1288 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1290 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1291 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1292 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1293 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1294 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1295 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1296 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1297 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1299 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1300 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1301 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1302 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1303 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1304 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1305 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1306 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1307 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1308 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1310 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1311 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1314 @node Changing Servers
1315 @section Changing Servers
1316 @cindex changing servers
1318 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1319 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1320 very flaky and you want to use another.
1322 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1323 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1327 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1328 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1329 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1330 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1333 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1334 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1335 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1336 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1338 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1339 @findex gnus-change-server
1340 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1341 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1342 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1343 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1344 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1346 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1347 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1348 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1349 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1350 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1352 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1353 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1354 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1355 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1356 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1357 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1359 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1360 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1361 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1365 @section Startup Files
1366 @cindex startup files
1371 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1372 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1374 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1375 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1376 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1377 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1378 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1379 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1380 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1382 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1383 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1384 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1385 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1386 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1387 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1389 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1390 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1391 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1392 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1393 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1394 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1395 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1396 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1397 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1398 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1400 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1401 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1402 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1403 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1404 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1405 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1406 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1407 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1408 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1409 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1410 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1411 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1413 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1414 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1415 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1416 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1418 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1419 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1420 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1421 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1422 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1423 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1424 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1425 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1426 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1427 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1430 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1431 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1433 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1434 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1437 @vindex gnus-init-file
1438 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1439 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1440 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1441 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1442 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1443 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1444 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1445 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1446 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1452 @cindex dribble file
1455 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1456 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1457 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1458 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1459 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1462 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1463 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1466 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1467 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1468 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1470 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1471 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1472 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1473 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1474 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1475 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1477 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1478 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1479 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1482 @node The Active File
1483 @section The Active File
1485 @cindex ignored groups
1487 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1488 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1489 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1491 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1492 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1493 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1494 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1495 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1496 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1497 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1500 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1501 @c if you set it to anything else.
1503 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1505 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1506 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1507 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1509 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1510 you actually subscribe to.
1512 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1513 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1514 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1515 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1517 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1518 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1519 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1520 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1521 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1522 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1524 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1525 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1526 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1529 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1530 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1531 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1532 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1533 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1534 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1536 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1537 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1539 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1540 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1542 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1543 secondary select methods.
1546 @node Startup Variables
1547 @section Startup Variables
1551 @item gnus-load-hook
1552 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1553 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1554 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1555 times you start Gnus.
1557 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1558 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1559 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1561 @item gnus-startup-hook
1562 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1563 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1565 @item gnus-started-hook
1566 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1567 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1570 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1571 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1572 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1573 generating the group buffer.
1575 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1576 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1577 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1578 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1579 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1580 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1581 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1582 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1584 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1585 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1586 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1587 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1588 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1589 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1591 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1592 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1593 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1595 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1596 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1597 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1599 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1600 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1601 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1602 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1608 @chapter Group Buffer
1609 @cindex group buffer
1611 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1613 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1614 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1615 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1616 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1617 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1618 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1619 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1620 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1621 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1622 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1623 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1624 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1625 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1626 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1627 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1628 @c human rights at 9...
1631 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1632 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1633 long as Gnus is active.
1637 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1638 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1639 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1640 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1641 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1642 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1643 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1644 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1650 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1651 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1652 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1653 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1654 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1655 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1656 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1657 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1658 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1659 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1660 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1661 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1662 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1663 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1664 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1665 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1666 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1670 @node Group Buffer Format
1671 @section Group Buffer Format
1674 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1675 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1676 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1680 @node Group Line Specification
1681 @subsection Group Line Specification
1682 @cindex group buffer format
1684 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1685 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1687 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1690 25: news.announce.newusers
1691 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1696 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1697 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1698 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1699 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1701 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1702 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1703 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1704 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1705 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1706 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1708 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1710 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1711 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1712 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1713 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1714 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1716 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1717 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1718 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1720 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1725 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1728 Whether the group is subscribed.
1731 Level of subscribedness.
1734 Number of unread articles.
1737 Number of dormant articles.
1740 Number of ticked articles.
1743 Number of read articles.
1746 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1747 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1749 Gnus uses this estimation because the NNTP protocol provides efficient
1750 access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting the true
1751 unread message count is not possible efficiently. For hysterical
1752 raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of unread
1753 messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1754 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the
1755 back end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1756 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1759 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1762 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1771 Newsgroup description.
1774 @samp{m} if moderated.
1777 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1786 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1790 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1793 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1794 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1795 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1796 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1797 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1800 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1802 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1806 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1809 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1813 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1814 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1815 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1816 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1817 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1818 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1823 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1824 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1825 group, or a bogus native group.
1828 @node Group Modeline Specification
1829 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1830 @cindex group modeline
1832 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1833 The mode line can be changed by setting
1834 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1835 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1839 The native news server.
1841 The native select method.
1845 @node Group Highlighting
1846 @subsection Group Highlighting
1847 @cindex highlighting
1848 @cindex group highlighting
1850 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1851 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1852 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1853 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1854 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1856 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1860 (cond (window-system
1861 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1862 (defface my-group-face-1
1863 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1864 (defface my-group-face-2
1865 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1866 (defface my-group-face-3
1867 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1868 (defface my-group-face-4
1869 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1870 (defface my-group-face-5
1871 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1873 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1874 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1875 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1876 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1877 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1878 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1881 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1883 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1890 The number of unread articles in the group.
1894 Whether the group is a mail group.
1896 The level of the group.
1898 The score of the group.
1900 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1902 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1903 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1905 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1906 topic being inserted.
1909 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1910 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1911 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1913 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1914 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1915 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1916 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1917 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1920 @node Group Maneuvering
1921 @section Group Maneuvering
1922 @cindex group movement
1924 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1925 expected, hopefully.
1931 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1932 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1933 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1939 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1940 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1941 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1945 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1946 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1950 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1951 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1955 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1956 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1957 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1961 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1962 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1963 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1966 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1972 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1973 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1974 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1979 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1980 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1981 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1985 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1986 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1987 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1990 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1991 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1992 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1993 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1997 @node Selecting a Group
1998 @section Selecting a Group
1999 @cindex group selection
2004 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2005 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2006 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2007 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2008 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2009 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2010 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
2011 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
2012 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
2013 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
2015 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2016 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2017 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2019 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2020 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2025 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2026 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2027 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2028 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2029 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2033 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2034 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2035 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2036 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2037 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2038 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2039 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2040 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2041 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2042 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2045 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2046 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2047 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2048 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2049 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2052 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2053 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2054 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2055 doing any processing of its contents
2056 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2057 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2058 manner will have no permanent effects.
2062 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2063 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2064 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2065 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2066 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2067 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2068 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2069 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2072 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2073 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2074 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2075 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2076 Which article this is is controlled by the
2077 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2083 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2086 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2089 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2092 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2096 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2097 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2099 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2100 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2101 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2102 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2106 @node Subscription Commands
2107 @section Subscription Commands
2108 @cindex subscription
2116 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2117 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2118 Toggle subscription to the current group
2119 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2125 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2126 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2127 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2128 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2134 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2135 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2136 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2142 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2143 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2146 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2147 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2148 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2149 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2150 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2156 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2157 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2161 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2162 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2165 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2166 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2167 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2168 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2169 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2170 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2171 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2172 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2173 @file{.newsrc} file.
2177 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2187 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2188 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2189 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2190 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2191 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2192 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2197 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2198 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2199 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2203 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2204 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2205 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2207 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2208 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2209 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2210 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2211 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2212 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2219 @section Group Levels
2223 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2224 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2225 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2226 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2227 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2229 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2235 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2236 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2237 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2238 prompted for a level.
2241 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2242 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2243 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2244 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2245 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2246 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2247 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2248 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2249 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2250 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2251 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2252 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2253 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2254 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2255 reasons of efficiency.
2257 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2258 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2260 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2261 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2262 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2263 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2264 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2265 groups are hidden, in a way.
2267 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2268 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2269 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2270 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2271 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2272 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2274 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2275 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2276 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2277 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2278 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2279 list of killed groups.)
2281 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2282 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2283 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2285 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2286 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2287 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2288 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2289 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2290 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2291 relevant valid ranges.
2293 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2294 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2295 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2296 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2297 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2298 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2301 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2302 one with the best level.
2304 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2305 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2306 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2309 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2310 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2311 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2312 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2315 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2316 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2317 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2318 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2320 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2321 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2322 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2323 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2324 to 5. The default is 6.
2328 @section Group Score
2333 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2334 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2335 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2338 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2339 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2340 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2341 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2342 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2343 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2344 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2345 least significant part.))
2347 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2348 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2349 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2350 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2351 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2352 action after each summary exit, you can add
2353 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2354 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2355 slow things down somewhat.
2358 @node Marking Groups
2359 @section Marking Groups
2360 @cindex marking groups
2362 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2363 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2364 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2365 bidding on those groups.
2367 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2368 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2369 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2377 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2378 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2384 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2385 Remove the mark from the current group
2386 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2390 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2391 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2395 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2396 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2400 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2401 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2405 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2406 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2407 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2410 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2412 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2413 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2414 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2415 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2416 the command to be executed.
2419 @node Foreign Groups
2420 @section Foreign Groups
2421 @cindex foreign groups
2423 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2424 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2425 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2426 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2433 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2434 @cindex making groups
2435 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2436 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2437 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2441 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2442 @cindex renaming groups
2443 Rename the current group to something else
2444 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2445 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2451 @findex gnus-group-customize
2452 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2456 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2457 @cindex renaming groups
2458 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2459 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2463 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2464 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2465 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2469 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2470 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2471 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2475 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2477 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2478 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2483 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2484 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2488 @cindex (ding) archive
2489 @cindex archive group
2490 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2491 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2492 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2493 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2494 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2495 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2496 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2500 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2502 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2503 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2504 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2505 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2509 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2511 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2512 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2513 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2517 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2518 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2520 Make a group based on some file or other
2521 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2522 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2523 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2524 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2525 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2526 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2527 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2528 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2529 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2533 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2534 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2535 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2536 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2540 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2545 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2546 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2547 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2548 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2549 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2550 @xref{Web Searches}.
2552 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2553 to a particular group by using a match string like
2554 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2557 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2558 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2559 This function will delete the current group
2560 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2561 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2562 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2563 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2564 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2568 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2569 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2570 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2574 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2575 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2576 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2579 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2582 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2583 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2584 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2585 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2586 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2587 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2591 @node Group Parameters
2592 @section Group Parameters
2593 @cindex group parameters
2595 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2596 Here's an example group parameter list:
2599 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2603 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2604 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2605 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2606 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2608 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2609 is an alist of regexps and values.
2611 The following group parameters can be used:
2616 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2619 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2622 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2623 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2624 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2625 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2626 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2628 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2629 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2630 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2631 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2632 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2633 list address instead.
2635 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2639 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2642 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2645 It is totally ignored
2646 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2647 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2649 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2650 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2651 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2652 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2653 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2655 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2656 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2657 sending the message.
2659 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2660 @cindex Mail List Groups
2661 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2662 entering summary buffer.
2664 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2668 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2669 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2670 of whether it has any unread articles.
2672 @item broken-reply-to
2673 @cindex broken-reply-to
2674 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2675 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2676 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2677 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2678 broken behavior. So there!
2682 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2683 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2687 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2688 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2689 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2694 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2695 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2696 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2697 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2698 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2699 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2700 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2704 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2705 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2706 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2708 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2711 @cindex total-expire
2712 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2713 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2714 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2715 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2718 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2722 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2723 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2724 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2725 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2726 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2727 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2730 @cindex score file group parameter
2731 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2732 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2733 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2736 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2737 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2738 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2739 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2742 @cindex admin-address
2743 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2744 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2745 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2746 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2750 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2751 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2755 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2758 Display the last INTEGER articles in the group. This is the same as
2759 entering the group with C-u INTEGER.
2762 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2766 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2768 Here are some examples:
2772 Display only read articles.
2775 Display everything except expirable articles.
2777 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2778 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2782 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2783 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2784 @code{read}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2785 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2786 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{seen} and @code{recent}.
2790 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2791 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2792 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2796 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2797 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2798 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2803 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2804 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2805 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2807 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2809 @item ignored-charsets
2810 @cindex ignored-charset
2811 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2812 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2813 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2815 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2818 @cindex posting-style
2819 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2820 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2821 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2822 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2823 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2825 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2826 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2827 like this in the group parameters:
2832 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2837 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2838 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2842 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2843 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2844 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2845 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2846 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2850 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2851 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2852 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2853 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2855 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2856 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2857 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2858 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2861 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2862 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2866 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2869 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2870 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2871 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2872 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2873 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2874 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2875 @code{eval}ed there.
2877 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2878 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2879 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2880 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2881 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2885 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2886 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2887 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2888 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2889 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2891 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2892 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2896 (setq gnus-parameters
2898 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2899 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2900 (gnus-summary-line-format
2901 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2905 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2909 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2913 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2916 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2917 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2920 @node Listing Groups
2921 @section Listing Groups
2922 @cindex group listing
2924 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2932 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2933 List all groups that have unread articles
2934 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2935 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2936 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2937 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2944 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2945 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2946 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2947 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2948 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2949 unsubscribed groups).
2953 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2954 List all unread groups on a specific level
2955 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2956 with no unread articles.
2960 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2961 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2962 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2963 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2968 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2969 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2973 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2974 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2975 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2979 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2980 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2984 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2985 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2986 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2987 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2988 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2989 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2990 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2991 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2995 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2996 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2997 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3001 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3002 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3003 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3007 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3008 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3012 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3013 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3017 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3018 List groups limited within the current selection
3019 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3023 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3024 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3028 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3029 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3033 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3034 @cindex visible group parameter
3035 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3036 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3037 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3038 get the same effect.
3040 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3041 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3042 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3043 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3044 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3047 @node Sorting Groups
3048 @section Sorting Groups
3049 @cindex sorting groups
3051 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3052 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3053 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3054 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3055 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3056 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3061 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3062 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3063 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3065 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3066 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3067 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3069 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3070 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3071 Sort by group level.
3073 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3074 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3075 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3077 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3078 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3079 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3080 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3082 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3083 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3084 Sort by number of unread articles.
3086 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3087 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3088 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3090 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3091 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3092 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3097 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3098 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3102 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3103 some sorting criteria:
3107 @kindex G S a (Group)
3108 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3109 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3110 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3113 @kindex G S u (Group)
3114 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3115 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3116 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3119 @kindex G S l (Group)
3120 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3121 Sort the group buffer by group level
3122 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3125 @kindex G S v (Group)
3126 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3127 Sort the group buffer by group score
3128 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3131 @kindex G S r (Group)
3132 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3133 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3134 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3137 @kindex G S m (Group)
3138 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3139 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3140 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3144 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3145 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3147 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3148 commands will sort in reverse order.
3150 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3154 @kindex G P a (Group)
3155 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3156 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3157 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3160 @kindex G P u (Group)
3161 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3162 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3163 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3166 @kindex G P l (Group)
3167 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3168 Sort the groups by group level
3169 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3172 @kindex G P v (Group)
3173 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3174 Sort the groups by group score
3175 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3178 @kindex G P r (Group)
3179 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3180 Sort the groups by group rank
3181 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3184 @kindex G P m (Group)
3185 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3186 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3187 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3191 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3195 @node Group Maintenance
3196 @section Group Maintenance
3197 @cindex bogus groups
3202 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3203 Find bogus groups and delete them
3204 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3208 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3209 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3210 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3211 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3212 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3216 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3217 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3218 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3219 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3220 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3221 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3224 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3225 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3226 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3227 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3232 @node Browse Foreign Server
3233 @section Browse Foreign Server
3234 @cindex foreign servers
3235 @cindex browsing servers
3240 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3241 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3242 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3243 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3246 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3247 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3248 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3249 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3251 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3256 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3257 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3261 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3262 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3265 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3266 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3267 Enter the current group and display the first article
3268 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3271 @kindex RET (Browse)
3272 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3273 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3277 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3278 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3279 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3285 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3286 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3290 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3291 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3292 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3297 @section Exiting Gnus
3298 @cindex exiting Gnus
3300 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3305 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3306 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3307 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3308 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3312 @findex gnus-group-exit
3313 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3314 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3318 @findex gnus-group-quit
3319 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3320 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3323 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3324 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3325 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3326 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3327 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3332 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3333 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3334 trying to customize meta-variables.
3339 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3340 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3341 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3347 @section Group Topics
3350 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3351 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3352 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3353 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3354 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3355 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3359 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3360 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3371 2: alt.religion.emacs
3374 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3376 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3377 13: comp.sources.unix
3380 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3382 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3383 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3384 is a toggling command.)
3386 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3387 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and
3388 now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3389 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3392 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3393 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3394 @file{~/.gnus} file:
3397 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3401 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3402 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3403 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3404 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3405 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3409 @node Topic Commands
3410 @subsection Topic Commands
3411 @cindex topic commands
3413 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3414 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3415 definitions slightly.
3417 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3418 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3419 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3420 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3421 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3422 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3424 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3431 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3432 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3433 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3437 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3439 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3440 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3441 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3442 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3445 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3446 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3447 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3448 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3452 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3453 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3454 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3455 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3461 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3462 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3463 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3467 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3468 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3469 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3472 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3473 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3474 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3475 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3476 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3478 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3479 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3483 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3484 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3491 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3493 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3494 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3495 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3496 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3497 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3498 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3502 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3508 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3509 Move the current group to some other topic
3510 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3511 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3515 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3516 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3520 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3521 Copy the current group to some other topic
3522 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3523 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3527 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3528 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3529 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3533 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3534 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3535 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3539 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3540 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3541 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3542 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3543 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3544 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3545 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3548 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3549 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3553 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3554 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3555 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3559 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3560 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3561 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3565 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3566 Toggle hiding empty topics
3567 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3571 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3572 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3573 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3576 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3577 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3578 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3579 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3582 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3583 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3584 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3585 expiry process (if any)
3586 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3590 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3591 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3594 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3595 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3596 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3600 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3601 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3602 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3605 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3606 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3607 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3610 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3611 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3612 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3616 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3617 @cindex group parameters
3618 @cindex topic parameters
3620 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3621 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3626 @node Topic Variables
3627 @subsection Topic Variables
3628 @cindex topic variables
3630 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3631 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3633 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3634 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3635 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3648 Number of groups in the topic.
3650 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3652 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3655 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3656 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3657 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3660 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3661 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3663 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3664 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3665 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3669 @subsection Topic Sorting
3670 @cindex topic sorting
3672 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3678 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3679 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3680 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3681 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3684 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3685 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3686 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3687 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3690 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3691 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3692 Sort the current topic by group level
3693 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3696 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3697 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3698 Sort the current topic by group score
3699 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3702 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3703 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3704 Sort the current topic by group rank
3705 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3708 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3709 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3710 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3711 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3714 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3715 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3716 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3717 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3721 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3724 @node Topic Topology
3725 @subsection Topic Topology
3726 @cindex topic topology
3729 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3735 2: alt.religion.emacs
3738 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3740 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3741 13: comp.sources.unix
3744 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3745 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3746 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3751 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3752 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3756 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3757 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3758 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3759 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3760 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3761 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3763 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3764 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3765 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3768 @node Topic Parameters
3769 @subsection Topic Parameters
3770 @cindex topic parameters
3772 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3773 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3774 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3776 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3781 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3782 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3783 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3786 @item subscribe-level
3787 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3788 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3789 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3793 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3794 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3795 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3796 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3802 2: alt.religion.emacs
3806 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3808 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3809 13: comp.sources.unix
3813 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3814 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3815 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3816 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3817 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3818 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3820 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3821 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3822 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3823 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3824 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3826 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3827 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3828 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3829 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3830 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3831 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3832 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3833 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3836 @node Misc Group Stuff
3837 @section Misc Group Stuff
3840 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3841 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3842 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3843 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3844 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3851 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3852 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3853 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3857 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3858 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3859 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3860 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3861 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3862 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3863 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3867 @findex gnus-group-mail
3868 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3869 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3870 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3871 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3875 @findex gnus-group-news
3876 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3877 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3878 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3880 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3881 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
3882 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3883 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
3884 for this to work though.
3888 Variables for the group buffer:
3892 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3893 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3894 is called after the group buffer has been
3897 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3898 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3899 is called after the group buffer is
3900 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3903 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3904 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3905 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3906 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3908 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3909 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3910 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3911 whether they are empty or not.
3913 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3914 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3915 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3916 non-ASCII group names.
3920 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3921 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3924 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3925 @cindex UTF-8 group names
3926 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3927 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
3928 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
3929 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is nil.
3933 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3934 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3939 @node Scanning New Messages
3940 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3941 @cindex new messages
3942 @cindex scanning new news
3948 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3949 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3950 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3951 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3952 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3953 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3958 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3959 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3960 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3961 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3962 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3963 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3964 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3966 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3967 @cindex activating groups
3969 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3970 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3975 @findex gnus-group-restart
3976 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3977 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3978 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3982 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3983 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3985 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3986 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3990 @node Group Information
3991 @subsection Group Information
3992 @cindex group information
3993 @cindex information on groups
4000 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4001 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4004 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4005 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4006 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4007 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4008 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4009 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4010 for fetching the file.
4012 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4013 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4017 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4019 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4020 @cindex describing groups
4021 @cindex group description
4022 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4023 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4024 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4028 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4029 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4030 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4037 @findex gnus-version
4038 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4042 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4043 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4046 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4049 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4050 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4054 @node Group Timestamp
4055 @subsection Group Timestamp
4057 @cindex group timestamps
4059 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4060 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4061 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4064 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4067 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4069 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4070 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4073 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4074 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4077 This will result in lines looking like:
4080 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4081 0: custom 19961002T012713
4084 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4085 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4089 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4090 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4093 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4094 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4098 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4099 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %Ud\n")
4100 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4101 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4102 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)))
4107 @subsection File Commands
4108 @cindex file commands
4114 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4115 @vindex gnus-init-file
4116 @cindex reading init file
4117 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4118 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4122 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4123 @cindex saving .newsrc
4124 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4125 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4126 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4129 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4130 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4131 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4136 @node Sieve Commands
4137 @subsection Sieve Commands
4138 @cindex group sieve commands
4140 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4141 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4142 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4143 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4144 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4146 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4147 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4148 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4149 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4150 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4151 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4152 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4153 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4154 regenerate the Sieve script.
4156 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4157 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4158 is generated. If it is non-nil (the default) articles is placed in
4159 all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article is only
4160 placed in the group with the first matching rule. For example, the
4161 group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4162 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4163 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is nil. (When
4164 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-nil, it looks the same except that
4165 the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4168 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4169 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4174 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4180 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4181 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4182 @cindex generating sieve script
4183 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4184 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4188 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4189 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4190 @cindex updating sieve script
4191 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4192 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4193 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4198 @node Summary Buffer
4199 @chapter Summary Buffer
4200 @cindex summary buffer
4202 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4203 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4205 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4206 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4208 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4211 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4212 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4213 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4214 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4215 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4216 * Delayed Articles::
4217 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4218 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4219 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4220 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4221 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4222 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4223 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4224 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4225 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4226 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4227 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4228 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4229 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4230 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4231 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4232 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4233 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4234 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4235 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4236 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4237 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4238 or reselecting the current group.
4239 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4240 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4241 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4242 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4246 @node Summary Buffer Format
4247 @section Summary Buffer Format
4248 @cindex summary buffer format
4252 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4253 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4254 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4260 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4261 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4262 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4263 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4266 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4267 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4268 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4269 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4270 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4271 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4272 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4273 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4274 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4275 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4276 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4279 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4280 'mail-extract-address-components)
4283 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4284 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4285 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4286 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4289 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4290 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4292 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4293 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4294 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4295 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4296 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4298 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4299 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4300 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4301 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4302 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4303 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4305 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%) %s\n}.
4307 The following format specification characters and extended format
4308 specification(s) are understood:
4314 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4315 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4317 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4318 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4319 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4321 Full @code{From} header.
4323 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4325 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
4326 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
4328 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4329 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4330 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4331 may be more thorough.
4333 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4336 Number of lines in the article.
4338 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4339 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4341 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4343 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4346 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4347 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4349 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4350 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4352 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4353 for adopted articles.
4355 One space for each thread level.
4357 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4359 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4362 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4363 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4364 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4367 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4369 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4370 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4371 default level. If the difference between
4372 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4373 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4381 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4383 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4389 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4390 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4392 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4393 article has any children.
4399 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4400 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4402 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4403 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4404 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4405 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4406 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4407 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4410 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4411 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4412 There can only be one such area.
4414 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4415 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4416 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4417 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4418 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4419 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4421 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4422 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4424 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4427 @node To From Newsgroups
4428 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4432 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4433 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4434 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4435 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4436 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4440 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4441 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4442 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4446 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4447 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4450 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4451 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4454 @findex gnus-extra-header
4455 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4456 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4457 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4460 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4464 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4465 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4466 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4467 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4468 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4469 headers are used instead.
4473 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4474 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4475 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4476 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4479 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4480 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4481 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4482 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4484 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4488 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4490 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4491 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4492 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4493 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4497 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4500 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4501 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4508 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4509 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4512 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4513 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4515 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4516 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4517 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4518 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4520 Here are the elements you can play with:
4526 Unprefixed group name.
4528 Current article number.
4530 Current article score.
4534 Number of unread articles in this group.
4536 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4539 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4540 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4541 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4542 and no unselected ones.
4544 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4545 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4547 Subject of the current article.
4549 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4551 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4553 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4555 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4557 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4559 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4563 @node Summary Highlighting
4564 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4568 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4569 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4570 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4571 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4572 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4574 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4575 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4576 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4577 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4579 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4580 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4581 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4582 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4584 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4585 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4586 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4587 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4588 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4589 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4592 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4593 ((> score default) . bold))
4595 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4596 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4600 @node Summary Maneuvering
4601 @section Summary Maneuvering
4602 @cindex summary movement
4604 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4605 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4607 None of these commands select articles.
4612 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4613 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4614 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4615 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4616 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4620 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4621 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4622 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4623 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4624 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4627 @kindex G g (Summary)
4628 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4629 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4630 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4633 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4634 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4635 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4636 to the group buffer.
4638 Variables related to summary movement:
4642 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4643 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4644 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4645 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4646 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4647 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4648 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4649 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4650 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4651 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4652 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4653 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4654 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4655 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4657 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4658 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4659 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4660 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4661 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4662 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4663 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4665 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4667 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4668 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4669 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4670 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4671 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4673 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4674 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4675 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4676 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4677 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4678 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4679 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4680 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4683 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4684 the given number of lines from the top.
4689 @node Choosing Articles
4690 @section Choosing Articles
4691 @cindex selecting articles
4694 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4695 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4699 @node Choosing Commands
4700 @subsection Choosing Commands
4702 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4703 and they all select and display an article.
4705 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4706 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4710 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4711 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4712 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4713 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4718 @kindex G n (Summary)
4719 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4720 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4721 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4726 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4727 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4728 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4733 @kindex G N (Summary)
4734 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4735 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4740 @kindex G P (Summary)
4741 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4742 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4745 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4746 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4747 Go to the next article with the same subject
4748 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4751 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4752 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4753 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4754 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4758 @kindex G f (Summary)
4760 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4761 Go to the first unread article
4762 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4766 @kindex G b (Summary)
4768 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4769 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4770 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4771 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4776 @kindex G l (Summary)
4777 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4778 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4781 @kindex G o (Summary)
4782 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4784 @cindex article history
4785 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4786 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4787 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4788 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4789 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4790 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4795 @kindex G j (Summary)
4796 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4797 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4798 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4803 @node Choosing Variables
4804 @subsection Choosing Variables
4806 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4809 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4810 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4811 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4812 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4813 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4814 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4816 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4817 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4818 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4819 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4821 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4822 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4823 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4824 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4825 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4826 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4827 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4828 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4829 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4830 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4831 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4832 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4833 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4834 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4839 @node Paging the Article
4840 @section Scrolling the Article
4841 @cindex article scrolling
4846 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4847 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4848 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4849 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4850 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4853 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4854 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4855 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4858 @kindex RET (Summary)
4859 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4860 Scroll the current article one line forward
4861 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4864 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4865 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4866 Scroll the current article one line backward
4867 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4871 @kindex A g (Summary)
4873 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4874 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4875 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4876 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4877 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4878 the way it came from the server.
4880 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4881 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4882 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4885 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4890 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4895 @kindex A < (Summary)
4896 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4897 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4898 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4903 @kindex A > (Summary)
4904 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4905 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4909 @kindex A s (Summary)
4911 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4912 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4913 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4917 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4918 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4923 @node Reply Followup and Post
4924 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4927 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4928 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4929 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4930 * Canceling and Superseding::
4934 @node Summary Mail Commands
4935 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4937 @cindex composing mail
4939 Commands for composing a mail message:
4945 @kindex S r (Summary)
4947 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4948 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4949 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4950 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4951 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4956 @kindex S R (Summary)
4957 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4958 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4959 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4960 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4961 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4964 @kindex S w (Summary)
4965 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4966 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4967 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4968 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4969 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4972 @kindex S V (Summary)
4973 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4974 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4975 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4976 the process/prefix convention.
4979 @kindex S v (Summary)
4980 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4981 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4982 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4983 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4984 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4985 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4989 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4990 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4991 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4992 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4993 Forward the current article to some other person
4994 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4995 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4996 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4997 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4998 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4999 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5000 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5001 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5002 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5007 @kindex S m (Summary)
5008 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5009 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5010 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5011 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5012 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5017 @kindex S i (Summary)
5018 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5019 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5020 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5021 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5023 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5024 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
5025 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5026 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5027 for this to work though.
5030 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5031 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5032 @cindex bouncing mail
5033 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5034 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5035 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5036 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5037 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5038 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5039 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5040 very well fail, though.
5043 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5044 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5045 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5046 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5047 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5048 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5049 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5050 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5051 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5052 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5054 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5055 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5056 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5057 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5058 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
5060 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5061 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5064 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5065 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5066 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5067 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5068 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5071 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5072 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5073 @cindex crossposting
5074 @cindex excessive crossposting
5075 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5076 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5078 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5079 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5080 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5081 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5082 command understands the process/prefix convention
5083 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5087 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5088 Manual}, for more information.
5091 @node Summary Post Commands
5092 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5094 @cindex composing news
5096 Commands for posting a news article:
5102 @kindex S p (Summary)
5103 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5104 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5105 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5106 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5107 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5112 @kindex S f (Summary)
5113 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5114 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5115 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5119 @kindex S F (Summary)
5121 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5122 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5123 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5124 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5125 process/prefix convention.
5128 @kindex S n (Summary)
5129 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5130 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5131 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5134 @kindex S N (Summary)
5135 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5136 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5137 message through mail and include the original message
5138 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5139 the process/prefix convention.
5142 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5143 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5144 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5145 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5146 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5147 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5148 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5149 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5150 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5151 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5152 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5153 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5154 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5157 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5158 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5160 @cindex making digests
5161 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5162 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5163 process/prefix convention.
5166 @kindex S u (Summary)
5167 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5168 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5169 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5170 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5173 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5174 Manual}, for more information.
5177 @node Summary Message Commands
5178 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5182 @kindex S y (Summary)
5183 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5184 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5185 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5186 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5187 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5192 @node Canceling and Superseding
5193 @subsection Canceling Articles
5194 @cindex canceling articles
5195 @cindex superseding articles
5197 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5198 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5200 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5202 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5204 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5205 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5206 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5207 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5208 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5209 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5211 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5212 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5215 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5216 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5217 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5219 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5220 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5221 your original article.
5223 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5225 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5226 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5227 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5230 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5231 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5232 have posted almost the same article twice.
5234 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5235 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5236 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5237 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5238 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5239 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5240 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5241 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5242 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5243 canceled/superseded.
5245 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5247 @node Delayed Articles
5248 @section Delayed Articles
5249 @cindex delayed sending
5250 @cindex send delayed
5252 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5253 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5254 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5255 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5258 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5261 @findex gnus-delay-article
5262 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5263 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5264 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5265 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5269 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5270 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5271 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5272 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5275 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5276 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5277 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5280 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5281 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5282 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5283 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5284 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5285 that means a time tomorrow.
5288 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5289 couple of variables:
5292 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5293 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5294 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5295 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5297 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5298 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5299 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5300 formats described above.
5302 @item gnus-delay-group
5303 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5304 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5305 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5306 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5308 @item gnus-delay-header
5309 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5310 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5311 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5312 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5315 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5316 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5317 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5318 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5319 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5321 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5322 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5323 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5324 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5325 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5326 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5329 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5330 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5331 By default, this function installs the @kbd{C-c C-j} key binding in
5332 Message mode and @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5333 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts two optional arguments,
5334 @code{no-keymap} and @code{no-check}. If @code{no-keymap} is non-nil,
5335 the @kbd{C-c C-j} binding is not intalled. If @code{no-check} is
5336 non-nil, @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed.
5338 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to change the
5339 keymap but not to change @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. Presumably, you
5340 want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles. Just don't
5341 forget to set that up :-)
5345 @node Marking Articles
5346 @section Marking Articles
5347 @cindex article marking
5348 @cindex article ticking
5351 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5353 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5354 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5355 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5357 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5360 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5361 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5362 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5366 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5370 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5371 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5372 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5376 @node Unread Articles
5377 @subsection Unread Articles
5379 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5384 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5385 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5387 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5388 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5389 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5390 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5391 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5392 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5393 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5396 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5397 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5399 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5400 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5401 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5402 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5406 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5407 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5409 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5414 @subsection Read Articles
5415 @cindex expirable mark
5417 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5422 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5423 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5424 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5427 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5428 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5431 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5432 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5433 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5436 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5437 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5440 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5441 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5444 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5445 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5448 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5449 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5452 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5453 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5456 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5457 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5460 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5461 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5465 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5466 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5467 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5471 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5472 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5474 One more special mark, though:
5478 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5479 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5481 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5482 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5483 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5484 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5490 @subsection Other Marks
5491 @cindex process mark
5494 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5500 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5501 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5502 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5503 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5504 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5507 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5508 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5509 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5510 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5512 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5513 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5514 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5516 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5517 Articles that are ``recently'' arrived in the group will be marked
5518 with an @samp{N} in the second column (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Most
5519 back end doesn't support the mark, in which case it's not shown.
5522 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5523 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5524 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5527 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5528 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5529 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5530 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5533 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5534 Articles that according to the back end haven't been seen by the user
5535 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5536 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all back ends support this
5537 mark, in which case it simply never appear.
5540 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5541 Articles that haven't been seen by the user before are marked with a
5542 @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5545 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5546 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5547 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5548 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5549 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5552 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5553 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5554 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5555 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5556 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5557 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5561 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5562 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5563 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5565 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5566 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5567 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5571 @subsection Setting Marks
5572 @cindex setting marks
5574 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5579 @kindex M c (Summary)
5580 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5581 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5582 @cindex mark as unread
5583 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5584 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5590 @kindex M t (Summary)
5591 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5592 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5593 @xref{Article Caching}.
5598 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5599 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5600 Mark the current article as dormant
5601 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5605 @kindex M d (Summary)
5607 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5608 Mark the current article as read
5609 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5613 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5614 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5615 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5620 @kindex M k (Summary)
5621 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5622 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5623 and then select the next unread article
5624 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5628 @kindex M K (Summary)
5629 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5630 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5631 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5632 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5635 @kindex M C (Summary)
5636 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5637 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5638 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5641 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5642 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5643 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5644 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5647 @kindex M H (Summary)
5648 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5649 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5650 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5653 @kindex M h (Summary)
5654 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5655 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5656 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5659 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5660 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5661 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5662 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5665 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5666 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5667 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5668 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5672 @kindex M e (Summary)
5674 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5675 Mark the current article as expirable
5676 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5679 @kindex M b (Summary)
5680 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5681 Set a bookmark in the current article
5682 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5685 @kindex M B (Summary)
5686 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5687 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5688 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5691 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5692 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5693 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5694 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5697 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5698 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5699 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5700 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5703 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5704 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5705 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5706 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5707 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5710 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5711 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5712 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5713 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5714 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5715 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5716 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5717 The default is @code{t}.
5720 @node Generic Marking Commands
5721 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5723 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5724 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5725 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5726 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5727 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5730 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5731 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5734 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5735 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5736 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5737 to list in this manual.
5739 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5740 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5741 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5742 article, you could say something like:
5745 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5746 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5747 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5753 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5754 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5758 @node Setting Process Marks
5759 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5760 @cindex setting process marks
5767 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5768 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5769 Mark the current article with the process mark
5770 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5771 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5775 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5776 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5777 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5778 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5781 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5782 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5783 Remove the process mark from all articles
5784 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5787 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5788 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5789 Invert the list of process marked articles
5790 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5793 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5794 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5795 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5796 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5799 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5800 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5801 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5802 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5805 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5806 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5807 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5810 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5811 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5812 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5813 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5816 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5817 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5818 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5819 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5822 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5823 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5824 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5825 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5828 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5829 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5830 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5833 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5834 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5835 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5836 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5839 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5840 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5841 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5844 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5845 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5846 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5847 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5850 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5851 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5852 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5853 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5856 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5857 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5858 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5859 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5862 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5863 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5864 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5865 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5869 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5870 set process marks based on article body contents.
5877 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5878 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5879 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5882 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5883 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5884 additional articles.
5890 @kindex / / (Summary)
5891 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5892 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5893 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
5897 @kindex / a (Summary)
5898 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5899 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5900 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
5904 @kindex / x (Summary)
5905 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5906 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5907 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5908 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
5913 @kindex / u (Summary)
5915 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5916 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5917 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5918 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5919 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5922 @kindex / m (Summary)
5923 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5924 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5925 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5928 @kindex / t (Summary)
5929 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5930 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5931 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5932 articles younger than that number of days.
5935 @kindex / n (Summary)
5936 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5937 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5938 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5939 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5942 @kindex / w (Summary)
5943 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5944 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5945 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5949 @kindex / v (Summary)
5950 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5951 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5952 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5955 @kindex / p (Summary)
5956 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter
5957 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
5958 group parameter predicate
5959 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter}). See @pxref{Group
5960 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
5964 @kindex M S (Summary)
5965 @kindex / E (Summary)
5966 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5967 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5968 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5971 @kindex / D (Summary)
5972 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5973 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5974 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5977 @kindex / * (Summary)
5978 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5979 Include all cached articles in the limit
5980 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5983 @kindex / d (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5985 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5986 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5989 @kindex / M (Summary)
5990 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5991 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5994 @kindex / T (Summary)
5995 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5996 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5999 @kindex / c (Summary)
6000 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6001 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6002 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6005 @kindex / C (Summary)
6006 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6007 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6008 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6009 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6012 @kindex / N (Summary)
6013 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6014 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6015 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6018 @kindex / o (Summary)
6019 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6020 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6021 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6029 @cindex article threading
6031 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6032 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6033 hierarchical fashion.
6035 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6036 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6037 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6038 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6039 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6040 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6041 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6043 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6047 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6050 A tree-like article structure.
6053 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6056 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6057 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6058 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6059 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6060 called loose threads.
6062 @item thread gathering
6063 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6065 @item sparse threads
6066 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6067 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6073 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6074 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6078 @node Customizing Threading
6079 @subsection Customizing Threading
6080 @cindex customizing threading
6083 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6084 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6085 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6086 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
6091 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6094 @cindex loose threads
6097 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6098 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6099 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6100 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6101 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6102 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6104 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6105 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6106 There are four possible values:
6110 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6111 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6112 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6113 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6114 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6119 @cindex adopting articles
6124 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6125 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6126 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6127 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6130 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6131 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6132 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6133 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6134 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6135 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6136 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6139 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6140 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6141 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6145 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6146 display them after one another.
6149 Don't gather loose threads.
6152 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6153 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6154 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6155 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6156 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6157 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6158 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6159 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6160 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6161 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6162 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6164 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6165 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6166 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6169 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6170 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6171 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6172 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6173 simplification is used.
6175 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6176 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6177 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6178 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6180 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6182 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6188 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6189 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6190 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6191 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6196 (mapconcat 'identity
6197 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6199 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6202 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6205 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6206 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6207 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6208 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6209 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6210 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6212 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6215 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6216 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6217 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6219 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6220 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6223 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6224 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6225 Remove excessive whitespace.
6228 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6231 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6232 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6233 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6234 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6235 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6236 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6237 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6238 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6240 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6241 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6242 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6243 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6244 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6245 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6246 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6247 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6248 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6252 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6253 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6254 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6255 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6257 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6258 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6259 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6262 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6266 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6267 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6273 @node Filling In Threads
6274 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6277 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6278 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6279 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6280 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6281 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6282 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6283 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6284 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6285 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6286 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
6287 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
6288 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
6290 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6291 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6292 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6294 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6295 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6296 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6297 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6298 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6299 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6300 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6301 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6302 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6303 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6304 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6305 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6306 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6307 @code{nil} by default.
6309 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6310 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6311 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6312 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6313 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6314 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6315 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6317 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6318 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6319 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6324 @node More Threading
6325 @subsubsection More Threading
6328 @item gnus-show-threads
6329 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6330 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6331 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6332 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6333 slower and more awkward.
6335 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6336 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6337 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6340 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6341 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6342 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6343 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6344 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6345 threads are expunged.
6347 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6348 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6349 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6352 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6353 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6354 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6355 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6356 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6357 result in a new thread.
6359 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6360 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6361 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6364 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6365 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6366 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6367 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6368 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6369 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6370 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6371 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6372 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6373 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6374 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6379 @node Low-Level Threading
6380 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6384 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6385 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6386 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6388 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6389 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6390 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6391 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6392 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6393 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6394 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6395 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6396 meaningful. Here's one example:
6399 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6401 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6402 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6404 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6406 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6413 @node Thread Commands
6414 @subsection Thread Commands
6415 @cindex thread commands
6421 @kindex T k (Summary)
6422 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6423 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6424 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6425 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6426 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6431 @kindex T l (Summary)
6432 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6433 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6434 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6435 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6438 @kindex T i (Summary)
6439 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6440 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6441 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6444 @kindex T # (Summary)
6445 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6446 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6447 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6450 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6451 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6452 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6453 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6456 @kindex T T (Summary)
6457 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6458 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6461 @kindex T s (Summary)
6462 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6463 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6464 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6467 @kindex T h (Summary)
6468 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6469 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6472 @kindex T S (Summary)
6473 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6474 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6477 @kindex T H (Summary)
6478 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6479 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6482 @kindex T t (Summary)
6483 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6484 Re-thread the current article's thread
6485 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6486 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6489 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6490 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6491 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6492 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6496 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6497 understand the numeric prefix.
6502 @kindex T n (Summary)
6504 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6506 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6507 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6508 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6511 @kindex T p (Summary)
6513 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6515 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6516 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6517 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6520 @kindex T d (Summary)
6521 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6522 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6525 @kindex T u (Summary)
6526 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6527 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6530 @kindex T o (Summary)
6531 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6532 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6535 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6536 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6537 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6538 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6539 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6540 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6541 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6542 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6543 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6544 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6545 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6546 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6550 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6551 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6553 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6554 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6555 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6556 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6557 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6558 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6559 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6560 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6561 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6562 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6563 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6565 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6566 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6567 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6568 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6569 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6571 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6572 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6573 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6575 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6576 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6577 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6578 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6579 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6580 ascending article order.
6582 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6583 by number, you could do something like:
6586 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6587 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6588 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6589 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6592 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6593 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6594 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6595 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6596 which the articles arrived.
6598 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6602 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6604 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6605 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6608 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6609 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6610 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6611 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6614 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6615 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6616 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6617 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6618 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6619 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6620 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6621 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6622 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6623 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6624 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6625 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6626 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6628 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6632 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6633 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6634 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6639 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6640 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6641 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6642 @cindex article pre-fetch
6645 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6646 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6647 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6648 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6649 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6651 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6652 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6654 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6655 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6656 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6657 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6658 connection is blocked.
6660 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6661 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6662 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6663 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6665 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6666 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6667 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6668 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6671 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6674 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6675 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6676 happen automatically.
6678 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6679 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6680 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6681 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6682 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
6683 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6684 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6686 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6687 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6688 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6689 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6690 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6691 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6692 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6693 data structure as the only parameter.
6695 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6698 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6699 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6700 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6701 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6704 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6707 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6708 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6709 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6711 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6712 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6713 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6714 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6718 Remove articles when they are read.
6721 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6724 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6726 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6727 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6728 @c from the next group.
6731 @node Article Caching
6732 @section Article Caching
6733 @cindex article caching
6736 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6737 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6738 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6739 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6740 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6742 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6744 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6745 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6746 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6747 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6748 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6749 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6750 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6751 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6753 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6754 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6755 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6756 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6757 as dormant, and don't worry.
6759 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6761 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6762 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6763 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6764 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6765 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6766 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6767 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6768 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6769 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6770 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6772 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6773 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6774 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6775 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6776 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6777 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6778 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6779 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6780 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6781 not then be downloaded by this command.
6783 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6784 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6785 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6786 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6787 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6788 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6790 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6791 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6792 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6793 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6794 variables, the group is not cached.
6796 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6797 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6798 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6799 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6800 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6801 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6802 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6803 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6804 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6808 @node Persistent Articles
6809 @section Persistent Articles
6810 @cindex persistent articles
6812 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6813 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6814 useful in my opinion.
6816 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6817 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6818 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6819 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6820 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6821 the expiry going on at the news server.
6823 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6824 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6825 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6831 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6832 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6835 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6836 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6837 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6838 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6842 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6844 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6845 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6846 interested in persistent articles:
6849 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6853 @node Article Backlog
6854 @section Article Backlog
6856 @cindex article backlog
6858 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6859 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6860 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6861 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6862 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6863 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6864 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6865 increase memory usage some.
6867 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6868 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6869 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6870 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6871 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6872 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6873 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6875 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6878 @node Saving Articles
6879 @section Saving Articles
6880 @cindex saving articles
6882 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6883 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6884 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6885 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6886 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6888 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6889 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6890 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6892 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6893 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6894 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6895 deleted before saving.
6901 @kindex O o (Summary)
6903 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6904 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6905 Save the current article using the default article saver
6906 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6909 @kindex O m (Summary)
6910 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6911 Save the current article in mail format
6912 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6915 @kindex O r (Summary)
6916 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6917 Save the current article in rmail format
6918 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6921 @kindex O f (Summary)
6922 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6923 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6924 Save the current article in plain file format
6925 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6928 @kindex O F (Summary)
6929 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6930 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6931 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6934 @kindex O b (Summary)
6935 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6936 Save the current article body in plain file format
6937 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6940 @kindex O h (Summary)
6941 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6942 Save the current article in mh folder format
6943 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6946 @kindex O v (Summary)
6947 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6948 Save the current article in a VM folder
6949 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6953 @kindex O p (Summary)
6955 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6956 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6957 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6960 @kindex O P (Summary)
6961 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
6962 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
6963 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
6964 external program Muttprint (see
6965 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
6966 options to use is controlled by the variable
6967 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
6971 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6972 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6973 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6974 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6975 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6976 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6977 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6978 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6979 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6980 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6981 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6982 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6986 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6987 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6988 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6989 functions below, or you can create your own.
6993 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6994 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6995 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6996 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6997 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6998 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6999 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7001 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7002 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7003 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7004 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7005 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7006 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7008 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7009 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7010 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7011 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7012 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7013 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7014 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7016 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7017 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7018 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7019 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7020 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7021 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7023 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7024 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7025 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7026 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7027 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7029 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7030 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7031 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7032 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7033 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7036 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7037 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7038 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7039 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7040 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7042 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7043 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7044 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7045 reader to use this setting.
7048 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7049 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7050 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7051 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7054 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7055 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7056 available functions that generate names:
7060 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7061 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7062 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7064 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7065 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7066 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7068 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7069 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7070 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7072 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7073 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7074 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7076 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7077 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7078 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7081 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7082 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7083 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7084 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7085 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7089 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7090 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7091 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7092 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7095 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7096 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7097 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7098 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7099 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7100 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7101 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7102 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7103 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7105 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7106 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7107 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7108 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7110 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7111 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7112 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7115 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7116 lots of mail groups called things like
7117 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7118 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7119 following will do just that:
7122 (defun my-save-name (group)
7123 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7124 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7126 (setq gnus-split-methods
7127 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7132 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7133 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7134 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7135 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7136 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7137 all the files in the top level directory
7138 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7139 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7140 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7141 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7143 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7144 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7145 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7146 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7147 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7150 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7154 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7155 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7156 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7159 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7160 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7161 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7162 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7165 @node Decoding Articles
7166 @section Decoding Articles
7167 @cindex decoding articles
7169 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7170 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7173 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7174 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7175 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7176 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7177 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7178 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7182 @cindex article series
7183 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7184 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7185 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7186 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7187 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7189 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7190 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7191 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7193 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7194 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7195 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7197 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7198 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7199 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7202 @node Uuencoded Articles
7203 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7205 @cindex uuencoded articles
7210 @kindex X u (Summary)
7211 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7212 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7213 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7216 @kindex X U (Summary)
7217 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7218 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7219 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7222 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7223 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7224 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7227 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7228 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7229 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7230 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7234 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7235 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7236 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7237 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7238 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7240 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7241 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7242 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7243 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7246 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7247 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7248 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7249 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7250 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7251 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7255 @node Shell Archives
7256 @subsection Shell Archives
7258 @cindex shell archives
7259 @cindex shared articles
7261 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7262 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7263 some commands to deal with these:
7268 @kindex X s (Summary)
7269 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7270 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7273 @kindex X S (Summary)
7274 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7275 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7278 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7279 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7280 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7283 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7284 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7285 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7286 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7290 @node PostScript Files
7291 @subsection PostScript Files
7297 @kindex X p (Summary)
7298 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7299 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7302 @kindex X P (Summary)
7303 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7304 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7305 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7308 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7309 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7310 View the current PostScript series
7311 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7314 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7315 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7316 View and save the current PostScript series
7317 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7322 @subsection Other Files
7326 @kindex X o (Summary)
7327 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7328 Save the current series
7329 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7332 @kindex X b (Summary)
7333 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7334 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7335 doesn't really work yet.
7339 @node Decoding Variables
7340 @subsection Decoding Variables
7342 Adjective, not verb.
7345 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7346 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7347 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7351 @node Rule Variables
7352 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7353 @cindex rule variables
7355 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7356 variables are of the form
7359 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7366 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7367 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7369 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7370 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7373 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7374 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7377 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7378 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7379 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7380 user and default view rules.
7382 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7383 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7384 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7389 @node Other Decode Variables
7390 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7393 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7395 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7396 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7397 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7398 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7399 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7403 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7404 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7407 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7408 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7409 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7412 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7413 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7414 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7415 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7416 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7419 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7420 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7421 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7423 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7424 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7425 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7426 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7427 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7430 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7431 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7432 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7434 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7435 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7436 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7437 looking for files to display.
7439 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7440 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7441 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7444 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7445 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7446 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7449 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7450 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7451 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7454 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7455 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7456 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7459 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7460 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7461 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7462 decoded articles as unread.
7464 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7465 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7466 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7467 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7469 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7470 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7471 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7473 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7474 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7476 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7477 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7478 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7479 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7481 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7482 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7483 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7484 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7485 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7486 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7487 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7488 simply dropped them.
7493 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7494 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7498 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7499 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7500 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7501 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7502 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7503 for you when you post the article.
7505 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7506 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7507 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7508 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7510 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7511 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7512 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7513 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7514 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7515 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7516 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7518 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7519 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7520 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7521 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7522 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7523 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7524 Default is @code{t}.
7530 @subsection Viewing Files
7531 @cindex viewing files
7532 @cindex pseudo-articles
7534 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7535 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7536 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7537 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7538 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7539 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7540 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7542 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7543 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7544 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7545 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7547 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7548 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7549 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7551 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7552 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7553 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7554 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7555 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7557 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7558 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7559 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7560 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7561 a list of parameters to that command.
7563 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7564 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7565 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7567 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7568 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7569 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7572 @node Article Treatment
7573 @section Article Treatment
7575 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7576 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7577 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7578 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7579 these articles easier.
7582 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7583 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7584 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7585 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7586 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7587 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7588 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7589 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7590 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7591 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7595 @node Article Highlighting
7596 @subsection Article Highlighting
7597 @cindex highlighting
7599 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7600 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7605 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7606 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7607 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7608 Do much highlighting of the current article
7609 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7610 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7613 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7614 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7615 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7616 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7617 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7618 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7619 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7620 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7621 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7622 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7623 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7624 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7627 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7628 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7629 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7631 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7634 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7636 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7637 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7638 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7640 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7641 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7642 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7644 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7645 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7646 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7647 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7648 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7649 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7651 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7652 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7653 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7655 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7656 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7657 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7659 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7660 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7661 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7662 that it's a citation.
7664 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7665 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7666 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7668 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7669 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7670 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7672 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7673 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7674 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7675 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7681 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7682 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7683 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7684 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7685 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7686 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7687 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7688 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7693 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7696 @node Article Fontisizing
7697 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7699 @cindex article emphasis
7701 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7702 @kindex W e (Summary)
7703 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7704 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7705 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7706 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7708 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7709 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7710 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7711 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7712 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7713 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7714 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7715 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7719 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7720 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7721 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7730 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7731 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7732 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7733 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7734 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7735 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7736 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7737 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7738 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7739 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7740 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7741 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7742 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7744 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7745 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7746 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7750 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7753 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7755 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7756 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7757 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7758 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7760 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7763 @node Article Hiding
7764 @subsection Article Hiding
7765 @cindex article hiding
7767 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7768 too much cruft in most articles.
7773 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7774 @findex gnus-article-hide
7775 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7776 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7777 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7780 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7781 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7782 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7786 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7787 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7788 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7789 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7792 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7793 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7794 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7798 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7799 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7800 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7801 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7802 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7803 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7804 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7805 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7809 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7810 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7811 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7812 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7817 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7818 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7819 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7820 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7821 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7822 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7823 articles that have signatures in them do:
7825 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7827 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7829 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7830 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7832 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7835 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7840 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7841 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7842 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7843 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7846 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7847 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7850 @cindex stripping advertisements
7851 @cindex advertisements
7852 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7853 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7854 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7855 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7856 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7857 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7858 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7859 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7860 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7861 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7865 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7866 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7867 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7868 customizing the hiding:
7872 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7873 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7874 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7875 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7876 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7877 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7878 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7883 Starting point of the hidden text.
7885 Ending point of the hidden text.
7887 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7889 Number of lines of hidden text.
7892 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7893 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7894 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7895 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7896 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7901 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7902 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7904 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7905 following two variables:
7908 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7909 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7910 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7911 50), hide the cited text.
7913 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7914 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7915 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7920 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7921 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7922 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7923 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7924 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7925 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7929 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7930 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7931 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7933 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7934 citation customization.
7936 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7940 @node Article Washing
7941 @subsection Article Washing
7943 @cindex article washing
7945 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7946 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7948 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7949 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7952 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7953 articles by default.
7958 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7959 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7963 @kindex W l (Summary)
7964 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7965 Remove page breaks from the current article
7966 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7970 @kindex W r (Summary)
7971 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7972 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7973 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7974 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7975 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7976 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7978 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7979 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7980 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7981 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7985 @kindex W t (Summary)
7987 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7988 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7989 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7992 @kindex W v (Summary)
7993 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7994 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7995 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7998 @kindex W o (Summary)
7999 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8000 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8003 @kindex W d (Summary)
8004 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8005 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8007 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8009 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8010 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8011 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8012 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8015 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8016 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8017 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8018 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8021 @kindex W w (Summary)
8022 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8023 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8025 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8029 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8030 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8031 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8034 @kindex W C (Summary)
8035 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8036 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8037 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8040 @kindex W c (Summary)
8041 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8042 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8043 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8044 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8045 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8048 @kindex W q (Summary)
8049 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8050 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8051 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
8052 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
8053 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
8054 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
8055 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
8056 header that says that this encoding has been done.
8057 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8060 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8061 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8062 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8063 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8064 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
8065 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8066 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8068 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8071 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8072 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8073 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8074 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8075 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8078 @kindex W h (Summary)
8079 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8080 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
8081 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
8082 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
8084 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8087 @kindex W b (Summary)
8088 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8089 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8090 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8093 @kindex W B (Summary)
8094 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8095 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8096 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8099 @kindex W p (Summary)
8100 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8101 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8102 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8103 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8104 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8105 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8106 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8109 @kindex W s (Summary)
8110 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8111 Verify a signed (PGP, PGP/MIME or S/MIME) message
8112 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8115 @kindex W W H (Summary)
8116 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
8117 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8118 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
8121 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8122 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8123 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8124 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8127 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8128 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8129 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8130 lines with a single empty line.
8131 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8134 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8135 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8136 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8137 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8140 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8141 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8142 Do all the three commands above
8143 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8146 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8147 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8148 Remove all blank lines
8149 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8152 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8153 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8154 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8155 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8158 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8159 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8160 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8161 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8165 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8168 @node Article Header
8169 @subsection Article Header
8171 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8176 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8177 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8178 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8181 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8182 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8183 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8184 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8187 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8188 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-header
8189 Fold all the message headers
8190 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8195 @node Article Buttons
8196 @subsection Article Buttons
8199 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8200 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8201 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8202 button on these references.
8204 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8205 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
8206 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
8211 @item gnus-button-alist
8212 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8213 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8216 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8222 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
8223 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
8224 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
8227 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8228 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8229 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8232 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8233 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8234 avoid false matches.
8237 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8240 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8241 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8245 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8248 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8251 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8252 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8253 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8254 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8255 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8258 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8261 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8263 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8264 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8265 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8266 default values of the variables above.
8268 @item gnus-article-button-face
8269 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8270 Face used on buttons.
8272 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8273 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8274 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8278 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8282 @subsection Article Date
8284 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8285 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8286 when the article was sent.
8291 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8292 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8293 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8294 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8297 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8298 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8300 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8301 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8304 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8305 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8306 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8309 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8310 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8311 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8312 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8315 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8316 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8317 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8318 @findex format-time-string
8319 Display the date using a user-defined format
8320 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8321 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8322 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8323 for a list of possible format specs.
8326 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8327 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8328 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8329 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8330 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8331 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8334 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8337 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8338 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8341 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8342 into wonderful absurdities.
8344 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8347 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8350 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8351 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8355 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8356 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8357 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8358 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8359 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8360 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8361 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8365 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8366 preferred format automatically.
8369 @node Article Display
8370 @subsection Article Display
8375 These commands add various frivolous display gimmics to the article
8376 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8378 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8379 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8381 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8382 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8384 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8385 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8387 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8392 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8393 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8394 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8395 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8398 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8399 @findex gnus-smiley-smiley
8400 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8403 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8404 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8405 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8408 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8409 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8410 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8411 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8414 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8415 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8416 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8417 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8420 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8421 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8422 Remove all images from the article buffer
8423 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8429 @node Article Signature
8430 @subsection Article Signature
8432 @cindex article signature
8434 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8435 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8436 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8437 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8438 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8439 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8440 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8441 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8442 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8445 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8446 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8447 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8448 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8449 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8450 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8451 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8452 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8455 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8458 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8459 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8460 signature when displaying articles.
8464 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8467 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8470 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8471 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8473 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8474 in question is not a signature.
8477 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8478 listed above. Here's an example:
8481 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8482 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8485 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8486 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8487 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8488 signature after all.
8491 @node Article Miscellania
8492 @subsection Article Miscellania
8496 @kindex A t (Summary)
8497 @findex gnus-article-babel
8498 Translate the article from one language to another
8499 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8505 @section @sc{mime} Commands
8506 @cindex MIME decoding
8508 @cindex viewing attachments
8510 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8511 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8517 @kindex K v (Summary)
8518 View the @sc{mime} part.
8521 @kindex K o (Summary)
8522 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8525 @kindex K c (Summary)
8526 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8529 @kindex K e (Summary)
8530 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8533 @kindex K i (Summary)
8534 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8537 @kindex K | (Summary)
8538 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8541 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8546 @kindex K b (Summary)
8547 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8548 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8552 @kindex K m (Summary)
8553 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8554 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8555 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8556 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8557 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8560 @kindex X m (Summary)
8561 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8562 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8563 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8564 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8567 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8568 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8569 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8570 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8573 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8574 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8575 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8578 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8579 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8580 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8582 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8583 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8584 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8585 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
8586 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
8587 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8590 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8591 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8592 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8599 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8600 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8601 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8602 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8605 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8608 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8612 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8613 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8614 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8615 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8616 displayed or this variable is overriden by
8617 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
8620 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8621 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8622 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8623 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8624 displayed. This variable overrides
8625 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
8627 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
8628 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
8629 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} to the default value.
8631 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8632 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8633 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8634 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8635 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8636 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8637 save all jpegs into some directory).
8639 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8642 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8643 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8645 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8646 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8647 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8648 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8649 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8652 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8653 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8654 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8656 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8657 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8658 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8659 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8661 Ready-made functions include@*
8662 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8663 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8664 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8665 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8666 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8667 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8668 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8669 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8670 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8671 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8672 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8673 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8675 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8676 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8678 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8679 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8680 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8683 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8684 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8685 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8686 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8690 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8699 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8700 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8701 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8702 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8703 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8704 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8705 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8707 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8708 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8709 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8710 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8712 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8713 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
8714 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8715 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8716 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
8717 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8718 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
8719 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
8721 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8722 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8723 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8724 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8725 quoted-printable header encoding.
8727 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8728 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8729 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8733 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8736 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8737 means encode all charsets),
8739 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8740 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8741 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8748 @cindex coding system aliases
8749 @cindex preferred charset
8751 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8753 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8754 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8757 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8758 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8761 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8762 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8764 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8767 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8770 This will almost do the right thing.
8772 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8776 (codepage-setup 1251)
8777 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8781 @node Article Commands
8782 @section Article Commands
8789 @kindex A P (Summary)
8790 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8791 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8792 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8793 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
8794 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
8795 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
8800 @node Summary Sorting
8801 @section Summary Sorting
8802 @cindex summary sorting
8804 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8805 can't really see why you'd want that.
8810 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8811 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8812 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8815 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8816 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8817 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8820 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8821 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8822 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8825 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8826 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8827 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8830 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8831 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8832 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8835 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8836 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8837 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8840 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8841 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8842 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8845 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8846 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8847 Sort using the default sorting method
8848 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8851 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8852 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8853 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8854 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8855 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8859 @node Finding the Parent
8860 @section Finding the Parent
8861 @cindex parent articles
8862 @cindex referring articles
8867 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8868 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8869 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8870 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8871 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8872 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8873 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8874 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8875 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8877 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8878 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8879 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8880 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8881 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8885 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8886 @kindex A R (Summary)
8887 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8888 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8891 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8892 @kindex A T (Summary)
8893 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8894 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8895 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8896 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8897 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8898 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8899 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8901 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8902 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8903 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8904 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8905 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8906 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8909 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8910 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8912 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8913 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8914 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8915 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8916 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8917 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8918 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8921 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8922 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8923 by giving this command a prefix.
8925 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8926 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
8927 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8928 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8929 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8930 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8933 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8934 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8935 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8938 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8939 then ask Deja if that fails:
8942 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8944 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8947 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
8948 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox}
8949 and @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8950 @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder} and @code{nnimap}1 are only able to locate
8951 articles that have been posted to the current group. (Anything else
8952 would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at
8956 @node Alternative Approaches
8957 @section Alternative Approaches
8959 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8960 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8963 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8964 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8969 @subsection Pick and Read
8970 @cindex pick and read
8972 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8973 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8974 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8975 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8977 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8978 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8979 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8980 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8981 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8982 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8984 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8989 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8990 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8991 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8992 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8993 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8994 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8995 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8996 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8999 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9000 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9001 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9002 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9006 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9007 Unpick the thread or article
9008 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9009 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9010 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9011 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9012 the thread or article at that line.
9016 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9017 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9018 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9019 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9020 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9021 will still be visible when you are reading.
9025 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9026 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9027 which is mapped to the same function
9028 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9030 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9033 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9036 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9037 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9039 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9040 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9041 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9043 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9044 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9045 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9046 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9047 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9048 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9049 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9053 @subsection Binary Groups
9054 @cindex binary groups
9056 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9057 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9058 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9059 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9060 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9061 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9062 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9065 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9066 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9067 command, when you have turned on this mode
9068 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9070 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9071 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9075 @section Tree Display
9078 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9079 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9080 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9081 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9084 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9087 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9088 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9089 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9091 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9092 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9093 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9094 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9095 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9097 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9098 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9099 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9100 default is @code{modeline}.
9102 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9103 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9104 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9105 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9106 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9107 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9108 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9114 The name of the poster.
9116 The @code{From} header.
9118 The number of the article.
9120 The opening bracket.
9122 The closing bracket.
9127 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9129 Variables related to the display are:
9132 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9133 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9134 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9135 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9136 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9137 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9139 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9140 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9141 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9142 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9146 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9147 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9148 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9149 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9150 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9151 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9152 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9153 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9154 other windows displayed next to it.
9156 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9160 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9161 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9164 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9165 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9166 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9167 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9168 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9169 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9170 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9174 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9177 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9187 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9191 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9192 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9194 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9196 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9201 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9202 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9203 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
9206 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9207 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9208 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9209 (gnus-add-configuration
9213 (summary 0.75 point)
9218 @xref{Window Layout}.
9221 @node Mail Group Commands
9222 @section Mail Group Commands
9223 @cindex mail group commands
9225 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9226 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9228 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9229 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9234 @kindex B e (Summary)
9235 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9236 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9237 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9238 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9239 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9242 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9243 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9244 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9245 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9246 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9247 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9250 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9251 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9252 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9253 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9254 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9255 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9258 @kindex B m (Summary)
9260 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9261 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9262 Move the article from one mail group to another
9263 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9264 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9267 @kindex B c (Summary)
9269 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9270 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9271 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9272 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9273 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9276 @kindex B B (Summary)
9277 @cindex crosspost mail
9278 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9279 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9280 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9281 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9282 be properly updated.
9285 @kindex B i (Summary)
9286 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9287 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9288 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9289 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9292 @kindex B r (Summary)
9293 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9294 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9295 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9296 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9297 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9298 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9299 (which is the default).
9303 @kindex B w (Summary)
9305 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9306 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9307 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9308 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9309 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9310 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9313 @kindex B q (Summary)
9314 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9315 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9316 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9317 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9320 @kindex B t (Summary)
9321 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9322 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9323 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9326 @kindex B p (Summary)
9327 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9328 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
9329 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9330 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9331 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9332 article from your news server (or rather, from
9333 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9334 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9335 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9336 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9337 just not have arrived yet.
9341 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9342 @cindex moving articles
9343 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9344 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9345 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9346 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9347 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9348 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9349 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9352 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9353 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9354 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9355 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9359 @node Various Summary Stuff
9360 @section Various Summary Stuff
9363 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9364 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9365 * Summary Generation Commands::
9366 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9370 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9371 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9372 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9374 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9375 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9376 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9377 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9378 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9379 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9382 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9383 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9384 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9385 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9386 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9388 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9389 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9390 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9393 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9394 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9395 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9396 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9397 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9398 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9399 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
9400 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9401 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9402 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9404 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9405 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9406 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9407 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9408 list of articles to be selected.
9410 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9411 the list in one particular group:
9414 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9415 (if (string= group "some.group")
9416 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9420 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
9421 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
9422 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
9423 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
9424 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
9425 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
9426 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
9427 buffers. For example:
9430 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
9431 '(message-use-followup-to
9432 (gnus-visible-headers .
9433 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
9439 @node Summary Group Information
9440 @subsection Summary Group Information
9445 @kindex H f (Summary)
9446 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9447 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9448 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9449 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9450 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9451 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9452 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9453 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9454 be used for fetching the file.
9457 @kindex H d (Summary)
9458 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9459 Give a brief description of the current group
9460 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9461 rereading the description from the server.
9464 @kindex H h (Summary)
9465 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9466 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9467 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9470 @kindex H i (Summary)
9471 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9472 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9476 @node Searching for Articles
9477 @subsection Searching for Articles
9482 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9483 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9484 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9485 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9488 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9489 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9490 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9491 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9495 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9496 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9497 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9498 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9499 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9500 search backward instead.
9502 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9503 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9506 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9507 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9508 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9509 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9512 @node Summary Generation Commands
9513 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9518 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9519 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9520 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9523 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9524 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9525 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9526 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9531 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9532 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9538 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9539 @kindex A D (Summary)
9540 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9541 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9542 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9543 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9544 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9545 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9546 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9547 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9551 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
9552 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9553 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9554 several documents into one biiig group
9555 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9556 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9557 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9558 command understands the process/prefix convention
9559 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9562 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9563 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9564 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9565 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9566 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9567 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9571 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9572 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9573 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9576 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
9577 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9578 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9579 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9582 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
9583 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9584 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9585 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9590 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9591 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9592 @cindex summary exit
9593 @cindex exiting groups
9595 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9596 group and return you to the group buffer.
9602 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9604 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9605 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9606 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9607 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9608 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9609 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9610 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9611 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9612 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9613 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9614 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9618 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9620 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9621 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9622 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9626 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9628 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9629 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9630 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9631 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9634 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9635 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9636 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9637 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9640 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9641 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9642 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9643 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9646 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9647 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9648 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9649 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9650 all articles, both read and unread.
9654 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9655 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9656 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9657 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9658 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9659 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9660 articles, both read and unread.
9663 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9664 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9665 Exit the group and go to the next group
9666 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9669 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9670 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9671 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9672 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9675 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9676 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9677 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9678 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9679 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9680 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9683 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9684 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9685 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9686 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9688 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9689 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9690 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9691 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9692 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9693 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9694 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9695 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9696 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9697 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9698 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9699 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9701 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9703 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9704 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9705 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9706 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9707 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9708 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9709 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9710 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9711 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9714 @node Crosspost Handling
9715 @section Crosspost Handling
9719 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9720 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9721 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9722 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9723 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9724 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9727 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9728 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9729 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9730 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9731 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9733 @cindex cross-posting
9736 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9737 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9738 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9739 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9740 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9741 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9742 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9743 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9744 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9745 the cross reference mechanism.
9747 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9748 @cindex overview.fmt
9749 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9750 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9751 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9752 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9753 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9754 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9757 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9758 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9759 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9764 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9767 @node Duplicate Suppression
9768 @section Duplicate Suppression
9770 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9771 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9772 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9773 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9778 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9779 is evil and not very common.
9782 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9783 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9786 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9787 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9790 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9793 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9794 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9796 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9797 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9798 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9799 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9800 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9801 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9802 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9805 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9806 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9807 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9808 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9809 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9813 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9814 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9815 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9817 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9818 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9819 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9820 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9821 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9822 session are suppressed.
9824 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9825 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9826 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9827 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9829 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9830 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9831 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9832 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9835 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9836 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9837 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9838 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9839 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9840 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9841 to you to figure out, I think.
9846 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
9847 The formats that are supported are PGP, PGP/MIME and S/MIME, however
9848 you need some external programs to get things to work:
9852 To handle PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or gpg.el as
9853 well as a OpenPGP implementation (such as GnuPG).
9856 To handle S/MIME message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
9857 or newer is recommended.
9861 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
9862 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
9865 @item mm-verify-option
9866 @vindex mm-verify-option
9867 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9868 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9869 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9871 @item mm-decrypt-option
9872 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9873 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9874 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
9875 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9880 @section Mailing List
9882 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
9883 either add a `to-list' group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
9884 possibly using @kbd{A M} in the summary buffer, or say:
9887 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'turn-on-gnus-mailing-list-mode)
9890 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
9895 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
9896 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
9897 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
9900 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
9901 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
9902 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
9905 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
9906 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
9907 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
9911 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
9912 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
9913 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
9916 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
9917 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9918 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
9921 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
9922 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9923 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
9927 @node Article Buffer
9928 @chapter Article Buffer
9929 @cindex article buffer
9931 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9932 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9933 tell Gnus otherwise.
9936 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9937 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9938 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9939 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9940 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9944 @node Hiding Headers
9945 @section Hiding Headers
9946 @cindex hiding headers
9947 @cindex deleting headers
9949 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9950 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9952 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9953 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9954 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9955 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9956 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9957 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9958 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9959 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9960 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9962 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9966 @item gnus-visible-headers
9967 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9968 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9969 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9970 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9972 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9973 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9976 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9979 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9982 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9983 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9984 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9985 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9986 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9987 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9989 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9990 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9993 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9996 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9999 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10000 variable will have no effect.
10004 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10005 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10006 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10007 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10008 the headers are to be displayed.
10010 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10011 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10014 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10017 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10018 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10020 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10021 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10022 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10023 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10024 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10025 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10026 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10029 These conditions are:
10032 Remove all empty headers.
10034 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10035 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10037 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10038 @code{From} header.
10040 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10043 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10044 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10046 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10049 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10051 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10054 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
10057 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10058 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10061 This is also the default value for this variable.
10065 @section Using MIME
10068 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10069 while people stand around yawning.
10071 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10072 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10074 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10075 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10076 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10078 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10079 @findex gnus-display-mime
10080 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10081 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10082 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10083 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
10085 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10089 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10090 @item RET (Article)
10091 @kindex RET (Article)
10092 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10093 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
10094 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
10096 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10097 @item M-RET (Article)
10098 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10100 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10101 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10103 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10105 @kindex t (Article)
10106 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
10107 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10109 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10111 @kindex C (Article)
10112 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10113 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10115 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10117 @kindex o (Article)
10118 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
10119 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10121 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10122 @item C-o (Article)
10123 @kindex C-o (Article)
10124 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
10125 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10126 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10127 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
10128 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
10129 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10131 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10133 @kindex c (Article)
10134 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10135 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
10137 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10139 @kindex p (Article)
10140 Print the @sc{mime} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10141 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10142 @file{.mailcap} file.
10144 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10146 @kindex i (Article)
10147 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
10148 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10149 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10150 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10151 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10154 @findex gnus-mime-internalize-part
10156 @kindex E (Article)
10157 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10158 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10159 (@code{gnus-mime-internalize-part}).
10161 @findex gnus-mime-externalize-part
10163 @kindex e (Article)
10164 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
10165 (@code{gnus-mime-externalize-part}).
10167 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10169 @kindex | (Article)
10170 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10172 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10174 @kindex . (Article)
10175 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
10176 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10180 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10181 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
10184 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10185 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10186 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
10187 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10188 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10189 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10190 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10191 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10192 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10194 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10196 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10199 @node Customizing Articles
10200 @section Customizing Articles
10201 @cindex article customization
10203 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10204 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
10205 called automatically when you select the articles.
10207 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10208 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10209 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10210 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10212 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10213 for sensible values.
10217 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10220 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10223 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10226 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10229 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10233 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10234 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10235 regexps in the list.
10238 A list where the first element is not a string:
10240 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10241 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10242 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10246 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10251 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10252 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10253 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10254 considered to contain just a single part.
10256 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10257 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10258 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10259 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10260 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10261 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10262 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10264 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10265 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10266 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10267 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10270 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10271 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10273 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10275 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10276 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10277 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10278 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10279 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10280 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10281 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10282 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
10283 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10285 @xref{Article Washing}.
10287 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10288 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10289 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10290 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10291 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10292 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10293 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10295 @xref{Article Date}.
10297 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10298 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10299 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10303 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10305 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10307 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10308 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10309 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10313 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10317 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10318 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10319 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10320 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10321 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10322 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10323 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10324 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10326 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10328 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10329 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10330 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10332 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10334 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10335 @item gnus-treat-translate
10336 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10338 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10339 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10340 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10346 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10347 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10348 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10349 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10350 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10354 @node Article Keymap
10355 @section Article Keymap
10357 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10358 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10359 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10360 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10363 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10368 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10369 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10370 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10373 @kindex DEL (Article)
10374 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10375 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10378 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10379 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10380 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10381 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10382 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10385 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10386 @findex gnus-article-mail
10387 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10388 given a prefix, include the mail.
10391 @kindex s (Article)
10392 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10393 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
10394 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
10397 @kindex ? (Article)
10398 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
10399 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
10400 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
10403 @kindex TAB (Article)
10404 @findex gnus-article-next-button
10405 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
10406 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
10409 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
10410 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
10411 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
10414 @kindex R (Article)
10415 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
10416 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
10417 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
10418 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10422 @kindex F (Article)
10423 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
10424 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
10425 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
10426 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10434 @section Misc Article
10438 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
10439 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
10440 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
10441 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
10444 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
10445 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
10447 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
10448 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
10450 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
10451 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
10452 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
10453 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
10454 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
10455 the contents of the article buffer.
10457 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
10458 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
10459 Hook called in article mode buffers.
10461 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10462 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10463 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
10464 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
10466 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
10467 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
10468 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
10469 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
10470 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
10476 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
10477 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
10478 performed. The characters and their meaning:
10483 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
10486 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
10489 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
10490 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
10491 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
10494 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
10497 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
10500 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
10505 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
10509 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10511 @item gnus-break-pages
10512 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10513 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10514 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10515 paging will not be done.
10517 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10518 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10519 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10524 @node Composing Messages
10525 @chapter Composing Messages
10526 @cindex composing messages
10529 @cindex sending mail
10534 @cindex using s/mime
10535 @cindex using smime
10537 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10538 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10539 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10540 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
10541 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10542 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10545 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10546 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
10547 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10548 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10549 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10550 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10551 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10552 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
10555 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10556 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10562 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10565 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10566 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10567 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10568 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
10570 @item gnus-add-to-list
10571 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10572 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10573 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10578 @node Posting Server
10579 @section Posting Server
10581 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10582 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10584 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10586 @vindex gnus-post-method
10588 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
10589 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
10590 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
10591 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
10592 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
10593 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
10594 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10597 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10600 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10601 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10602 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10603 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10605 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10606 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10608 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10609 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10612 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10613 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
10616 @node Mail and Post
10617 @section Mail and Post
10619 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10623 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10624 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10625 @cindex mailing lists
10627 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10628 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10629 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10630 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10631 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10632 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10633 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10634 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10635 still a pain, though.
10639 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10640 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10641 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10644 @findex ispell-message
10646 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10649 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10650 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10653 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10657 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10658 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10660 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10663 Modify to suit your needs.
10666 @node Archived Messages
10667 @section Archived Messages
10668 @cindex archived messages
10669 @cindex sent messages
10671 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10672 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10673 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10674 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10677 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10678 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10679 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10682 (nnfolder "archive"
10683 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10684 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10685 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10686 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10689 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10690 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10691 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10692 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10695 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10696 '(nnfolder "archive"
10697 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10698 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10699 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10702 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10704 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10705 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10706 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10708 This variable can be used to do the following:
10713 Messages will be saved in that group.
10715 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10716 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10717 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10718 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10719 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10720 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10721 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10722 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10726 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10728 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10729 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10732 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10737 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10739 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10742 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10744 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10747 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10749 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10750 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10751 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10752 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10755 More complex stuff:
10757 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10758 '((if (message-news-p)
10763 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10764 messages in one file per month:
10767 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10768 '((if (message-news-p)
10770 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10773 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10774 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10776 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10777 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
10778 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
10779 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
10780 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
10781 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
10782 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
10783 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
10784 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
10785 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
10787 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
10788 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
10789 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
10790 this will disable archiving.
10793 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
10794 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
10795 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
10796 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
10797 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
10800 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
10801 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
10802 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
10805 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
10806 but the latter is the preferred method.
10808 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10809 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10810 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
10815 @node Posting Styles
10816 @section Posting Styles
10817 @cindex posting styles
10820 All them variables, they make my head swim.
10822 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
10823 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
10824 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
10827 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
10828 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
10829 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
10830 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
10831 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
10836 (signature "Peace and happiness")
10837 (organization "What me?"))
10839 (signature "Death to everybody"))
10840 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
10841 (organization "Emacs is it")))
10844 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
10845 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
10846 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
10847 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
10848 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
10849 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
10850 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
10851 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
10853 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
10854 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
10855 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
10856 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
10857 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
10858 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
10859 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
10860 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
10861 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
10863 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
10864 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
10865 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10866 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
10867 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
10868 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
10869 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
10870 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
10871 result is thrown away.
10873 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10874 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10875 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10876 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10877 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10878 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
10880 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10881 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10882 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10884 @findex message-mail-p
10885 @findex message-news-p
10887 So here's a new example:
10890 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10892 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10894 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10895 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10897 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10898 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10899 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10901 (signature my-news-signature))
10902 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10903 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10904 ((posting-from-work-p)
10905 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10906 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10907 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10908 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10910 (From (save-excursion
10911 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10912 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10914 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10917 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10918 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10919 if you fill many roles.
10926 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10927 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10928 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10929 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10930 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10932 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10933 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10934 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10935 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10936 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10940 @vindex nndraft-directory
10941 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10942 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10943 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10944 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10945 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10946 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10948 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10949 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10952 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10953 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10954 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10955 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10956 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10957 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10958 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10959 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10960 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10961 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10962 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10963 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10964 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10965 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10967 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10968 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10969 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10971 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10972 @kindex D e (Draft)
10973 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10974 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10975 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10977 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10980 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10981 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10982 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10983 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10984 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10985 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10986 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10989 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10990 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10991 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10994 @node Rejected Articles
10995 @section Rejected Articles
10996 @cindex rejected articles
10998 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10999 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11000 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11001 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11003 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
11004 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11005 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11006 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
11007 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11009 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11010 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11011 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11013 @node Signing and encrypting
11014 @section Signing and encrypting
11016 @cindex using s/mime
11017 @cindex using smime
11019 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11020 format or PGP/MIME or S/MIME. For decoding such messages, see the
11021 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11022 (@pxref{Security}).
11024 For PGP, Gnus supports two external libraries, @sc{gpg.el} and
11025 @sc{Mailcrypt}, you need to install at least one of them. The S/MIME
11026 support in Gnus requires the external program OpenSSL.
11028 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a MIME part is done
11029 using the @code{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @code{C-c C-m
11030 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11035 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11036 @findex mml-secure-sign-smime
11038 Digitally sign current MIME part using S/MIME.
11041 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11042 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11044 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP.
11047 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11048 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11050 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11053 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11054 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-smime
11056 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using S/MIME.
11059 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11060 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgp
11062 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP.
11065 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11066 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgpmime
11068 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11072 Also @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}.
11074 @node Select Methods
11075 @chapter Select Methods
11076 @cindex foreign groups
11077 @cindex select methods
11079 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11080 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11081 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11082 personal mail group.
11084 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11085 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11086 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11087 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11088 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11089 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11091 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11092 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11094 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11097 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11098 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11099 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11100 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11101 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11103 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11106 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11107 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11108 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11109 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11110 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11111 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11112 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11113 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11117 @node Server Buffer
11118 @section Server Buffer
11120 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11121 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11122 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11123 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11124 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11125 back end represents a virtual server.
11127 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11128 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11129 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11130 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11132 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11133 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11134 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11135 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11136 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11137 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11138 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11140 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11141 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11144 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11145 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11146 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11147 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11148 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11149 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11150 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11153 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11154 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11157 @node Server Buffer Format
11158 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11159 @cindex server buffer format
11161 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11162 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11163 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11164 variable, with some simple extensions:
11169 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11172 The name of this server.
11175 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11178 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11181 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11182 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11183 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11184 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11194 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11197 @node Server Commands
11198 @subsection Server Commands
11199 @cindex server commands
11205 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11206 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11210 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11211 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11214 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11215 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11216 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11220 @findex gnus-server-exit
11221 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11225 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11226 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11230 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11231 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11235 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11236 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11240 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11241 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11245 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11246 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11247 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
11252 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
11253 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
11254 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
11255 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
11260 @node Example Methods
11261 @subsection Example Methods
11263 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
11266 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
11269 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
11275 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
11276 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
11279 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
11280 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
11282 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
11283 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
11287 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
11290 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
11291 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
11293 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
11294 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
11295 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
11299 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
11302 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
11305 Here's the method for a public spool:
11309 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
11310 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
11316 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
11317 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
11318 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
11319 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
11320 should probably look something like this:
11324 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
11325 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
11326 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
11327 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11330 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
11331 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
11332 configuration to the example above:
11335 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
11338 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
11339 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
11340 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
11344 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11345 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
11346 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
11347 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11350 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
11351 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
11352 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
11353 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
11356 @node Creating a Virtual Server
11357 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
11359 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
11360 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
11362 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
11363 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
11364 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
11366 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
11368 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
11369 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
11370 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
11371 will contain the following:
11381 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
11382 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
11383 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
11386 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
11387 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
11388 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
11391 @node Server Variables
11392 @subsection Server Variables
11394 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
11395 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
11396 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
11397 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
11398 won't change the "derived" variables.
11400 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
11401 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
11402 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
11403 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
11404 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
11405 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
11406 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
11407 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
11408 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
11412 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
11413 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
11414 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
11418 @node Servers and Methods
11419 @subsection Servers and Methods
11421 Wherever you would normally use a select method
11422 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
11423 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
11424 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
11428 @node Unavailable Servers
11429 @subsection Unavailable Servers
11431 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
11432 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
11433 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
11434 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
11435 actually the case or not.
11437 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
11438 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
11439 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
11440 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
11441 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
11442 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
11443 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
11444 it will regard that server as ``down''.
11446 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
11447 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
11449 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
11450 with the following commands:
11456 @findex gnus-server-open-server
11457 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
11458 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
11462 @findex gnus-server-close-server
11463 Close the connection (if any) to the server
11464 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
11468 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
11469 Mark the current server as unreachable
11470 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
11473 @kindex M-o (Server)
11474 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
11475 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
11476 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
11479 @kindex M-c (Server)
11480 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
11481 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
11482 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
11486 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
11487 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
11488 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
11494 @section Getting News
11495 @cindex reading news
11496 @cindex news back ends
11498 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
11499 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
11500 or it can read from a local spool.
11503 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
11504 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
11509 @subsection @sc{nntp}
11512 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
11513 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
11514 server as the, uhm, address.
11516 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
11517 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
11518 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
11519 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11521 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
11522 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
11523 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
11525 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
11530 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
11531 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
11532 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11534 @cindex authentification
11535 @cindex nntp authentification
11536 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11537 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11538 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11539 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11540 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11541 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11542 present in this hook.
11544 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11545 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11546 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11547 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11548 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11549 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11550 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11551 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11552 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11553 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11554 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11555 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11559 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11562 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11564 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11565 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11566 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11567 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11568 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11569 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11570 @samp{force} is explained below.
11574 Here's an example file:
11577 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11578 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11581 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11582 have to be first, for instance.
11584 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11585 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11586 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11587 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11588 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11589 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11590 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11592 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11593 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11599 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11600 previously mentioned.
11602 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11604 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11605 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11606 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11607 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11608 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11611 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11612 '(("innd" (ding))))
11615 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11617 The default value is
11620 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11621 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11622 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
11625 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
11626 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
11628 @item nntp-maximum-request
11629 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
11630 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
11631 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
11632 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
11633 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
11634 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
11635 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
11637 @item nntp-connection-timeout
11638 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
11639 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
11640 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
11641 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
11642 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
11643 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
11644 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
11645 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
11646 no timeouts are done.
11648 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
11649 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
11650 @c @cindex PPP connections
11651 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
11652 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
11653 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
11654 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
11655 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
11656 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
11657 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
11658 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
11659 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
11660 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
11662 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
11663 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
11664 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
11665 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
11666 @c described above.
11668 @item nntp-server-hook
11669 @vindex nntp-server-hook
11670 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11673 @item nntp-buggy-select
11674 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11675 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11677 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11678 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11679 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11680 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11683 @item nntp-xover-commands
11684 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11687 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11688 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11692 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11693 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11694 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11695 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11696 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11697 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11698 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11699 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11700 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11701 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11702 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11704 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11705 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11706 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11708 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11709 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11710 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11711 server closes connection.
11713 @item nntp-record-commands
11714 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11715 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11716 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11717 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11718 that doesn't seem to work.
11720 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11721 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11722 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11723 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11724 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11725 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11726 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11727 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11729 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
11730 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
11731 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
11732 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
11733 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
11734 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
11735 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
11738 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
11741 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
11742 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
11746 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
11747 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
11748 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
11752 @node Direct Functions
11753 @subsubsection Direct Functions
11754 @cindex direct connection functions
11756 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
11757 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
11758 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
11759 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11762 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
11763 @item nntp-open-network-stream
11764 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
11767 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
11768 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
11769 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
11770 this you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
11771 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also
11772 need @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
11773 define a server as follows:
11776 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
11778 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
11780 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
11781 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
11782 (nntp-port-number "snews")
11783 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
11786 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
11787 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
11788 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
11789 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
11790 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
11791 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
11792 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
11793 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
11797 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11798 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
11799 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
11802 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
11803 session, which is not a good idea.
11807 @node Indirect Functions
11808 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
11809 @cindex indirect connection functions
11811 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
11812 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
11813 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
11814 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
11815 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
11816 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11819 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11820 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11821 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
11822 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
11823 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
11825 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11828 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
11829 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
11830 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
11831 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
11834 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11835 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11836 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
11837 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
11839 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11842 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
11843 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
11844 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
11847 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
11848 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
11849 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
11850 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
11852 @item nntp-via-user-password
11853 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
11854 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
11856 @item nntp-via-envuser
11857 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
11858 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
11859 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
11860 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
11862 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
11863 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
11864 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
11865 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
11872 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
11877 @item nntp-via-user-name
11878 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
11879 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
11881 @item nntp-via-address
11882 @vindex nntp-via-address
11883 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
11888 @node Common Variables
11889 @subsubsection Common Variables
11891 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
11892 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
11897 @item nntp-pre-command
11898 @vindex nntp-pre-command
11899 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
11900 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
11901 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
11902 wrapper for instance.
11905 @vindex nntp-address
11906 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
11908 @item nntp-port-number
11909 @vindex nntp-port-number
11910 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
11912 @item nntp-end-of-line
11913 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
11914 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
11915 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
11916 using a non native connection function.
11918 @item nntp-telnet-command
11919 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
11920 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
11921 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
11922 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
11924 @item nntp-telnet-switches
11925 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
11926 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
11933 @subsection News Spool
11937 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
11938 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
11939 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
11942 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
11943 anything else) as the address.
11945 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
11946 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
11947 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
11948 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
11952 @item nnspool-inews-program
11953 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
11954 Program used to post an article.
11956 @item nnspool-inews-switches
11957 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
11958 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
11960 @item nnspool-spool-directory
11961 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
11962 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
11963 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
11965 @item nnspool-nov-directory
11966 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
11967 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
11968 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
11970 @item nnspool-lib-dir
11971 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
11972 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
11974 @item nnspool-active-file
11975 @vindex nnspool-active-file
11976 The path to the active file.
11978 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
11979 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
11980 The path to the group descriptions file.
11982 @item nnspool-history-file
11983 @vindex nnspool-history-file
11984 The path to the news history file.
11986 @item nnspool-active-times-file
11987 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
11988 The path to the active date file.
11990 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
11991 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
11992 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
11995 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11996 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11998 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11999 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
12000 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
12006 @section Getting Mail
12007 @cindex reading mail
12010 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12014 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12015 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12016 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12017 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12018 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12019 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12020 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12021 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12022 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12023 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12024 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12025 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12026 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12030 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12031 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12033 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12034 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12035 of a culture shock.
12037 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12038 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12040 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12041 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12042 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12043 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12045 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12047 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12048 deleted? How awful!
12050 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12051 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12052 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12053 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12056 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12057 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12058 they want to treat a message.
12060 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12061 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12062 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12063 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12064 archived somewhere else.
12066 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12067 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12068 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12069 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12070 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12072 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12073 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12074 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12076 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12077 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12080 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12081 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12082 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12083 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12084 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12086 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12087 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12088 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12089 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12090 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12091 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12095 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12096 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12098 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12099 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12100 and things will happen automatically.
12102 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
12103 mail" back end), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
12106 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12109 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12110 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12111 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12112 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12113 like any other group.
12115 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12118 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12119 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12120 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12124 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12125 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12126 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12129 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12130 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12131 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12134 @node Splitting Mail
12135 @subsection Splitting Mail
12136 @cindex splitting mail
12137 @cindex mail splitting
12139 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12140 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12141 to be split into groups.
12144 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12145 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12146 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12147 ("mail.other" "")))
12150 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12151 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12152 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12153 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12154 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12155 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12156 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
12159 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
12162 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
12163 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
12164 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
12165 mail belongs in that group.
12167 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
12168 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
12169 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
12170 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
12171 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
12172 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
12174 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
12175 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
12176 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
12177 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
12178 thinks should carry this mail message.
12180 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
12181 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
12182 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
12183 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
12185 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
12186 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
12187 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
12188 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
12189 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
12191 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
12194 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
12195 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
12196 links. If that's the case for you, set
12197 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
12198 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
12200 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
12201 @kindex nnmail-split-history
12202 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
12203 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
12204 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
12205 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
12208 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
12209 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
12210 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
12211 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
12212 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
12213 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
12214 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
12215 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
12216 month's rent money.
12220 @subsection Mail Sources
12222 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
12223 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
12227 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
12228 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
12229 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
12233 @node Mail Source Specifiers
12234 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
12236 @cindex mail server
12239 @cindex mail source
12241 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
12242 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
12247 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
12250 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
12251 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
12252 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
12255 The following mail source types are available:
12259 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
12265 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
12266 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
12269 An example file mail source:
12272 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
12275 Or using the default path:
12281 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
12282 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
12283 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
12286 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
12290 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
12293 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
12297 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
12300 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
12302 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
12305 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
12309 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
12310 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
12311 That is, mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in the
12312 group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
12313 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
12314 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus
12315 to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you
12316 want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
12322 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
12326 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
12330 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
12331 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
12332 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
12333 predicate are considered.
12337 Script run before/after fetching mail.
12341 An example directory mail source:
12344 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
12349 Get mail from a POP server.
12355 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
12356 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12359 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
12360 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
12361 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
12362 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
12363 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
12366 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
12370 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
12374 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
12375 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
12378 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
12381 The valid format specifier characters are:
12385 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
12386 included in this string.
12389 The name of the server.
12392 The port number of the server.
12395 The user name to use.
12398 The password to use.
12401 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12402 corresponding keywords.
12405 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12406 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12409 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12410 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12413 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
12414 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
12417 @item :authentication
12418 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
12419 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
12424 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
12425 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
12427 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
12428 default user name, and default fetcher:
12434 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
12437 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
12438 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
12441 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
12444 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
12448 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
12449 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
12450 contains exactly one mail.
12456 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
12457 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
12460 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
12461 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
12463 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
12464 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
12465 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
12468 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
12469 from locking problems).
12473 Two example maildir mail sources:
12476 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
12477 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
12481 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
12486 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
12487 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
12488 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
12489 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
12492 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, SSL/TLS and STARTTLS support you
12493 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
12499 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
12500 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12503 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
12504 @samp{993} for SSL/TLS connections.
12507 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
12511 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
12515 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
12516 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
12517 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{ssl},
12518 @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
12520 @item :authentication
12521 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
12522 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
12523 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
12524 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
12527 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
12528 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
12529 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
12535 The valid format specifier characters are:
12539 The name of the server.
12542 User name from `imap-default-user'.
12545 The port number of the server.
12548 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12549 corresponding keywords.
12552 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
12553 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
12556 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
12557 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
12558 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
12559 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
12560 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
12561 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
12564 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
12565 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
12566 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
12567 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
12570 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
12571 after finishing the fetch.
12575 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
12578 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
12580 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
12584 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
12585 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
12587 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
12590 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
12591 required for url "4.0pre.46".
12593 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
12599 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
12600 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
12603 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
12607 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
12611 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
12612 folder after finishing the fetch.
12616 An example webmail source:
12619 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
12621 :password "secret")
12626 @item Common Keywords
12627 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
12633 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
12634 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
12638 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
12643 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
12644 useful when you use local mail and news.
12649 @subsubsection Function Interface
12651 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
12652 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
12653 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
12654 consider the following mail-source setting:
12657 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
12658 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
12661 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
12662 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
12663 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
12664 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
12665 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
12667 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
12670 @node Mail Source Customization
12671 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
12673 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
12674 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
12678 @item mail-source-crash-box
12679 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
12680 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
12681 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
12683 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
12684 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
12685 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
12687 @item mail-source-directory
12688 @vindex mail-source-directory
12689 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
12690 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
12691 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
12694 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12695 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12696 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12697 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12698 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12699 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12701 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12702 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12703 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12705 @item mail-source-movemail-program
12706 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
12707 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
12708 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
12713 @node Fetching Mail
12714 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12716 @vindex mail-sources
12717 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12718 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12719 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
12720 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
12722 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
12723 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
12726 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
12727 mail server, you'd say something like:
12732 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12733 :password "secret")))
12736 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
12740 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
12741 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12744 :password "secret")))
12748 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
12749 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
12750 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
12751 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
12752 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
12753 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
12757 @node Mail Back End Variables
12758 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
12760 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
12764 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12765 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12766 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
12767 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
12769 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
12770 @item nnmail-split-hook
12771 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
12772 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
12773 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
12774 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
12775 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
12776 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
12777 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
12778 in the buffer will show up in any files.
12779 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
12782 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12783 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12784 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12785 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12786 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
12787 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
12788 starting to handle the new mail) and
12789 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
12790 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
12791 default file modes the new mail files get:
12794 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12795 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
12797 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12798 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
12801 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
12802 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
12803 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
12804 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
12805 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
12806 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
12807 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
12809 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
12810 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
12811 @findex delete-file
12812 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
12814 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12815 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12816 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
12817 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
12818 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
12823 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
12824 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
12825 @cindex mail splitting
12826 @cindex fancy mail splitting
12828 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
12829 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
12830 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
12831 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
12832 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
12833 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
12835 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
12838 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
12839 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
12840 ;; from real errors.
12841 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
12843 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
12844 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
12845 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
12846 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
12847 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
12848 ;; Other mailing lists...
12849 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
12850 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
12851 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
12852 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
12853 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
12854 ;; message was really cross-posted.
12855 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
12856 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
12858 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
12859 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
12863 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
12864 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
12865 the five possible split syntaxes:
12870 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
12871 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
12875 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
12876 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
12877 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
12878 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
12879 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
12880 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
12881 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
12882 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
12885 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12886 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
12887 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
12888 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
12891 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12892 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
12895 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
12896 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
12899 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
12900 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
12901 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
12902 function should return a @var{split}.
12905 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
12906 body of the messages:
12909 (defun split-on-body ()
12911 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
12912 (goto-char (point-min))
12913 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
12917 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
12918 when the @code{:} function is run.
12921 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12922 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
12923 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
12927 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
12931 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
12932 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
12933 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
12934 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
12935 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
12937 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
12938 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
12939 are expanded as specified by the variable
12940 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
12941 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
12944 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
12945 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
12946 when all this splitting is performed.
12948 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
12949 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
12950 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
12953 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
12956 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
12957 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
12959 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
12960 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
12961 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
12962 groupings 1 through 9.
12964 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
12965 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
12966 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
12967 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
12968 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
12969 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
12970 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
12971 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
12972 it once per thread.
12974 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
12975 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
12976 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
12979 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12980 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
12981 ;; other splits go here
12985 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
12986 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
12987 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
12988 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
12989 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
12990 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
12991 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
12992 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
12993 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
12994 unless the group name matches the regexp
12995 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
12996 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
12997 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
12998 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
12999 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13000 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13001 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13002 messages goes into the new group.
13005 @node Group Mail Splitting
13006 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13007 @cindex mail splitting
13008 @cindex group mail splitting
13010 @findex gnus-group-split
13011 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13012 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13013 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13014 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13015 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13016 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13017 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13018 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13020 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13021 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13022 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13023 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13025 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13026 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13027 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13028 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13029 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13030 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13031 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13033 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13034 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13035 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13036 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13037 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13038 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13039 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13041 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13042 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13043 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13044 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13045 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13046 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13047 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13048 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13049 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13050 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13051 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13052 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13053 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13055 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13060 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13061 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13063 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13064 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13065 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13066 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13068 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13071 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13072 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13073 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13076 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13077 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13078 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13082 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13083 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13084 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13088 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
13091 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
13092 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
13093 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
13094 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
13095 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
13096 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
13097 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
13098 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
13099 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
13101 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
13102 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
13103 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
13104 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
13105 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
13106 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
13107 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
13108 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
13109 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
13111 @findex gnus-group-split-update
13112 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
13113 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
13114 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
13115 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
13116 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
13119 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
13122 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
13123 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
13124 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
13125 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
13126 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
13129 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
13130 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
13131 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
13132 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
13134 @node Incorporating Old Mail
13135 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
13136 @cindex incorporating old mail
13137 @cindex import old mail
13139 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
13140 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
13141 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
13144 Doing so can be quite easy.
13146 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
13147 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
13148 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
13149 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
13150 your @code{nnml} groups.
13156 Go to the group buffer.
13159 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
13160 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13163 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
13166 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
13167 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13170 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
13171 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
13174 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
13175 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
13176 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
13177 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
13178 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
13180 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
13181 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
13182 using the new mail back end.
13185 @node Expiring Mail
13186 @subsection Expiring Mail
13187 @cindex article expiry
13189 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
13190 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
13191 different approach to mail reading.
13193 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
13194 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
13195 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
13196 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
13197 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
13198 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
13201 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
13202 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
13203 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
13204 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
13205 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
13206 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
13207 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
13208 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
13210 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13211 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
13212 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
13213 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
13214 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
13215 column in the summary buffer.
13217 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
13218 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
13219 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
13220 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
13223 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
13225 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
13226 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
13227 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
13230 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
13231 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
13232 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
13233 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
13234 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
13236 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
13237 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
13240 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13241 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
13244 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
13245 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
13247 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
13248 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
13249 don't really mix very well.
13251 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
13252 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
13253 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
13254 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
13257 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
13258 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
13259 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
13260 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
13263 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13265 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13267 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
13269 ((string= group "mail.junk")
13271 ((string= group "important")
13277 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
13278 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
13280 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
13281 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
13282 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
13285 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
13286 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13288 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
13289 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
13290 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
13291 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
13292 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
13293 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
13294 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
13295 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
13296 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
13297 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
13298 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
13299 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
13300 name or @code{delete}.
13302 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
13304 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
13307 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13308 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13309 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
13310 expire mail to groups according to the variable
13311 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
13314 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13315 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13316 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
13317 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
13318 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
13321 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
13322 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
13323 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
13324 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
13325 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
13326 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
13328 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
13329 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
13330 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
13331 easier for procmail users.
13333 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
13334 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
13335 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
13336 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
13337 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
13338 caution. Even more dangerous is the
13339 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
13340 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
13341 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
13342 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
13343 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
13344 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
13345 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
13348 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
13350 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
13351 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
13352 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
13353 auto-expire turned on.
13357 @subsection Washing Mail
13358 @cindex mail washing
13359 @cindex list server brain damage
13360 @cindex incoming mail treatment
13362 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
13363 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
13364 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
13365 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
13366 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
13367 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
13369 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
13370 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
13371 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
13374 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
13375 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
13376 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
13377 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
13380 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13381 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13382 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
13383 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
13384 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
13387 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13388 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13389 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
13390 Emacs running on MS machines.
13394 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13395 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13396 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
13397 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
13400 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13401 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13402 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
13403 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
13405 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13406 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13407 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
13408 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
13409 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
13410 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
13411 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
13414 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
13415 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
13418 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
13419 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
13422 This can also be done non-destructively with
13423 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
13425 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
13426 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
13427 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
13429 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13430 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13432 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
13433 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
13434 @code{References} headers.
13438 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13439 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13440 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
13444 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
13445 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
13446 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
13453 @subsection Duplicates
13455 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
13456 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
13457 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
13458 @cindex duplicate mails
13459 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
13460 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
13461 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
13462 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
13463 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
13464 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
13465 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
13466 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
13467 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
13468 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
13469 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
13470 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
13471 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
13473 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
13474 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
13475 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
13476 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
13478 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
13481 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
13482 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
13486 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
13487 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
13488 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
13489 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
13490 (any mail "mail.misc")
13497 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13498 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
13503 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
13504 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
13505 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
13506 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
13507 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
13510 @node Not Reading Mail
13511 @subsection Not Reading Mail
13513 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
13514 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
13515 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
13517 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
13518 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
13519 mail, which should help.
13521 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13522 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13523 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13524 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13525 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13526 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
13527 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
13528 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
13529 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
13530 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
13531 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
13533 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
13534 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
13538 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
13539 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
13541 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
13542 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
13543 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
13545 There are five different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
13546 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
13547 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
13548 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
13551 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
13552 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
13553 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
13554 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
13555 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
13556 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
13560 @node Unix Mail Box
13561 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
13563 @cindex unix mail box
13565 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13566 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13567 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
13568 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
13569 which group it belongs in.
13571 Virtual server settings:
13574 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
13575 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13576 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
13579 @item nnmbox-active-file
13580 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13581 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
13582 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
13584 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
13585 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13586 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
13587 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
13592 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
13596 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13597 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13598 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
13599 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
13600 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
13602 Virtual server settings:
13605 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
13606 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13607 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
13609 @item nnbabyl-active-file
13610 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13611 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
13612 @file{~/.rmail-active}
13614 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13615 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13616 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
13622 @subsubsection Mail Spool
13624 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
13626 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
13627 format. It should be used with some caution.
13629 @vindex nnml-directory
13630 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
13631 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
13632 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
13633 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
13635 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
13638 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
13639 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
13640 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
13641 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
13642 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
13643 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
13644 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
13645 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
13647 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
13648 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
13649 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
13650 back end when it comes to reading mail.
13652 @cindex self contained nnml servers
13653 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
13654 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13655 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13656 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
13657 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
13658 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
13659 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
13660 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
13663 Virtual server settings:
13666 @item nnml-directory
13667 @vindex nnml-directory
13668 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
13669 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
13672 @item nnml-active-file
13673 @vindex nnml-active-file
13674 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
13675 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
13677 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
13678 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
13679 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13680 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
13682 @item nnml-get-new-mail
13683 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13684 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
13687 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
13688 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
13689 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13690 default is @code{nil}.
13692 @item nnml-nov-file-name
13693 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
13694 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
13696 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13697 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13698 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
13700 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
13701 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
13702 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13703 default is @code{nil}.
13705 @item nnml-marks-file-name
13706 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
13707 The name of the @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
13711 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
13712 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
13713 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
13714 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
13715 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
13716 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
13717 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
13722 @subsubsection MH Spool
13724 @cindex mh-e mail spool
13726 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
13727 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
13728 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
13729 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
13731 Virtual server settings:
13734 @item nnmh-directory
13735 @vindex nnmh-directory
13736 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
13737 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13740 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
13741 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13742 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
13746 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
13747 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
13748 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
13749 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
13750 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
13751 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
13752 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
13757 @subsubsection Mail Folders
13759 @cindex mbox folders
13760 @cindex mail folders
13762 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
13763 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
13764 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
13767 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
13768 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
13769 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13770 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13771 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
13772 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
13773 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
13774 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
13775 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
13776 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
13777 @code{nnfolder} directory).
13779 Virtual server settings:
13782 @item nnfolder-directory
13783 @vindex nnfolder-directory
13784 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
13785 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13788 @item nnfolder-active-file
13789 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
13790 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
13792 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13793 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13794 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13795 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
13797 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
13798 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13799 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
13802 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13803 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13804 @cindex backup files
13805 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
13806 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
13807 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
13808 your @file{.emacs} file:
13811 (defun turn-off-backup ()
13812 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
13814 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
13817 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13818 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13819 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
13820 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
13821 extract some information from it before removing it.
13823 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13824 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13825 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13826 default is @code{nil}.
13828 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13829 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13830 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
13832 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
13833 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
13834 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
13835 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13837 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13838 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13839 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13840 default is @code{nil}.
13842 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13843 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13844 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
13846 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
13847 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
13848 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
13849 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13854 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
13855 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
13856 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
13857 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
13858 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
13859 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
13862 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
13863 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
13865 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
13866 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
13867 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
13868 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
13869 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
13871 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
13872 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
13873 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
13874 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
13875 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
13876 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
13877 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
13878 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
13881 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
13882 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
13883 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
13884 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
13889 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
13890 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
13891 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
13892 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
13893 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
13894 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
13895 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
13896 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
13897 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
13898 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
13899 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
13900 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
13901 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
13906 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
13907 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
13908 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
13909 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
13910 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
13911 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
13912 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
13913 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
13914 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
13915 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
13916 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
13917 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
13918 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
13919 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
13921 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
13922 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
13927 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
13928 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
13929 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
13930 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
13931 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
13932 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
13933 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
13934 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
13935 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
13936 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
13937 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
13938 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
13939 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
13940 provided by the active file and overviews.
13942 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
13943 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
13944 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
13945 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
13946 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
13949 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
13950 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
13955 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
13956 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
13957 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
13958 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
13959 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
13960 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
13961 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
13965 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
13966 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
13967 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
13968 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
13969 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
13970 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
13971 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
13972 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
13973 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
13975 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
13976 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
13977 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
13978 friendly mail back end all over.
13983 @node Browsing the Web
13984 @section Browsing the Web
13986 @cindex browsing the web
13990 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
13991 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
13992 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
13993 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
13994 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
13995 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
13996 even know what a news group is.
13998 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
13999 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
14000 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
14001 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
14002 you mad in the end.
14004 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
14007 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
14008 interfaces to these sources.
14012 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
14013 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
14014 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
14015 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
14016 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
14017 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
14020 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
14022 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
14023 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
14024 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
14025 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
14026 though, you should be ok.
14028 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
14029 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
14030 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
14031 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
14032 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
14034 @node Archiving Mail
14035 @subsection Archiving Mail
14036 @cindex archiving mail
14037 @cindex backup of mail
14039 Some of the back ends, notably nnml and nnfolder, now actually store
14040 the article marks with each group. For these servers, archiving and
14041 restoring a group while preserving marks is fairly simple.
14043 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
14044 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @code{.newsrc.eld} deity
14047 To archive an entire @code{nnml} or @code{nnfolder} server, take a
14048 recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need to shut down
14049 Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or similar. You
14050 restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and adding a server
14051 definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The @ref{Article
14052 Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things might interfer
14053 with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus before you
14056 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml} or
14057 @code{nnfolder} groups, while preserving marks. For @code{nnml}, you
14058 copy all files in the group's directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need
14059 to copy both the base folder file itself (@code{FOO}, say), and the
14060 marks file (@code{FOO.mrk} in this example). Restoring the group is
14061 done with @kbd{G m} from the Group buffer. The last step makes Gnus
14062 notice the new directory.
14065 @subsection Web Searches
14069 @cindex InReference
14070 @cindex Usenet searches
14071 @cindex searching the Usenet
14073 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
14074 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
14075 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
14076 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
14077 searches without having to use a browser.
14079 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
14080 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
14081 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
14082 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
14083 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
14085 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
14086 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
14087 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
14088 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
14089 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
14090 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
14091 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
14092 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
14093 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
14094 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
14097 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
14098 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
14099 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
14100 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
14101 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
14102 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
14104 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
14105 to use @code{nnweb}.
14107 Virtual server variables:
14112 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
14113 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
14117 @vindex nnweb-search
14118 The search string to feed to the search engine.
14120 @item nnweb-max-hits
14121 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
14122 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
14125 @item nnweb-type-definition
14126 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
14127 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
14128 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
14133 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
14137 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
14140 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
14143 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
14147 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
14154 @subsection Slashdot
14158 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
14159 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
14160 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
14162 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
14163 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
14166 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14167 '((nnslashdot "")))
14170 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
14171 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
14172 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
14173 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
14174 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
14177 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
14178 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14180 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
14181 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
14182 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
14183 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
14184 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
14185 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
14188 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
14191 @item nnslashdot-threaded
14192 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
14193 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
14194 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
14195 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
14196 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
14197 but much, much slower than untreaded.
14199 @item nnslashdot-login-name
14200 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
14201 The login name to use when posting.
14203 @item nnslashdot-password
14204 @vindex nnslashdot-password
14205 The password to use when posting.
14207 @item nnslashdot-directory
14208 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
14209 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
14210 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
14212 @item nnslashdot-active-url
14213 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
14214 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
14215 news articles and comments. The default is
14216 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
14218 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
14219 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
14220 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
14222 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
14224 @item nnslashdot-article-url
14225 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
14226 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
14228 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
14230 @item nnslashdot-threshold
14231 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
14232 The score threshold. The default is -1.
14234 @item nnslashdot-group-number
14235 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
14236 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
14237 updated. The default is 0.
14244 @subsection Ultimate
14246 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
14248 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
14249 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
14250 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
14251 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
14253 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
14254 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
14255 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
14256 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
14257 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
14258 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
14259 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
14261 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
14264 @item nnultimate-directory
14265 @vindex nnultimate-directory
14266 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
14267 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
14272 @subsection Web Archive
14274 @cindex Web Archive
14276 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
14277 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
14278 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
14279 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14282 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
14283 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
14284 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
14285 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
14286 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
14287 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
14288 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
14290 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
14293 @item nnwarchive-directory
14294 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
14295 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
14296 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
14298 @item nnwarchive-login
14299 @vindex nnwarchive-login
14300 The account name on the web server.
14302 @item nnwarchive-passwd
14303 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
14304 The password for your account on the web server.
14312 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
14313 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
14314 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14317 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
14318 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
14321 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
14324 @item nnrss-directory
14325 @vindex nnrss-directory
14326 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
14327 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
14331 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
14332 the summary buffer.
14335 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
14336 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
14338 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
14340 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
14341 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
14344 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
14347 (require 'browse-url)
14349 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
14351 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
14354 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
14355 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
14357 (browse-url (cdr url))
14358 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
14360 (eval-after-load "gnus"
14361 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
14362 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
14363 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
14366 @node Customizing w3
14367 @subsection Customizing w3
14373 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
14374 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
14375 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
14377 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
14378 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
14379 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
14382 (eval-after-load "w3"
14384 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
14385 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
14386 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
14387 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
14389 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
14392 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
14393 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
14402 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14403 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14404 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14405 specify the network address of the server.
14407 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14408 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14409 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14410 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
14411 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
14413 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
14414 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
14415 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
14416 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
14418 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14419 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
14420 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14421 usage explained in this section.
14423 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14424 might look something like the following. (Note that for SSL/TLS, you
14425 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
14428 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14429 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14430 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14432 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14433 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14434 ; a UW server running on localhost
14436 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14437 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14438 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14439 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14440 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14441 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14442 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14443 (nnimap-stream network))
14444 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14446 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14447 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14448 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14451 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14456 @item nnimap-address
14457 @vindex nnimap-address
14459 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14460 server name if not specified.
14462 @item nnimap-server-port
14463 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14464 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14466 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
14469 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14470 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14473 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14474 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14475 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14476 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14477 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14478 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14479 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14481 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14482 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14483 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14486 Example server specification:
14489 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14490 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14491 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14494 @item nnimap-stream
14495 @vindex nnimap-stream
14496 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14497 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14498 of SSL/TLS. (IMAP over SSL/TLS is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
14499 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
14501 Example server specification:
14504 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14505 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14508 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14512 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
14513 @samp{imtest} program.
14515 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14517 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14518 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14521 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
14522 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
14523 library @samp{ssl.el}.
14525 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14527 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14530 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14531 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14532 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14533 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14534 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14535 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14536 restrictions on IMAP commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14537 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14538 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14541 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14542 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14543 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14544 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14545 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14546 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14547 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14548 to OpenSSL/SSLeay. You also need @samp{ssl.el} (from the W3
14549 distribution, for instance).
14551 @vindex imap-shell-program
14552 @vindex imap-shell-host
14553 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14554 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14556 @item nnimap-authenticator
14557 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14559 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14560 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14562 Example server specification:
14565 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14566 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14569 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14573 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
14574 external program @code{imtest}.
14576 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
14579 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
14580 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14582 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14584 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14586 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14589 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14591 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14592 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14593 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14594 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14595 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14596 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14599 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14600 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14601 running in circles yet?
14603 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14604 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14607 The possible options are:
14612 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14615 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14616 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14617 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14618 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14620 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14625 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
14626 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
14628 If non-nil, marks dormant articles as ticked (as well), for other IMAP
14629 clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will naturally still (only) be
14630 marked as ticked. This is to make dormant articles stand out, just
14631 like ticked articles, in other IMAP clients. (In other words, Gnus has
14632 two ``Tick'' marks and IMAP has only one.)
14634 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
14635 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
14638 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
14639 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14640 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
14641 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14644 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
14645 as ticked for other users.
14647 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
14649 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
14651 This variable contain the IMAP search command sent to server when
14652 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
14653 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
14654 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
14656 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
14657 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
14658 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
14659 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
14661 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14662 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14664 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14665 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14666 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14672 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14673 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14674 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14679 @node Splitting in IMAP
14680 @subsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14681 @cindex splitting imap mail
14683 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14684 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14685 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14686 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14687 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14691 Here are the variables of interest:
14695 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14696 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14698 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14700 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14701 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14703 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14705 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14706 @cindex splitting, inbox
14708 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14710 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14711 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14715 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14716 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14719 No nnmail equivalent.
14721 @item nnimap-split-rule
14722 @cindex Splitting, rules
14723 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14725 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14728 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14729 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14730 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14731 Neither did I, we need examples.
14734 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14736 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14737 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14738 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14741 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14742 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14743 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14745 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14746 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14750 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14753 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14754 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14755 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14756 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14758 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14759 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14760 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14761 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14762 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14763 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14765 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14766 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14767 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14769 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14770 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14771 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14773 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
14775 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14776 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14777 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14780 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14781 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14782 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14783 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14784 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14785 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14788 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14789 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14790 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14791 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14792 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14793 group/function elements.
14795 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14797 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14799 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14801 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14802 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14804 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14805 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14806 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14809 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14810 @cindex splitting, fancy
14811 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14812 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14814 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14815 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14816 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14818 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14819 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14820 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14821 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14826 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14827 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14830 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14834 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14835 @subsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14836 @cindex editing imap acls
14837 @cindex Access Control Lists
14838 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14840 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14842 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14843 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14844 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14847 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14848 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14849 editing window with detailed instructions.
14851 Some possible uses:
14855 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14856 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14857 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14859 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14860 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14861 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14865 @node Expunging mailboxes
14866 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
14870 @cindex Manual expunging
14872 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14874 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
14875 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14876 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14878 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14883 @node Other Sources
14884 @section Other Sources
14886 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
14887 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
14891 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
14892 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
14893 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
14894 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
14895 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
14899 @node Directory Groups
14900 @subsection Directory Groups
14902 @cindex directory groups
14904 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
14905 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
14908 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
14909 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
14910 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
14911 back end to read directories. Big deal.
14913 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
14914 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
14915 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
14916 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
14917 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
14919 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
14921 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
14922 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
14923 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
14924 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
14927 @node Anything Groups
14928 @subsection Anything Groups
14931 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
14932 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
14933 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
14936 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
14937 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
14938 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
14939 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
14940 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
14941 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
14942 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
14943 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
14944 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
14945 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
14948 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
14949 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
14950 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
14951 in the article buffer, just as usual.
14953 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
14954 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
14955 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
14956 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
14958 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
14959 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
14960 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
14961 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
14962 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
14963 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
14964 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
14965 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
14970 @item nneething-map-file-directory
14971 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
14972 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
14973 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
14975 @item nneething-exclude-files
14976 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
14977 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
14978 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
14980 @item nneething-include-files
14981 @vindex nneething-include-files
14982 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
14983 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
14985 @item nneething-map-file
14986 @vindex nneething-map-file
14987 Name of the map files.
14991 @node Document Groups
14992 @subsection Document Groups
14994 @cindex documentation group
14997 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
14998 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
15005 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
15010 The standard Unix mbox file.
15012 @cindex MMDF mail box
15014 The MMDF mail box format.
15017 Several news articles appended into a file.
15020 @cindex rnews batch files
15021 The rnews batch transport format.
15022 @cindex forwarded messages
15025 Forwarded articles.
15028 Netscape mail boxes.
15031 MIME multipart messages.
15033 @item standard-digest
15034 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
15037 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
15040 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
15041 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
15042 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
15045 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
15046 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
15047 group. And that's it.
15049 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
15050 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
15051 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
15052 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
15053 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
15054 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
15055 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
15056 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
15057 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
15058 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
15060 Virtual server variables:
15063 @item nndoc-article-type
15064 @vindex nndoc-article-type
15065 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
15066 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
15067 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
15068 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail},
15069 @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman} or @code{guess}.
15071 @item nndoc-post-type
15072 @vindex nndoc-post-type
15073 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
15074 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
15079 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
15083 @node Document Server Internals
15084 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
15086 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
15087 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
15088 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
15089 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
15091 First, here's an example document type definition:
15095 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
15096 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
15099 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
15100 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
15101 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
15102 types can be defined with very few settings:
15105 @item first-article
15106 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
15107 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
15110 @item article-begin
15111 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
15112 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
15114 @item head-begin-function
15115 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
15118 @item nndoc-head-begin
15119 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
15122 @item nndoc-head-end
15123 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
15124 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
15126 @item body-begin-function
15127 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
15131 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
15134 @item body-end-function
15135 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
15139 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
15142 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
15143 regexp will be totally ignored.
15147 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
15148 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
15149 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
15150 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
15151 something that's palatable for Gnus:
15154 @item prepare-body-function
15155 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
15156 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
15157 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
15159 @item article-transform-function
15160 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
15161 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
15162 body of the article.
15164 @item generate-head-function
15165 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
15166 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
15167 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
15168 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
15172 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
15177 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15178 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15179 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
15180 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
15181 (head-end . "^ ?$")
15182 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
15183 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
15184 (subtype digest guess))
15187 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
15188 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
15189 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
15190 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
15191 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
15193 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
15194 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
15195 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
15196 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
15197 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
15198 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
15199 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
15200 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
15201 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
15202 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
15210 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
15211 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
15212 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
15214 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
15215 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
15216 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
15219 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
15220 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
15221 that interested in doing things properly.
15223 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
15224 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
15227 First some terminology:
15232 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
15233 get news and/or mail from.
15236 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
15237 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
15240 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
15244 @item message packets
15245 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
15246 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
15247 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15249 @item response packets
15250 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
15251 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
15252 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15262 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
15263 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
15264 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
15265 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
15268 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
15271 You put the packet in your home directory.
15274 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
15275 the native or secondary server.
15278 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
15279 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
15282 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
15286 You transfer this packet to the server.
15289 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
15292 You then repeat until you die.
15296 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
15297 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
15300 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
15301 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
15302 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
15306 @node SOUP Commands
15307 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
15309 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
15313 @kindex G s b (Group)
15314 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
15315 Pack all unread articles in the current group
15316 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
15317 process/prefix convention.
15320 @kindex G s w (Group)
15321 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
15322 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
15325 @kindex G s s (Group)
15326 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
15327 Send all replies from the replies packet
15328 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
15331 @kindex G s p (Group)
15332 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
15333 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
15336 @kindex G s r (Group)
15337 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
15338 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
15341 @kindex O s (Summary)
15342 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
15343 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
15344 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
15345 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15350 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
15355 @item gnus-soup-directory
15356 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
15357 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
15358 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
15360 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
15361 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
15362 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
15363 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
15365 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
15366 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
15367 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
15368 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
15370 @item gnus-soup-packer
15371 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
15372 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15373 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
15375 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
15376 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
15377 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15378 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15380 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
15381 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
15382 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
15384 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15385 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15386 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
15387 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
15393 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
15396 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
15397 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
15398 you can read them at leisure.
15400 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
15404 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
15405 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
15406 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
15407 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
15409 @item nnsoup-directory
15410 @vindex nnsoup-directory
15411 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
15412 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
15414 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
15415 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
15416 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
15417 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
15419 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
15420 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
15421 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
15422 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
15423 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
15425 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
15426 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
15427 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
15428 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
15430 @item nnsoup-active-file
15431 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
15432 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
15433 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
15434 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
15435 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
15437 @item nnsoup-packer
15438 @vindex nnsoup-packer
15439 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
15440 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
15442 @item nnsoup-unpacker
15443 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
15444 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
15445 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15447 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
15448 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
15449 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
15452 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
15453 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
15454 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
15457 @item nnsoup-always-save
15458 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
15459 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
15465 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
15467 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
15468 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
15469 more for that to happen.
15471 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
15472 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
15473 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
15476 In specific, this is what it does:
15479 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
15480 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
15483 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
15484 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
15485 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
15488 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
15489 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
15490 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
15493 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
15494 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
15495 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
15497 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
15503 @item nngateway-address
15504 @vindex nngateway-address
15505 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
15507 @item nngateway-header-transformation
15508 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
15509 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
15510 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
15511 transformation should be called, and defaults to
15512 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
15513 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
15516 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
15517 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
15518 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
15521 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
15524 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
15527 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
15530 The following pre-defined functions exist:
15532 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15535 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15536 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15537 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
15539 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15541 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15542 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15543 @code{nngateway-address}.
15548 (setq gnus-post-method
15550 "mail2news@@replay.com"
15551 (nngateway-header-transformation
15552 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
15560 So, to use this, simply say something like:
15563 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
15568 @node Combined Groups
15569 @section Combined Groups
15571 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
15575 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
15576 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
15580 @node Virtual Groups
15581 @subsection Virtual Groups
15583 @cindex virtual groups
15584 @cindex merging groups
15586 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
15589 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
15590 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
15591 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
15593 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
15594 regexp to match component groups.
15596 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
15597 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
15598 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
15599 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
15600 the virtual group.)
15602 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
15603 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
15606 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
15609 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
15610 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
15612 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
15613 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
15614 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
15615 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
15618 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
15621 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
15622 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
15623 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
15625 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
15626 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
15627 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
15628 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
15629 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
15631 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
15632 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
15633 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
15635 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
15636 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
15637 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
15638 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15639 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
15640 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
15641 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
15642 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
15643 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
15644 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
15645 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
15647 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
15648 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
15649 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
15650 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
15651 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
15652 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
15653 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
15655 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
15656 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
15660 @node Kibozed Groups
15661 @subsection Kibozed Groups
15665 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
15666 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
15667 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
15668 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
15670 @kindex G k (Group)
15671 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
15674 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
15675 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
15676 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
15677 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
15679 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
15680 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
15681 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
15683 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
15684 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
15685 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
15686 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
15687 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
15688 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
15689 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
15690 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
15692 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
15693 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
15694 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
15695 Stranger things have happened.
15697 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
15698 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
15700 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
15701 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
15702 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
15703 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
15704 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
15705 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
15707 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
15708 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
15711 @node Gnus Unplugged
15712 @section Gnus Unplugged
15717 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
15719 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
15720 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
15721 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
15722 read news. Believe it or not.
15724 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
15725 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
15726 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
15727 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
15728 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
15730 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
15731 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
15732 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
15733 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
15734 reading news on a machine.
15736 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
15740 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
15741 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
15745 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
15746 @file{.gnus.el} file:
15753 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
15755 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
15758 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
15759 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
15760 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
15761 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
15762 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
15763 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
15764 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
15765 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
15766 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
15767 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
15772 @subsection Agent Basics
15774 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
15776 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
15777 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
15778 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
15779 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
15781 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
15782 connected to the net continuously.
15784 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
15785 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
15787 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
15792 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
15793 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
15794 already fetched while in this mode.
15797 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
15798 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
15799 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
15800 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
15801 Source Specifiers}).
15804 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
15805 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
15806 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
15807 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
15808 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
15811 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
15812 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
15813 then you read the news offline.
15816 And then you go to step 2.
15819 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
15825 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
15826 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
15827 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
15828 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
15829 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
15830 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
15833 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
15840 @node Agent Categories
15841 @subsection Agent Categories
15843 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
15844 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
15845 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
15846 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
15847 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
15848 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
15849 you're interested in the articles anyway.
15851 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
15852 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
15853 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
15854 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
15855 managing categories.
15858 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
15859 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
15860 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
15864 @node Category Syntax
15865 @subsubsection Category Syntax
15867 A category consists of two things.
15871 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
15872 are eligible for downloading; and
15875 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
15876 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
15877 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
15880 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
15881 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
15882 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
15883 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
15885 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
15886 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
15887 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
15889 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
15890 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
15891 operators sprinkled in between.
15893 Perhaps some examples are in order.
15895 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
15896 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
15902 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
15903 short (for some value of ``short'').
15905 Here's a more complex predicate:
15914 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
15915 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
15918 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
15919 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
15920 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
15922 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
15923 you want to do, you can write your own.
15927 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
15928 lines; default 100.
15931 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
15932 lines; default 200.
15935 True iff the article has a download score less than
15936 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
15939 True iff the article has a download score greater than
15940 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
15943 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
15944 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
15945 checksum and sees whether articles match.
15954 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
15955 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
15956 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
15959 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
15960 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
15961 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
15962 something along the lines of the following:
15965 (defun my-article-old-p ()
15966 "Say whether an article is old."
15967 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
15968 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
15971 with the predicate then defined as:
15974 (not my-article-old-p)
15977 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
15978 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
15979 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
15980 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
15983 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
15984 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
15985 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
15988 and simply specify your predicate as:
15994 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
15995 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
15996 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
15997 just don't give a damn.
15999 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
16000 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
16001 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
16002 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
16003 parameters like so:
16006 (agent-predicate . short)
16009 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
16010 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
16011 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
16013 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
16016 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
16019 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
16020 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
16021 predicate is assumed to be a list.
16024 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
16025 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
16026 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
16027 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
16028 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
16029 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
16031 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
16032 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
16033 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
16034 if it's to be specific to that group.
16036 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
16043 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
16044 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
16050 Category specification
16054 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16060 Group Parameter specification
16063 (agent-score ("from"
16064 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16069 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
16075 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
16082 Category specification
16085 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
16091 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
16095 Group Parameter specification
16098 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
16101 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
16106 Use @code{normal} score files
16108 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
16109 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
16110 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
16111 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
16113 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
16114 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
16115 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
16116 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
16120 Category Specification
16127 Group Parameter specification
16130 (agent-score . file)
16135 @node Category Buffer
16136 @subsubsection Category Buffer
16138 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
16139 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
16140 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
16142 The following commands are available in this buffer:
16146 @kindex q (Category)
16147 @findex gnus-category-exit
16148 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
16151 @kindex k (Category)
16152 @findex gnus-category-kill
16153 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
16156 @kindex c (Category)
16157 @findex gnus-category-copy
16158 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
16161 @kindex a (Category)
16162 @findex gnus-category-add
16163 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
16166 @kindex p (Category)
16167 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
16168 Edit the predicate of the current category
16169 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
16172 @kindex g (Category)
16173 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
16174 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
16175 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
16178 @kindex s (Category)
16179 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
16180 Edit the download score rule of the current category
16181 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
16184 @kindex l (Category)
16185 @findex gnus-category-list
16186 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
16190 @node Category Variables
16191 @subsubsection Category Variables
16194 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
16195 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
16196 Hook run in category buffers.
16198 @item gnus-category-line-format
16199 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
16200 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
16201 Variables}). Valid elements are:
16205 The name of the category.
16208 The number of groups in the category.
16211 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
16212 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
16213 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
16215 @item gnus-agent-short-article
16216 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
16217 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
16219 @item gnus-agent-long-article
16220 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
16221 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
16223 @item gnus-agent-low-score
16224 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
16225 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
16228 @item gnus-agent-high-score
16229 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
16230 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
16236 @node Agent Commands
16237 @subsection Agent Commands
16239 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
16240 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
16241 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
16245 * Group Agent Commands::
16246 * Summary Agent Commands::
16247 * Server Agent Commands::
16250 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
16251 following incantation:
16253 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
16255 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
16260 @node Group Agent Commands
16261 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
16265 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
16266 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
16267 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
16268 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
16271 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
16272 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
16273 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
16276 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
16277 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
16278 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
16279 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
16282 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
16283 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
16284 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
16285 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
16288 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
16289 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
16290 Add the current group to an Agent category
16291 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
16292 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16295 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
16296 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
16297 Remove the current group from its category, if any
16298 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
16299 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16302 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
16303 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16304 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
16310 @node Summary Agent Commands
16311 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
16315 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
16316 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
16317 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
16320 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
16321 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
16322 Remove the downloading mark from the article
16323 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
16326 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
16327 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
16328 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
16331 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
16332 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
16333 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
16336 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
16337 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
16338 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
16339 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
16344 @node Server Agent Commands
16345 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
16349 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
16350 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
16351 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
16352 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
16355 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
16356 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
16357 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
16358 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
16364 @subsection Agent Expiry
16366 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
16367 @findex gnus-agent-expire
16368 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
16369 @cindex Agent expiry
16370 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
16373 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
16374 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
16375 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
16376 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
16377 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
16378 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
16380 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
16381 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
16382 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
16383 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
16384 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
16387 @node Agent and IMAP
16388 @subsection Agent and IMAP
16390 The Agent work with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
16391 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
16392 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
16393 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
16395 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
16396 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
16397 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
16398 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
16400 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
16401 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
16402 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
16403 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
16404 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
16406 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16407 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
16408 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
16409 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
16410 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
16411 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
16413 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
16414 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
16415 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
16416 in the group buffer by default.
16418 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
16419 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
16424 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
16427 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
16431 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
16432 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
16433 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
16434 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
16435 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
16436 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
16437 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
16438 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
16441 @node Outgoing Messages
16442 @subsection Outgoing Messages
16444 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
16445 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
16446 after posting, and edit them at will.
16448 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
16449 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
16450 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
16451 messages in the draft group.
16455 @node Agent Variables
16456 @subsection Agent Variables
16459 @item gnus-agent-directory
16460 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
16461 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
16462 @file{~/News/agent/}.
16464 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
16465 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
16466 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
16467 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
16468 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
16471 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16472 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16473 Hook run when connecting to the network.
16475 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16476 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16477 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
16482 @node Example Setup
16483 @subsection Example Setup
16485 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
16486 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
16487 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
16490 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
16491 ;;; from your ISP's server.
16492 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
16494 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
16495 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
16496 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
16498 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
16499 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
16501 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
16505 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
16506 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
16509 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
16510 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
16511 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
16512 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
16513 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
16516 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
16517 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
16518 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
16519 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
16520 back all the killed groups.)
16522 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
16523 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
16524 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
16527 @node Batching Agents
16528 @subsection Batching Agents
16530 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
16531 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
16532 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
16536 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
16540 @node Agent Caveats
16541 @subsection Agent Caveats
16543 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
16544 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
16548 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
16553 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
16554 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
16560 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
16561 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
16568 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
16569 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
16570 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
16573 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
16574 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
16575 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
16576 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
16577 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
16579 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
16580 before generating the summary buffer.
16582 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
16583 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
16584 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
16586 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
16587 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
16588 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
16589 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
16592 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
16593 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
16594 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
16595 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
16596 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
16597 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
16598 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
16599 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
16600 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
16601 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
16602 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
16603 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
16604 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
16605 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
16606 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
16607 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
16608 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
16612 @node Summary Score Commands
16613 @section Summary Score Commands
16614 @cindex score commands
16616 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
16617 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
16618 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
16619 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
16620 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
16622 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
16623 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
16624 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
16625 score file the current one.
16627 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
16632 @kindex V s (Summary)
16633 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
16634 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
16637 @kindex V S (Summary)
16638 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
16639 Display the score of the current article
16640 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
16643 @kindex V t (Summary)
16644 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
16645 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
16646 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
16649 @kindex V R (Summary)
16650 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
16651 Run the current summary through the scoring process
16652 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
16653 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
16654 effect you're having.
16657 @kindex V c (Summary)
16658 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
16659 Make a different score file the current
16660 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
16663 @kindex V e (Summary)
16664 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
16665 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
16666 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
16670 @kindex V f (Summary)
16671 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
16672 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
16673 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
16676 @kindex V F (Summary)
16677 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16678 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
16679 after editing score files.
16682 @kindex V C (Summary)
16683 @findex gnus-score-customize
16684 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
16685 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
16689 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
16694 @kindex V m (Summary)
16695 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
16696 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
16697 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
16700 @kindex V x (Summary)
16701 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
16702 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
16703 expunge all articles below this score
16704 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
16707 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
16708 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
16711 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
16712 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
16716 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
16717 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
16719 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
16720 keys are available:
16724 Score on the author name.
16727 Score on the subject line.
16730 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
16733 Score on the @code{References} line.
16739 Score on the number of lines.
16742 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
16745 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
16746 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
16747 @file{ADAPT} files.)
16756 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
16762 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
16763 what headers you are scoring on.
16775 Substring matching.
16778 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
16807 Greater than number.
16812 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
16813 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
16814 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
16818 Temporary score entry.
16821 Permanent score entry.
16824 Immediately scoring.
16829 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
16830 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
16831 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
16832 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
16834 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
16835 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
16836 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
16837 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
16838 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
16840 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
16841 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
16842 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
16843 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
16844 current score file.
16846 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
16847 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
16848 pretend they are keymaps or not.
16851 @node Group Score Commands
16852 @section Group Score Commands
16853 @cindex group score commands
16855 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
16860 @kindex W f (Group)
16861 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16862 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
16863 all the time. This command will flush the cache
16864 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
16868 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
16870 @findex gnus-batch-score
16871 @cindex batch scoring
16873 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
16877 @node Score Variables
16878 @section Score Variables
16879 @cindex score variables
16883 @item gnus-use-scoring
16884 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
16885 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
16886 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
16888 @item gnus-kill-killed
16889 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
16890 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
16891 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
16892 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
16893 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
16894 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
16895 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
16897 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
16898 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
16899 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
16900 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
16901 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
16903 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
16904 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
16905 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
16906 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
16908 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16909 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16910 @cindex score cache
16911 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
16912 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
16913 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
16914 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
16915 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
16916 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
16919 @item gnus-save-score
16920 @vindex gnus-save-score
16921 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
16922 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
16923 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
16925 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
16926 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
16927 across group visits.
16929 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16930 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16931 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
16932 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
16933 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
16934 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
16935 manually entered data.
16937 @item gnus-summary-default-score
16938 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
16939 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
16941 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
16942 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
16943 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
16944 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
16945 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
16946 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
16948 @item gnus-score-over-mark
16949 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
16950 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
16951 default. Default is @samp{+}.
16953 @item gnus-score-below-mark
16954 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
16955 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
16956 default. Default is @samp{-}.
16958 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16959 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16960 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
16961 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
16963 Predefined functions available are:
16966 @item gnus-score-find-single
16967 @findex gnus-score-find-single
16968 Only apply the group's own score file.
16970 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
16971 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
16972 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
16973 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
16974 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
16975 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
16976 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
16977 then a regexp match is done.
16979 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
16980 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
16982 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
16983 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
16984 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
16985 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
16987 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16988 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16989 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
16990 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
16991 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
16995 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
16996 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
16997 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
16998 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
16999 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
17000 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
17001 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
17004 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
17005 overall score file, you could use the value
17007 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
17008 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
17011 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
17012 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
17013 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
17014 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
17015 are expired. It's 7 by default.
17017 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17018 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17019 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
17020 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
17021 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
17022 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
17023 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
17026 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17027 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17028 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
17030 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
17031 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
17032 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
17033 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
17034 threading---according to the current value of
17035 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
17036 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
17037 simplified in this manner.
17042 @node Score File Format
17043 @section Score File Format
17044 @cindex score file format
17046 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
17047 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
17048 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
17050 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
17054 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
17056 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
17058 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
17060 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
17065 (mark-and-expunge -10)
17069 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
17070 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
17071 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
17072 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
17076 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
17077 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
17079 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
17080 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
17081 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
17083 Six keys are supported by this alist:
17088 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
17089 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
17090 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
17091 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
17092 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
17093 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
17094 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
17095 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
17096 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
17097 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
17098 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
17099 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
17100 to articles that matches these score entries.
17102 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
17103 score entry has one to four elements.
17107 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
17108 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
17112 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
17113 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
17114 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
17115 is successful. If this element is not present, the
17116 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
17117 instead. This is 1000 by default.
17120 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
17121 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
17122 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
17123 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
17124 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
17127 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
17128 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
17129 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
17130 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
17133 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
17134 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
17135 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
17136 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
17137 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
17138 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
17139 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
17140 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
17141 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
17142 instead, if you feel like.
17145 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
17146 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
17148 These predicates are true if
17151 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
17154 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
17155 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
17162 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
17163 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
17164 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
17165 it's not. I think.)
17167 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
17168 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
17169 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
17170 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
17173 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
17174 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
17175 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
17176 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
17177 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
17178 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
17179 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
17183 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
17184 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
17185 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
17186 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
17187 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
17188 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
17189 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
17190 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
17193 @item Head, Body, All
17194 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
17198 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
17199 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
17200 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
17201 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
17202 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
17203 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
17204 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
17208 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
17209 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
17210 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
17211 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
17212 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
17213 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
17214 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
17215 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
17216 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
17217 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
17218 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
17222 @cindex Score File Atoms
17224 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17225 lower than this number will be marked as read.
17228 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17229 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
17231 @item mark-and-expunge
17232 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17233 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
17236 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
17237 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
17238 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
17239 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
17240 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
17243 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
17244 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
17247 @item exclude-files
17248 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
17249 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
17253 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
17254 ignored when handling global score files.
17257 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
17258 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
17259 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
17260 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
17263 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
17264 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
17265 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
17266 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
17268 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
17272 (mark-and-expunge -100)
17275 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
17276 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
17277 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
17278 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
17279 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
17281 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
17282 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
17283 scoring rules exist.
17286 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
17287 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
17288 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
17289 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
17290 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
17291 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
17292 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17293 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
17294 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
17295 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
17296 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
17300 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
17301 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
17302 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
17303 file for a number of groups.
17306 @cindex local variables
17307 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
17308 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
17309 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
17310 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
17311 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
17315 @node Score File Editing
17316 @section Score File Editing
17318 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
17319 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
17320 with a mode for that.
17322 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
17323 additional commands:
17328 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
17329 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
17330 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
17331 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
17334 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
17335 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
17336 Insert the current date in numerical format
17337 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
17338 you were wondering.
17341 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
17342 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
17343 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
17344 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
17345 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
17350 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
17352 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
17353 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
17355 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
17356 e} to begin editing score files.
17359 @node Adaptive Scoring
17360 @section Adaptive Scoring
17361 @cindex adaptive scoring
17363 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
17364 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
17365 stupidity, to be precise.
17367 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
17368 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
17369 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
17370 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
17371 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17372 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
17373 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
17374 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
17375 variable to @code{(word line)}.
17377 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17378 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
17379 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
17380 might look something like this:
17383 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17384 '((gnus-unread-mark)
17385 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
17386 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
17387 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
17388 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
17389 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
17390 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
17391 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
17392 (gnus-ancient-mark)
17393 (gnus-low-score-mark)
17394 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
17397 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
17398 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
17399 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
17400 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
17401 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
17402 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
17405 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
17406 will be applied to each article.
17408 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
17409 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
17410 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
17411 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
17413 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
17414 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
17415 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
17416 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
17418 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
17419 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
17420 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
17421 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
17423 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
17424 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
17425 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
17426 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
17427 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
17428 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
17430 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
17431 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
17432 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
17433 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
17434 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
17435 aspirins afterwards.)
17437 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
17438 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
17439 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
17441 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
17442 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
17443 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
17445 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
17446 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
17447 let you use different rules in different groups.
17449 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
17450 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
17451 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
17454 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
17455 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
17456 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
17457 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
17458 the length of the match is less than
17459 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
17460 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
17463 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17464 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
17465 headers. If you adapt on words, the
17466 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
17467 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
17470 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17471 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
17472 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
17473 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
17474 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
17477 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
17478 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
17479 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
17480 score with 30 points.
17482 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
17483 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
17484 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
17485 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
17486 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
17488 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
17489 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
17490 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
17491 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
17492 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
17494 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
17495 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
17496 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
17497 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
17499 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
17500 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
17501 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
17502 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
17504 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
17505 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
17506 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
17507 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
17508 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
17510 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
17511 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
17512 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
17514 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
17515 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
17516 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
17517 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
17520 @node Home Score File
17521 @section Home Score File
17523 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
17524 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
17525 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
17526 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
17528 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
17529 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
17530 could perhaps use the same home score file.
17532 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
17533 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
17538 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
17542 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
17543 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
17547 A list. The elements in this list can be:
17551 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
17552 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
17555 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
17556 the home score file.
17559 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
17562 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
17567 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
17570 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17571 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
17574 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
17575 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
17577 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
17579 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17580 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
17583 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
17584 Other functions include
17587 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
17588 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
17589 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
17590 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
17594 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
17595 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
17596 their own home score files:
17599 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17600 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
17601 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
17602 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
17603 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
17606 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
17607 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
17608 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
17609 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
17610 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
17612 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
17613 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
17614 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
17615 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
17616 precedence over this variable.
17619 @node Followups To Yourself
17620 @section Followups To Yourself
17622 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
17623 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
17624 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
17625 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
17626 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
17627 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
17631 @item gnus-score-followup-article
17632 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
17633 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
17636 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
17637 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
17638 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
17642 @vindex message-sent-hook
17643 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
17644 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
17646 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
17650 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
17651 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
17655 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17656 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17659 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
17660 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
17665 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
17669 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
17670 is system-dependent.
17673 @node Scoring On Other Headers
17674 @section Scoring On Other Headers
17675 @cindex scoring on other headers
17677 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
17678 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
17679 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
17680 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
17681 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
17683 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
17684 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
17685 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
17686 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
17687 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
17689 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
17692 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
17693 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
17696 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
17697 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
17698 time if you have much mail.
17700 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
17701 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
17707 @section Scoring Tips
17708 @cindex scoring tips
17714 @cindex scoring crossposts
17715 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
17716 the @code{Xref} header.
17718 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
17721 @item Multiple crossposts
17722 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
17723 more than, say, 3 groups:
17726 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
17730 @item Matching on the body
17731 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
17732 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
17733 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
17734 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
17735 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
17736 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
17737 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
17740 @item Marking as read
17741 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
17742 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
17743 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
17747 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
17749 @item Negated character classes
17750 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
17751 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
17752 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
17756 @node Reverse Scoring
17757 @section Reverse Scoring
17758 @cindex reverse scoring
17760 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
17761 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
17762 like this in your score file:
17766 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
17771 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
17772 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
17775 @node Global Score Files
17776 @section Global Score Files
17777 @cindex global score files
17779 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
17780 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
17781 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
17783 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
17784 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
17785 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
17787 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
17788 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
17789 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
17790 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
17791 files are applicable to which group.
17793 To use the score file
17794 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
17795 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
17799 (setq gnus-global-score-files
17800 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
17801 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
17804 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
17806 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
17807 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
17808 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
17809 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
17811 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
17812 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
17814 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
17815 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
17816 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
17817 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
17818 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
17819 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
17821 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
17827 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
17829 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
17831 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
17833 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
17834 lowered out of existence.
17836 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
17837 articles completely.
17840 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
17841 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
17842 old articles for a long time.
17845 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
17846 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
17847 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
17848 holding our breath yet?
17852 @section Kill Files
17855 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
17856 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
17857 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
17859 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
17860 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
17861 files into score files.
17863 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
17864 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
17865 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
17866 that isn't a very good idea.
17868 Normal kill files look like this:
17871 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17872 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
17876 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
17877 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
17879 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
17880 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
17883 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
17888 @kindex M-k (Summary)
17889 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
17890 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
17893 @kindex M-K (Summary)
17894 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
17895 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
17898 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
17903 @kindex M-k (Group)
17904 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
17905 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
17908 @kindex M-K (Group)
17909 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
17910 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
17913 Kill file variables:
17916 @item gnus-kill-file-name
17917 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
17918 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
17919 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
17920 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
17921 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
17922 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
17924 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17925 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17926 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
17927 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
17930 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
17931 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
17932 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
17933 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
17934 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
17935 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
17936 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
17937 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
17938 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
17940 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17941 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17942 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
17947 @node Converting Kill Files
17948 @section Converting Kill Files
17950 @cindex converting kill files
17952 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
17953 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
17954 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
17957 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
17958 You can fetch it from
17959 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
17961 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
17962 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
17963 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
17971 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
17972 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
17973 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
17974 news articles generated every day.
17976 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
17977 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
17978 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
17979 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
17980 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
17981 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
17982 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
17983 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
17986 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
17987 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
17990 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
17991 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
17992 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
17993 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
17997 @node Using GroupLens
17998 @subsection Using GroupLens
18000 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
18002 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
18003 better bit in town at the moment.
18005 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
18009 @item gnus-use-grouplens
18010 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
18011 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
18012 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
18014 @item grouplens-pseudonym
18015 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
18016 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
18017 with the Better Bit Bureau.
18019 @item grouplens-newsgroups
18020 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
18021 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
18025 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
18026 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
18027 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
18028 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
18029 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
18030 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
18033 @node Rating Articles
18034 @subsection Rating Articles
18036 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
18037 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
18038 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
18039 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
18042 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
18047 @kindex r (GroupLens)
18048 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
18049 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
18052 @kindex k (GroupLens)
18053 @findex grouplens-score-thread
18054 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
18055 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
18056 threads in rec.humor.
18060 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
18061 the score of the article you're reading.
18066 @kindex n (GroupLens)
18067 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
18068 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
18071 @kindex , (GroupLens)
18072 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
18073 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
18077 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
18078 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
18081 @node Displaying Predictions
18082 @subsection Displaying Predictions
18084 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
18085 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
18086 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
18087 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
18088 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
18090 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
18091 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
18092 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
18093 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
18094 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
18095 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
18096 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
18097 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
18098 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
18099 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
18100 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
18101 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
18102 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
18104 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
18105 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
18106 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
18107 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
18109 The following are valid values for that variable.
18112 @item prediction-spot
18113 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
18116 @item confidence-interval
18117 A numeric confidence interval.
18119 @item prediction-bar
18120 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
18122 @item confidence-bar
18123 Numerical confidence.
18125 @item confidence-spot
18126 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
18128 @item prediction-num
18129 Plain-old numeric value.
18131 @item confidence-plus-minus
18132 Prediction +/- confidence.
18137 @node GroupLens Variables
18138 @subsection GroupLens Variables
18142 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
18143 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
18144 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
18145 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
18148 @item grouplens-bbb-host
18149 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
18152 @item grouplens-bbb-port
18153 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
18155 @item grouplens-score-offset
18156 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
18157 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
18160 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
18161 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
18162 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
18167 @node Advanced Scoring
18168 @section Advanced Scoring
18170 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
18171 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
18172 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
18173 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
18174 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
18176 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
18180 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
18181 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
18182 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
18186 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
18187 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
18189 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
18190 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
18191 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
18192 non-@code{nil} value.
18194 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
18195 operator, and various match operators.
18202 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18203 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
18204 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
18209 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18210 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
18211 then this operator will return @code{false}.
18216 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
18217 logical negation of the value of its argument.
18221 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
18222 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
18223 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
18224 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
18225 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
18226 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
18227 the ancestry you want to go.
18229 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
18230 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
18231 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
18232 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
18233 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
18236 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
18237 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
18239 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
18240 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
18243 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
18244 when he's talking about Gnus:
18248 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18249 ("subject" "Gnus"))
18255 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
18259 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18266 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
18267 really don't want to read what he's written:
18271 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18272 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
18276 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
18277 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
18278 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
18285 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
18286 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
18287 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
18288 ("body" "white.*socks"))
18292 The possibilities are endless.
18295 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
18296 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
18298 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
18299 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
18300 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
18301 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
18302 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
18303 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
18304 @samp{subject}) first.
18306 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
18307 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
18318 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
18319 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
18325 ("subject" "Gnus")))
18332 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
18333 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
18338 @section Score Decays
18339 @cindex score decays
18342 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
18343 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
18344 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
18345 use them in any sensible way.
18347 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
18348 @findex gnus-decay-score
18349 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
18350 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
18351 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
18352 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
18353 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
18354 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
18355 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
18356 definition of that function:
18359 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
18361 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
18362 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
18365 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
18367 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
18369 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
18372 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
18373 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
18374 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
18375 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
18379 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
18382 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
18385 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
18389 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
18390 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
18391 the new score, which should be an integer.
18393 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
18394 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
18399 @include message.texi
18400 @chapter Emacs MIME
18401 @include emacs-mime.texi
18403 @include sieve.texi
18411 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
18412 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
18413 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
18414 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
18415 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
18416 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
18417 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
18418 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
18419 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
18420 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
18421 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
18422 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
18423 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
18424 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
18425 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
18426 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
18427 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
18428 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
18429 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
18433 @node Process/Prefix
18434 @section Process/Prefix
18435 @cindex process/prefix convention
18437 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
18438 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
18440 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
18441 command to be performed on.
18445 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
18446 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
18447 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
18448 with the current one.
18450 @vindex transient-mark-mode
18451 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
18452 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
18454 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
18455 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
18458 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
18459 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
18461 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
18464 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
18465 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
18466 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
18467 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
18469 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
18470 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
18471 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
18472 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
18473 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
18474 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
18475 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
18476 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
18478 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
18479 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
18480 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
18481 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
18482 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
18486 @section Interactive
18487 @cindex interaction
18491 @item gnus-novice-user
18492 @vindex gnus-novice-user
18493 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
18494 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
18495 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
18496 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
18499 @item gnus-expert-user
18500 @vindex gnus-expert-user
18501 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
18502 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
18503 matter how strange.
18505 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
18506 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
18507 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
18508 is @code{t} by default.
18510 @item gnus-interactive-exit
18511 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
18512 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18517 @node Symbolic Prefixes
18518 @section Symbolic Prefixes
18519 @cindex symbolic prefixes
18521 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
18522 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
18523 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
18524 rule of 900 to the current article.
18526 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
18527 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
18528 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
18529 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
18530 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
18531 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
18532 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
18534 @kindex M-i (Summary)
18535 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
18536 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
18537 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
18538 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
18539 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
18540 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
18541 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
18542 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
18544 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
18545 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
18546 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
18548 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
18552 @node Formatting Variables
18553 @section Formatting Variables
18554 @cindex formatting variables
18556 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
18557 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
18558 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
18559 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
18560 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
18563 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
18564 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
18565 lots of percentages everywhere.
18568 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
18569 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
18570 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
18571 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
18572 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
18573 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
18574 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
18575 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
18578 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
18579 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
18580 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
18581 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
18582 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
18583 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
18584 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
18585 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
18587 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
18588 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
18590 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
18591 @findex gnus-update-format
18592 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
18593 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
18594 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
18595 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
18599 @node Formatting Basics
18600 @subsection Formatting Basics
18602 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
18603 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
18604 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
18606 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
18607 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
18608 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
18609 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
18610 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
18613 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
18614 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
18615 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
18616 less than 4 characters wide.
18618 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
18619 @samp{%&user-date;}.
18622 @node Mode Line Formatting
18623 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
18625 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
18626 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
18627 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
18628 with the following two differences:
18633 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
18636 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
18637 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
18638 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
18639 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
18640 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
18641 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
18642 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
18647 @node Advanced Formatting
18648 @subsection Advanced Formatting
18650 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
18651 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
18652 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
18653 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
18655 These are the valid modifiers:
18660 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
18664 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
18669 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
18672 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
18677 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
18680 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
18683 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
18686 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
18692 "~(form (current-time-string))@"
18697 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
18698 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
18699 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
18700 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
18701 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
18702 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
18703 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
18705 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
18706 last operation, padding.
18708 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
18709 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
18710 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
18711 @xref{Compilation}.
18714 @node User-Defined Specs
18715 @subsection User-Defined Specs
18717 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
18718 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
18719 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
18720 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
18721 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
18722 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
18723 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
18724 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
18725 should protect against that.
18727 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
18728 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
18730 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
18731 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
18732 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
18733 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
18737 @node Formatting Fonts
18738 @subsection Formatting Fonts
18740 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
18741 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
18742 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
18743 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
18746 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
18747 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
18748 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
18749 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
18750 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
18751 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
18753 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
18754 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
18755 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
18756 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
18757 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
18758 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
18759 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
18760 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
18762 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
18765 ;; Create three face types.
18766 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
18767 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
18769 ;; We want the article count to be in
18770 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
18771 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
18772 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
18774 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
18775 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
18777 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
18778 (setq gnus-group-line-format
18779 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
18782 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
18783 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
18785 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
18786 mode-line variables.
18788 @node Positioning Point
18789 @subsection Positioning Point
18791 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
18792 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
18793 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
18795 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
18797 @findex gnus-goto-colon
18798 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
18799 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
18801 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
18802 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
18803 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
18808 @subsection Tabulation
18810 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
18811 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
18812 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
18813 about lining up the following text afterwards.
18815 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
18816 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
18818 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18819 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
18820 This is the soft tabulator.
18822 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
18823 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
18824 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
18827 @node Wide Characters
18828 @subsection Wide Characters
18830 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
18831 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
18832 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
18834 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
18835 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
18836 these coutries, that's not true.
18838 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
18839 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
18840 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
18841 prettieer. The default value is @code{t}.
18845 @node Window Layout
18846 @section Window Layout
18847 @cindex window layout
18849 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
18851 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
18852 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
18853 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
18854 @code{t} by default.
18856 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
18857 glitches. Use at your own peril.
18859 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
18860 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
18861 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
18864 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
18865 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
18866 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18870 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
18871 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
18872 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
18873 possible names is listed below.
18875 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
18876 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
18879 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18883 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
18884 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
18885 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
18886 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
18887 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
18888 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
18889 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
18890 size spec per split.
18892 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
18893 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
18894 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
18895 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
18896 present) gets focus.
18898 Here's a more complicated example:
18901 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
18902 (summary 0.25 point)
18903 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
18907 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
18908 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
18909 occupy, not a percentage.
18911 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
18912 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
18913 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
18914 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
18915 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
18918 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
18921 (article (horizontal 1.0
18926 (summary 0.25 point)
18931 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
18932 @code{horizontal} thingie?
18934 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
18935 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
18936 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
18937 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
18938 the screen is to be given to this strip.
18940 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
18941 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
18942 lines from the splits.
18944 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
18948 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
18949 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
18950 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
18951 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
18952 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
18953 size = number | frame-params
18954 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
18957 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
18958 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
18959 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
18960 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
18962 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
18963 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
18964 @cindex window height
18965 @cindex window width
18966 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
18967 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
18968 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
18969 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
18970 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
18971 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
18973 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
18974 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
18975 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
18976 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
18978 @findex gnus-configure-frame
18979 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
18980 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
18981 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
18982 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
18983 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
18984 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
18985 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
18986 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
18987 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
18988 configuration list.
18991 (gnus-configure-frame
18995 (article 0.3 point))
19003 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
19004 @code{frame} split:
19007 (gnus-configure-frame
19010 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
19012 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
19013 (user-position . t)
19014 (left . -1) (top . 1))
19019 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
19020 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
19021 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
19022 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
19023 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
19024 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
19025 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
19026 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
19028 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
19029 be found in its default value.
19031 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
19032 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
19033 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
19037 (message (horizontal 1.0
19038 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
19040 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
19045 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
19046 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
19047 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
19052 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
19053 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
19054 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
19055 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
19056 (name . "Message"))
19057 (message 1.0 point))))
19060 @findex gnus-add-configuration
19061 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
19062 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
19063 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
19064 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
19067 (gnus-add-configuration
19068 '(article (vertical 1.0
19070 (summary .25 point)
19074 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
19075 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
19076 Gnus has been loaded.
19078 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
19079 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
19080 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
19081 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
19082 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
19084 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
19085 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
19086 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
19089 @subsection Example Window Configurations
19093 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
19094 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
19109 (gnus-add-configuration
19112 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19114 (summary 0.16 point)
19117 (gnus-add-configuration
19120 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19121 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
19127 @node Faces and Fonts
19128 @section Faces and Fonts
19133 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
19134 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
19135 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
19140 @section Compilation
19141 @cindex compilation
19142 @cindex byte-compilation
19144 @findex gnus-compile
19146 Remember all those line format specification variables?
19147 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
19148 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
19149 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
19150 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
19151 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
19154 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
19155 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
19156 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
19157 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
19158 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
19159 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
19160 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
19164 @section Mode Lines
19167 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
19168 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
19169 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
19170 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
19171 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
19172 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
19173 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
19176 @cindex display-time
19178 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
19179 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
19180 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
19181 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
19182 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
19183 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
19184 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
19185 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
19188 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
19190 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
19191 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
19193 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
19194 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
19195 (length display-time-string)))))
19198 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
19199 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
19200 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
19201 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
19202 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
19205 @node Highlighting and Menus
19206 @section Highlighting and Menus
19208 @cindex highlighting
19211 @vindex gnus-visual
19212 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
19213 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
19214 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
19217 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
19218 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
19221 @item group-highlight
19222 Do highlights in the group buffer.
19223 @item summary-highlight
19224 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
19225 @item article-highlight
19226 Do highlights in the article buffer.
19228 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
19230 Create menus in the group buffer.
19232 Create menus in the summary buffers.
19234 Create menus in the article buffer.
19236 Create menus in the browse buffer.
19238 Create menus in the server buffer.
19240 Create menus in the score buffers.
19242 Create menus in all buffers.
19245 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
19246 buffers, you could say something like:
19249 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
19252 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
19255 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
19258 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
19259 in all Gnus buffers.
19261 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
19264 @item gnus-mouse-face
19265 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
19266 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
19267 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
19271 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
19275 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
19276 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
19277 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
19279 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
19280 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
19281 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
19283 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
19284 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
19285 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
19287 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
19288 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
19289 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
19291 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
19292 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
19293 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
19295 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
19296 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
19297 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
19308 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
19309 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
19310 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
19311 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
19312 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
19316 @vindex gnus-carpal
19317 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
19318 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
19319 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
19324 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19325 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19326 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
19328 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
19329 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
19330 Face used on buttons.
19332 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
19333 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
19334 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
19336 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19337 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19338 Buttons in the group buffer.
19340 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19341 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19342 Buttons in the summary buffer.
19344 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19345 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19346 Buttons in the server buffer.
19348 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19349 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19350 Buttons in the browse buffer.
19353 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
19354 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
19355 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
19363 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
19364 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
19365 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
19366 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
19367 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
19369 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
19370 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
19371 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
19373 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
19374 been idle for thirty minutes:
19377 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
19380 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
19384 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
19387 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
19388 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
19389 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19391 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
19392 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
19393 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
19394 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19396 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
19397 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
19398 @var{idle} minutes.
19400 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
19401 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
19404 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
19405 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
19406 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
19408 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
19409 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
19410 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
19411 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
19413 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
19414 your @file{.gnus} file:
19416 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
19418 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
19421 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
19422 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
19423 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
19424 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
19425 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
19426 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
19427 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
19428 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
19429 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
19430 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
19431 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
19433 @findex gnus-demon-init
19434 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
19435 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
19436 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
19437 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
19438 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
19440 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
19441 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
19442 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
19451 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
19452 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
19454 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
19455 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
19456 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
19457 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
19460 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
19461 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
19462 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
19463 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
19465 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
19466 this will make spam disappear.
19468 There are some variables to customize, of course:
19471 @item gnus-use-nocem
19472 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
19473 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
19476 @item gnus-nocem-groups
19477 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
19478 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
19479 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
19480 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
19482 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
19483 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
19484 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
19485 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
19486 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
19487 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
19489 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
19490 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
19492 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
19493 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
19494 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
19495 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
19496 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
19497 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
19498 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
19499 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
19500 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
19501 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
19503 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
19504 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
19507 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
19510 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
19511 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
19514 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
19517 The specs are applied left-to-right.
19520 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
19521 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
19523 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
19524 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
19525 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
19526 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
19528 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
19529 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
19532 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
19534 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
19542 This might be dangerous, though.
19544 @item gnus-nocem-directory
19545 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
19546 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
19547 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
19549 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19550 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19551 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
19552 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
19553 might then see old spam.
19555 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
19556 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
19557 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
19558 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
19559 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
19562 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19563 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19564 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
19565 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
19569 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
19570 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
19571 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
19572 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
19579 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
19580 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
19581 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
19583 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
19584 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
19585 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
19586 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
19587 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
19588 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
19589 @code{undo} function.
19591 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
19592 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
19593 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
19594 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
19595 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
19596 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
19597 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
19598 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
19599 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
19600 never be totally undoable.
19602 @findex gnus-undo-mode
19603 @vindex gnus-use-undo
19605 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
19606 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
19607 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
19608 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
19612 @node Predicate Specifiers
19613 @section Predicate Specifiers
19614 @cindex predicate specifiers
19616 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
19617 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
19618 to type all that much.
19620 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
19625 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
19626 gnus-article-unread-p)
19629 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
19630 functions all take one parameter.
19632 @findex gnus-make-predicate
19633 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
19634 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
19635 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
19640 @section Moderation
19643 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
19644 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
19645 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
19648 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
19652 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
19655 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
19657 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
19662 You split your incoming mail by matching on
19663 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
19664 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
19667 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
19668 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
19671 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
19672 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
19676 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
19679 (setq gnus-moderated-list
19680 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
19684 @node Image Enhancements
19685 @section Image Enhancements
19687 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
19688 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
19691 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
19692 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
19693 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
19694 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
19695 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
19708 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
19709 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
19710 over your shoulder as you read news.
19713 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
19714 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
19715 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
19716 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
19717 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
19722 @subsubsection Picon Basics
19724 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
19733 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
19734 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
19735 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
19736 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
19737 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
19738 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
19739 @code{GIF} formats.
19742 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19743 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
19744 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
19745 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
19746 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
19748 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19749 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
19750 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
19751 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
19752 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
19753 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19755 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
19756 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
19759 @node Picon Requirements
19760 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
19762 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must have @code{x} support
19763 compiled into XEmacs. To display color picons which are much nicer
19764 than the black & white one, you also need one of @code{xpm} or
19765 @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
19767 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19768 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
19769 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
19770 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
19771 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
19772 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19775 @subsubsection Easy Picons
19777 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
19778 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
19781 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
19782 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
19785 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
19786 containing the Picons databases.
19788 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
19791 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19792 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
19797 @subsubsection Hard Picons
19805 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
19806 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
19807 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
19808 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
19809 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
19814 @item gnus-picons-database
19815 @vindex gnus-picons-database
19816 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
19817 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
19818 subdirectories. This is only useful if
19819 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
19820 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
19822 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19823 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
19824 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
19825 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
19826 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
19827 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
19828 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
19830 @item gnus-picons-display-where
19831 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19832 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
19833 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
19834 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
19835 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
19836 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
19837 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
19839 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19840 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
19841 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
19846 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
19847 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
19849 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
19850 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
19853 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
19855 @item gnus-article-display-picons
19856 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
19857 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
19858 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
19860 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
19861 @findex gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
19862 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
19863 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the function name, not @code{xface})
19869 @node Picon Useless Configuration
19870 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
19878 The following variables offer further control over how things are
19879 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
19880 don't need to worry about.
19884 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
19885 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
19886 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19887 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
19889 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
19890 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
19891 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
19892 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
19894 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
19895 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
19896 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
19897 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
19898 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
19900 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19901 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
19902 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
19903 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
19904 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
19905 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
19906 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
19907 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19909 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19910 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19911 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
19912 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
19913 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
19915 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19916 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19917 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
19918 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
19919 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
19920 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
19921 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
19923 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19924 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19925 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
19926 Defaults to @code{nil}.
19928 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
19929 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
19930 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
19931 Defaults to @code{t}.
19933 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19934 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19935 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
19936 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
19938 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
19939 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
19940 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
19942 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19943 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19944 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
19945 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
19947 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
19948 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
19950 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19951 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19952 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
19953 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
19954 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
19955 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
19956 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
19957 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
19968 @subsection Smileys
19973 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
19978 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
19979 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
19981 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
19982 @file{.gnus.el} file:
19985 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
19988 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
19989 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
19990 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
19991 text and maps that to file names.
19993 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
19994 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
19995 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
19996 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
19997 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
19998 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
20000 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
20001 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
20003 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
20004 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
20005 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
20007 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
20008 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
20012 @item smiley-data-directory
20013 @vindex smiley-data-directory
20014 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
20016 @item smiley-flesh-color
20017 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
20018 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
20020 @item smiley-features-color
20021 @vindex smiley-features-color
20022 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20024 @item smiley-tongue-color
20025 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
20026 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
20028 @item smiley-circle-color
20029 @vindex smiley-circle-color
20030 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20032 @item smiley-mouse-face
20033 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
20034 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
20043 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
20044 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
20045 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
20049 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
20050 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
20051 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
20052 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
20060 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
20061 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
20062 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
20063 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
20065 The variable that controls this is the
20066 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
20067 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
20068 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
20069 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
20070 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
20072 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
20073 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
20074 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
20075 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
20078 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
20079 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
20080 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
20081 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
20082 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
20083 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
20084 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
20085 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
20087 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
20090 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
20091 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
20093 @findex gnus-random-x-face
20094 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files
20095 in @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
20096 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
20097 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
20098 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big.
20100 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a file as the parameter, and then
20101 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
20102 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
20104 Here's how you would typically use the former function. Put something
20105 like the folllowing in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
20108 (setq message-required-news-headers
20109 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20110 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
20113 Using the latter function would be something like this:
20116 (setq message-required-news-headers
20117 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20118 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
20119 (gnus-x-face-from-file
20120 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
20125 @subsection Toolbar
20135 @item gnus-use-toolbar
20136 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
20137 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
20138 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
20139 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
20141 @item gnus-group-toolbar
20142 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
20143 The toolbar in the group buffer.
20145 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
20146 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
20147 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
20149 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20150 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20151 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
20157 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
20160 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20161 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20162 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
20163 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
20164 unusual directory structure.
20166 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20167 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20168 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
20169 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
20171 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20172 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20173 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
20174 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
20175 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
20176 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
20178 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20179 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20180 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
20194 @node Fuzzy Matching
20195 @section Fuzzy Matching
20196 @cindex fuzzy matching
20198 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
20199 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
20201 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
20202 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
20203 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
20205 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
20206 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
20207 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
20208 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
20209 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
20212 @node Thwarting Email Spam
20213 @section Thwarting Email Spam
20217 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
20219 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
20220 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
20221 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
20222 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
20223 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
20224 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
20225 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
20226 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
20229 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
20230 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
20231 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
20232 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
20233 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
20234 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
20238 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
20239 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
20241 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
20242 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
20243 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
20244 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
20245 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
20246 part of the mail address.)
20249 (setq message-default-news-headers
20250 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
20253 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
20254 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
20259 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
20260 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
20261 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
20267 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
20268 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
20269 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
20270 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
20272 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
20273 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
20274 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
20275 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
20276 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
20277 your fancy split rule in this way:
20282 (to "larsi" "misc")
20286 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
20287 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
20288 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
20289 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
20290 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
20292 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
20293 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
20294 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
20295 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
20296 cosmic balance somewhat.
20298 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
20299 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
20300 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
20301 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
20304 @node Various Various
20305 @section Various Various
20311 @item gnus-home-directory
20312 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
20313 defaults to @file{~/}.
20315 @item gnus-directory
20316 @vindex gnus-directory
20317 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
20318 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
20319 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
20321 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
20322 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
20323 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
20324 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
20326 @item gnus-default-directory
20327 @vindex gnus-default-directory
20328 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
20329 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
20330 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
20331 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
20332 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
20333 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
20336 @vindex gnus-verbose
20337 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
20338 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
20339 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
20340 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
20341 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
20343 @item gnus-verbose-backends
20344 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
20345 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
20346 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
20348 @item nnheader-max-head-length
20349 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
20350 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
20351 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
20352 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
20353 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
20354 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
20355 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
20356 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
20357 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
20359 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
20360 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
20361 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
20362 read when doing the operation described above.
20364 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20365 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20367 @cindex invalid characters in file names
20368 @cindex characters in file names
20369 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
20370 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
20371 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
20374 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20378 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
20379 Windows (phooey) systems.
20381 @item gnus-hidden-properties
20382 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
20383 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
20384 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
20385 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
20387 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
20388 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
20389 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
20390 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
20391 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
20393 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
20394 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
20395 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
20397 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20398 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20400 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
20401 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
20402 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
20403 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
20406 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
20414 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
20415 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
20417 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
20419 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
20425 Not because of victories @*
20428 but for the common sunshine,@*
20430 the largess of the spring.
20434 but for the day's work done@*
20435 as well as I was able;@*
20436 not for a seat upon the dais@*
20437 but at the common table.@*
20442 @chapter Appendices
20445 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
20446 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
20447 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
20448 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
20449 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
20450 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
20451 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
20452 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
20453 * Frequently Asked Questions::
20460 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
20462 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
20463 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
20464 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
20465 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
20466 @samp{xemacs-base}, and @samp{fsf-compat}.
20473 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
20474 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
20476 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
20477 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
20478 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
20479 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
20480 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
20482 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
20483 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
20484 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
20485 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
20486 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
20487 appropriate name, don't you think?)
20489 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
20490 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
20491 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
20492 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
20495 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
20496 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
20497 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
20498 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
20499 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
20500 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
20501 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
20502 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
20503 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
20507 @node Gnus Versions
20508 @subsection Gnus Versions
20510 @cindex September Gnus
20512 @cindex Quassia Gnus
20513 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
20517 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
20518 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
20519 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
20521 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
20522 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
20524 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
20525 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
20527 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
20528 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
20530 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
20531 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
20534 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
20536 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
20537 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
20538 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
20539 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
20540 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
20541 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
20544 @node Other Gnus Versions
20545 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
20548 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
20549 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
20550 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
20551 @sc{mime} capabilities.
20553 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
20554 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
20555 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
20556 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
20563 What's the point of Gnus?
20565 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
20566 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
20567 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
20568 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
20569 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
20570 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
20571 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
20572 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
20573 keep track of millions of people who post?
20575 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
20576 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
20577 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
20578 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
20579 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
20580 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
20581 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
20582 every one of you to explore and invent.
20584 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
20585 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
20588 @node Compatibility
20589 @subsection Compatibility
20591 @cindex compatibility
20592 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
20593 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
20594 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
20599 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
20603 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
20606 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
20609 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
20610 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
20611 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
20612 important variables have their values copied into their global
20613 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
20614 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
20616 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
20617 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
20618 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
20619 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
20620 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
20624 @cindex highlighting
20625 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
20626 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
20627 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
20628 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
20629 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
20630 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
20633 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
20634 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
20635 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
20636 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
20638 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
20639 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
20640 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
20641 to stop doing it the old way.
20643 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
20645 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
20647 @cindex reporting bugs
20649 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
20650 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
20651 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
20653 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
20654 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
20655 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
20656 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
20661 @subsection Conformity
20663 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
20664 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
20672 There are no known breaches of this standard.
20676 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
20678 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
20679 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
20680 We do have some breaches to this one.
20686 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
20687 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
20688 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
20689 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
20690 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
20695 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
20696 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
20697 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
20698 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
20700 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
20704 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
20705 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
20706 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-MIME aware PGP
20707 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
20708 decoding (verification and decryption).
20710 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
20712 RFC 2015 (superceded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
20713 1991) describes the MIME-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
20714 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
20716 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
20718 RFC 2633 describes the S/MIME format.
20720 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
20722 RFC 1730 is IMAP version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (IMAP 4
20723 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for IMAP. RFC
20724 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for IMAP. RFC 2359
20725 describes a IMAP protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
20726 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with IMAP. RFC 1731 describes the
20727 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for IMAP.
20731 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
20732 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
20737 @subsection Emacsen
20743 Gnus should work on :
20751 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
20755 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
20756 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
20759 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
20760 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
20761 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
20765 @node Gnus Development
20766 @subsection Gnus Development
20768 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
20769 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
20770 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
20771 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
20772 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
20773 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
20774 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
20775 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
20777 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
20778 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
20779 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
20780 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
20781 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
20784 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
20785 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
20786 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
20787 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
20788 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
20790 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
20791 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
20792 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
20793 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
20794 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
20795 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
20796 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
20797 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
20798 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
20799 can't be assumed to do so.
20804 @subsection Contributors
20805 @cindex contributors
20807 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
20808 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
20809 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
20810 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
20811 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
20812 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
20813 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
20814 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
20815 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
20816 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
20818 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
20824 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
20827 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
20828 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
20829 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
20830 functionality and stuff.
20833 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
20834 well as numerous other things).
20837 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
20840 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
20843 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
20846 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
20849 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
20850 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
20853 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
20856 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
20857 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
20860 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
20863 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
20866 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
20869 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
20872 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
20873 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
20876 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
20879 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
20882 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
20885 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
20889 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
20892 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
20895 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
20898 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
20899 well as autoconf support.
20903 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
20904 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
20906 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
20915 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
20919 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
20929 Alexei V. Barantsev,
20944 Massimo Campostrini,
20949 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
20950 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
20954 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
20957 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
20963 Michael Welsh Duggan,
20968 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
20972 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
20980 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
20982 Michelangelo Grigni,
20986 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
20988 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
20990 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
20997 François Felix Ingrand,
20998 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
20999 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
21001 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
21012 Peter Skov Knudsen,
21013 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
21015 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
21016 Thor Kristoffersen,
21019 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
21037 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
21038 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
21045 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
21050 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
21054 John McClary Prevost,
21060 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
21065 Christian von Roques,
21068 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
21075 Philippe Schnoebelen,
21077 Randal L. Schwartz,
21091 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
21096 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
21112 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
21117 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
21118 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
21119 (550kB and counting).
21121 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
21124 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
21125 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
21129 @subsection New Features
21130 @cindex new features
21133 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
21134 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
21135 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
21136 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
21137 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
21140 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
21141 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
21142 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
21145 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
21147 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
21152 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
21153 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
21156 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
21157 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
21160 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
21163 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
21164 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
21165 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
21168 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
21169 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
21170 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
21171 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21174 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
21175 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21178 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
21179 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
21180 (@pxref{The Active File}).
21183 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
21184 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
21187 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
21188 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
21189 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21192 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
21193 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
21194 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
21197 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
21198 the @file{.emacs} file.
21201 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
21202 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
21205 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
21206 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
21209 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
21210 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21213 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
21214 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
21217 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
21218 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21221 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
21224 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
21225 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
21228 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
21229 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
21232 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
21233 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
21236 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
21239 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
21240 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21243 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
21247 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
21251 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
21252 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
21255 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
21261 @node September Gnus
21262 @subsubsection September Gnus
21266 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
21270 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
21275 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
21276 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
21280 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
21281 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
21285 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
21289 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
21290 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
21293 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
21297 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21300 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
21303 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
21306 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
21310 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
21311 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
21314 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
21318 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
21322 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
21326 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
21330 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
21333 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
21334 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
21337 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
21341 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
21342 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
21345 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
21348 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
21349 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
21350 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21353 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
21357 The Gnus cache is much faster.
21360 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
21364 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
21365 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
21368 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
21369 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
21372 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
21373 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
21376 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
21377 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
21378 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
21381 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
21382 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
21385 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
21388 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21391 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
21394 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
21397 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
21398 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
21401 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
21405 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
21408 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
21413 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
21416 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
21420 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21423 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
21427 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
21430 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
21433 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
21434 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21437 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
21438 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
21442 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
21443 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
21446 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
21450 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
21451 buffer to allow easier treatment.
21454 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
21457 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
21461 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
21465 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
21466 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
21469 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
21473 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
21474 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21477 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
21478 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21481 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
21485 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21488 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
21491 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
21497 @subsubsection Red Gnus
21499 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
21503 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
21510 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
21513 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
21514 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21517 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
21518 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
21522 Article washing status can be displayed in the
21523 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
21526 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
21529 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
21530 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
21533 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
21537 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
21538 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
21542 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
21543 Server Internals}).
21546 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
21550 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
21553 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
21554 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
21557 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
21558 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
21559 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
21562 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
21563 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21566 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
21567 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
21570 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
21574 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
21575 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21578 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
21579 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21582 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
21586 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
21589 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
21593 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
21594 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21597 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
21598 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21601 A new command for reading collections of documents
21602 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
21603 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
21606 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
21610 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
21611 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
21614 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
21615 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
21616 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
21619 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
21620 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
21624 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
21628 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
21632 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
21637 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
21641 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
21645 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
21646 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
21649 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
21655 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
21657 New features in Gnus 5.6:
21662 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
21663 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
21664 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
21667 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
21668 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
21669 group, which is created automatically.
21672 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
21676 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
21679 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
21680 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
21683 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
21687 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
21690 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
21691 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
21694 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
21697 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
21698 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
21701 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
21702 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
21705 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
21706 control over simplification.
21709 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
21712 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
21716 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
21719 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
21722 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
21723 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
21724 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
21727 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
21728 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
21731 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
21735 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
21736 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
21739 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
21740 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
21743 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
21747 A history of where mails have been split is available.
21750 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
21753 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
21754 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
21757 A new function for citing in Message has been
21758 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
21761 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
21764 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
21768 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
21769 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
21772 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
21773 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
21776 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
21779 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
21783 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
21784 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
21786 New features in Gnus 5.8:
21791 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
21792 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
21794 If you used procmail like in
21797 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
21798 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
21799 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
21800 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
21803 this now has changed to
21807 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
21811 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
21812 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
21815 Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
21816 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
21819 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
21820 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
21823 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
21824 called to position point.
21827 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
21828 summary buffers and NOV files.
21831 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
21832 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
21835 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
21836 subtly different manner.
21839 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
21840 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
21841 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
21844 Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
21852 @section The Manual
21856 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
21857 either @code{texi2dvi}
21859 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
21860 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
21862 to get what you hold in your hands now.
21864 The following conventions have been used:
21869 This is a @samp{string}
21872 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
21875 This is a @file{file}
21878 This is a @code{symbol}
21882 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
21886 (setq flargnoze "yes")
21889 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
21892 (setq flumphel 'yes)
21895 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
21896 ever get them confused.
21900 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
21901 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
21902 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
21903 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
21904 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
21905 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
21906 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
21912 @node On Writing Manuals
21913 @section On Writing Manuals
21915 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
21916 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
21917 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
21918 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
21919 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
21920 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
21923 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
21924 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
21925 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
21928 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
21929 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
21934 @section Terminology
21936 @cindex terminology
21941 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
21942 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
21943 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
21944 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
21945 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
21949 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
21950 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
21951 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
21952 not posting, and replying is not following up.
21956 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
21960 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
21965 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of back ends, both news and mail
21966 back ends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
21967 is all done by the back ends.
21971 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
21972 default, way of getting news.
21976 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
21977 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
21982 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
21983 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
21987 A message that has been posted as news.
21990 @cindex mail message
21991 A message that has been mailed.
21995 A mail message or news article
21999 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
22004 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
22009 A line from the head of an article.
22013 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
22014 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
22018 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
22019 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
22020 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
22021 normal @sc{head} format.
22025 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
22026 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
22027 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
22028 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
22029 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
22030 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
22032 @item killed groups
22033 @cindex killed groups
22034 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
22035 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
22037 @item zombie groups
22038 @cindex zombie groups
22039 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
22042 @cindex active file
22043 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
22044 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
22045 is rather large, as you might surmise.
22048 @cindex bogus groups
22049 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
22050 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
22051 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
22054 @cindex activating groups
22055 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
22056 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
22057 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
22061 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
22063 @item select method
22064 @cindex select method
22065 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
22068 @item virtual server
22069 @cindex virtual server
22070 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
22071 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
22072 whole is a virtual server.
22076 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
22077 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
22080 @item ephemeral groups
22081 @cindex ephemeral groups
22082 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
22083 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
22084 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
22087 @cindex solid groups
22088 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
22089 group buffer are solid groups.
22091 @item sparse articles
22092 @cindex sparse articles
22093 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
22094 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
22098 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
22099 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
22103 @cindex thread root
22104 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
22105 articles in the thread.
22109 An article that has responses.
22113 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
22117 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
22118 specified by RFC 1153.
22124 @node Customization
22125 @section Customization
22126 @cindex general customization
22128 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
22129 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
22130 for some quite common situations.
22133 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
22134 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
22135 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
22136 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
22140 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
22141 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
22143 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
22144 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
22145 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
22149 @item gnus-read-active-file
22150 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
22151 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
22152 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22153 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
22154 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
22156 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
22157 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
22158 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
22159 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
22163 @node Slow Terminal Connection
22164 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
22166 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
22167 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
22168 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
22172 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
22173 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
22174 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
22175 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
22176 horizontal and vertical recentering.
22178 @item gnus-visible-headers
22179 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
22180 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
22181 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
22182 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
22184 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
22186 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
22187 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
22188 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
22191 @item gnus-use-full-window
22192 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
22193 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
22194 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
22195 want to read them anyway.
22197 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22198 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
22201 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
22202 Avaliable predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
22203 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
22208 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22209 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
22210 gnus-article-unseen-p))
22213 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
22214 unread, but you get my drift.)
22217 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
22218 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
22219 lines, which might save some time.
22223 @node Little Disk Space
22224 @subsection Little Disk Space
22227 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
22228 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
22232 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
22233 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
22234 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22235 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22238 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
22239 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
22240 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22241 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22244 @item gnus-save-killed-list
22245 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
22246 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
22247 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
22248 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
22254 @subsection Slow Machine
22255 @cindex slow machine
22257 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
22258 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
22260 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22261 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
22263 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
22264 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
22265 summary buffer faster.
22269 @node Troubleshooting
22270 @section Troubleshooting
22271 @cindex troubleshooting
22273 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
22281 Make sure your computer is switched on.
22284 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
22285 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
22289 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
22290 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
22291 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
22292 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
22295 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
22299 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
22300 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
22301 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
22302 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
22303 something like that.
22306 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
22309 @cindex reporting bugs
22311 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
22313 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
22314 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
22315 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
22316 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
22318 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
22319 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
22320 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
22321 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
22324 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
22325 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
22326 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
22327 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
22328 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
22329 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
22331 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
22332 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
22333 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
22337 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
22338 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
22340 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
22341 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
22343 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
22344 @cindex ding mailing list
22345 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
22346 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
22350 @node Gnus Reference Guide
22351 @section Gnus Reference Guide
22353 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
22354 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
22355 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
22356 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
22359 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
22360 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
22361 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
22362 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
22363 and general methods of operation.
22366 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
22367 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
22368 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
22369 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
22370 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
22371 * Group Info:: The group info format.
22372 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
22373 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
22374 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
22378 @node Gnus Utility Functions
22379 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
22380 @cindex Gnus utility functions
22381 @cindex utility functions
22383 @cindex internal variables
22385 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
22386 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
22387 Below is a list of the most common ones.
22391 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
22392 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
22393 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
22395 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
22396 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
22397 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
22399 @item gnus-group-real-name
22400 @findex gnus-group-real-name
22401 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
22404 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
22405 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
22406 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
22407 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
22409 @item gnus-get-info
22410 @findex gnus-get-info
22411 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
22413 @item gnus-group-unread
22414 @findex gnus-group-unread
22415 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
22419 @findex gnus-active
22420 The active entry for @var{group}.
22422 @item gnus-set-active
22423 @findex gnus-set-active
22424 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
22426 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22427 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22428 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
22431 @item gnus-continuum-version
22432 @findex gnus-continuum-version
22433 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
22434 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
22437 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
22438 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
22439 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
22441 @item gnus-news-group-p
22442 @findex gnus-news-group-p
22443 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
22445 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22446 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22447 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
22449 @item gnus-server-to-method
22450 @findex gnus-server-to-method
22451 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
22453 @item gnus-server-equal
22454 @findex gnus-server-equal
22455 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
22457 @item gnus-group-native-p
22458 @findex gnus-group-native-p
22459 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
22461 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
22462 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
22463 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
22465 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
22466 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
22467 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
22469 @item group-group-find-parameter
22470 @findex group-group-find-parameter
22471 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
22472 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
22474 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
22475 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
22476 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
22478 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
22479 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
22480 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
22482 @item gnus-check-backend-function
22483 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
22484 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
22485 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
22488 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
22492 @item gnus-read-method
22493 @findex gnus-read-method
22494 Prompts the user for a select method.
22499 @node Back End Interface
22500 @subsection Back End Interface
22502 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
22503 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
22504 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
22505 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
22506 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
22507 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
22509 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
22510 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
22511 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
22512 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
22513 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
22514 been opened, the function should fail.
22516 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
22517 name. Take this example:
22521 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
22522 (nntp-port-number 4324))
22525 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
22526 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
22528 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
22529 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
22530 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
22532 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
22533 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
22534 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
22536 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
22537 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
22538 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
22539 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
22540 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
22541 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
22544 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
22545 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
22546 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
22547 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
22550 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
22551 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
22552 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
22553 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
22554 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
22555 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
22556 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
22557 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
22558 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
22559 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
22561 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
22562 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
22563 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
22564 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
22565 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
22566 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
22567 of numbers as long as possible.
22569 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
22572 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
22575 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
22576 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
22577 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
22578 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
22579 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
22580 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
22584 @node Required Back End Functions
22585 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
22589 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
22591 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
22592 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
22593 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
22594 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
22596 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
22597 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
22598 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
22599 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
22601 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
22602 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
22603 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
22604 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
22605 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
22606 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
22607 number, do maximum fetches.
22609 Here's an example HEAD:
22612 221 1056 Article retrieved.
22613 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
22614 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
22615 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
22616 Subject: Re: Something very droll
22617 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
22618 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
22620 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
22621 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
22622 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
22626 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
22627 these in the data buffer.
22629 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
22633 head = error / valid-head
22634 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
22635 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
22636 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
22637 header = <text> eol
22640 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
22641 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
22645 nov-buffer = *nov-line
22646 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
22647 field = <text except TAB>
22650 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
22654 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
22656 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
22657 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
22659 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
22660 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
22661 server. In fact, it should do so.
22663 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
22664 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
22667 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
22669 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
22670 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
22673 There should be no data returned.
22676 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
22678 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
22679 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
22680 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
22681 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
22683 There should be no data returned.
22686 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
22688 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
22689 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
22690 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
22691 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
22693 There should be no data returned.
22696 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
22698 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
22700 There should be no data returned.
22703 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
22705 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
22706 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
22707 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
22708 it would be nice if that were possible.
22710 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
22711 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
22712 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
22713 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
22714 into its article buffer.
22716 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
22717 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
22718 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
22719 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
22720 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
22721 on successful article retrieval.
22724 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
22726 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
22727 making @var{group} the current group.
22729 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
22732 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
22735 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
22738 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
22739 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
22740 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
22741 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
22742 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
22743 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
22744 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
22745 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
22748 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
22749 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
22750 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
22754 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22756 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
22757 a no-op on most back ends.
22759 There should be no data returned.
22762 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
22764 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
22767 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
22770 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
22771 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
22774 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
22775 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
22778 active-file = *active-line
22779 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
22781 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
22784 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
22785 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
22786 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
22789 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
22791 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
22792 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
22793 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
22794 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
22795 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
22796 clear if the posting could not be completed.
22798 There should be no result data from this function.
22803 @node Optional Back End Functions
22804 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
22808 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
22810 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
22811 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
22812 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
22814 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
22815 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
22816 former is in the same format as the data from
22817 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
22818 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
22821 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
22825 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
22827 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
22828 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
22829 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
22830 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
22831 should return the (altered) group info.
22833 There should be no result data from this function.
22836 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
22838 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
22839 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
22840 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
22841 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
22842 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
22843 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
22844 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
22845 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
22847 There should be no result data from this function.
22850 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
22852 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
22853 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
22854 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
22855 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
22856 propagate the mark information to the server.
22858 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
22861 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
22864 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
22865 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
22866 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
22867 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
22868 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
22869 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
22870 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
22871 possible, not limit itself to these.
22873 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
22874 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
22875 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
22876 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
22878 An example action list:
22881 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
22882 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
22883 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
22886 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
22887 mark on (currently not used for anything).
22889 There should be no result data from this function.
22891 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
22893 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
22894 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
22895 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
22896 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
22897 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
22899 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
22900 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
22901 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
22904 There should be no result data from this function.
22907 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
22909 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
22910 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
22911 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
22912 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
22913 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
22914 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
22915 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
22917 There should be no result data from this function.
22920 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
22922 The result data from this function should be a description of
22926 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
22928 description = <text>
22931 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
22933 The result data from this function should be the description of all
22934 groups available on the server.
22937 description-buffer = *description-line
22941 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
22943 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
22944 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
22945 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
22946 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
22947 in the active buffer format.
22949 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
22950 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
22951 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
22952 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
22953 many groups, so nnml and the like are probably safe. But for back ends
22954 like nntp, where the groups have been created by the server, it is quite
22955 likely that there can be many groups.
22958 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
22960 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
22962 There should be no return data.
22965 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
22967 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
22968 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
22969 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
22970 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
22971 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
22974 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
22977 There should be no result data returned.
22980 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
22983 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
22984 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
22986 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
22987 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
22988 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
22989 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
22990 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
22991 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
22993 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
22994 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
22997 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
22998 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23000 There should be no data returned.
23003 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
23005 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
23006 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
23007 this function in short order.
23009 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
23010 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23012 There should be no data returned.
23015 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
23017 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
23018 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
23020 There should be no data returned.
23023 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
23025 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
23026 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
23027 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
23029 There should be no data returned.
23032 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
23034 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
23035 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
23037 There should be no data returned.
23042 @node Error Messaging
23043 @subsubsection Error Messaging
23045 @findex nnheader-report
23046 @findex nnheader-get-report
23047 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
23048 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
23049 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
23050 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
23051 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
23052 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
23055 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
23057 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
23060 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
23061 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
23062 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
23063 takes one argument---the server symbol.
23065 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
23066 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
23067 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
23070 @node Writing New Back Ends
23071 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
23073 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
23074 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
23075 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
23076 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
23077 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
23080 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
23081 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
23082 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
23084 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
23085 package called @code{nnoo}.
23087 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
23088 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
23094 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
23095 parameters. For instance:
23098 (nnoo-declare nndir
23102 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
23103 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
23106 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
23107 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
23108 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
23110 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
23111 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
23112 a function in those back ends.
23115 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23116 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23117 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23120 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
23121 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
23122 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
23124 @item nnoo-define-basics
23125 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
23129 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23133 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
23134 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
23135 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
23137 @item nnoo-map-functions
23138 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
23139 functions from the parent back ends.
23142 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23143 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23144 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
23147 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
23148 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
23149 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
23150 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
23153 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
23154 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
23155 haven't already been defined.
23161 nnmh-request-newgroups)
23165 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
23166 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
23167 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
23172 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
23175 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
23176 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
23180 (require 'nnheader)
23184 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
23186 (nnoo-declare nndir
23189 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23190 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23191 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23193 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
23194 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
23197 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
23199 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
23200 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
23201 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
23203 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
23204 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
23206 ;;; Interface functions.
23208 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23210 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
23211 (setq nndir-directory
23212 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
23214 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
23215 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
23216 (push `(nndir-current-group
23217 ,(file-name-nondirectory
23218 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23220 (push `(nndir-top-directory
23221 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23223 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
23225 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23226 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23227 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23228 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
23229 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
23233 nnmh-status-message
23235 nnmh-request-newgroups))
23241 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23242 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23244 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
23245 @findex gnus-declare-backend
23246 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
23247 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
23248 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
23250 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
23251 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
23256 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
23259 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
23261 The abilities can be:
23265 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
23267 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
23269 This back end supports both mail and news.
23271 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
23274 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
23275 articles and groups.
23277 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
23278 true for almost all back ends.
23279 @item prompt-address
23280 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
23281 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
23282 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
23286 @node Mail-like Back Ends
23287 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
23289 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
23290 back ends is the heavy dependence by the mail back ends on common
23291 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
23292 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
23295 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
23296 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
23297 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
23300 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
23301 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
23304 This function takes four parameters.
23308 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
23311 @item exit-function
23312 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
23314 @item temp-directory
23315 Where the temporary files should be stored.
23318 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
23319 performed for one group only.
23322 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
23323 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
23324 find the article number assigned to this article.
23326 The function also uses the following variables:
23327 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
23328 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
23329 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
23330 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
23334 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
23335 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
23339 @node Score File Syntax
23340 @subsection Score File Syntax
23342 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
23343 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
23344 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
23346 Here's a typical score file:
23350 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
23357 BNF definition of a score file:
23360 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
23361 element = rule / atom
23362 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
23363 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
23364 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
23365 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
23367 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
23368 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
23369 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
23370 date-header = "date"
23371 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23372 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23373 score = "nil" / <integer>
23374 date = "nil" / <natural number>
23375 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
23376 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
23377 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
23378 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
23379 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23380 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23381 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
23382 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23383 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
23384 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
23385 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
23386 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
23387 exclude-files / read-only / touched
23388 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
23389 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
23390 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
23391 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
23392 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
23393 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
23394 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
23395 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
23396 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
23397 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
23398 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
23399 eval = "eval" space <form>
23400 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
23403 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
23406 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
23407 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
23408 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
23409 one looong line, then that's ok.
23411 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
23412 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
23416 @subsection Headers
23418 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
23419 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
23420 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
23421 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
23423 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
23424 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
23425 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
23426 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
23427 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
23428 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
23429 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
23431 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
23432 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
23433 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
23434 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
23435 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
23437 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
23438 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
23444 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
23445 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
23447 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
23448 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
23449 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
23450 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
23452 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
23456 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
23459 is transformed into
23462 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
23465 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
23466 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
23469 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
23472 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
23473 is slightly tricky:
23476 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
23482 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
23485 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
23491 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
23498 and is equal to the previous range.
23500 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
23501 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
23502 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
23506 range = simple-range / normal-range
23507 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
23508 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
23509 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
23510 number *[ " " contents ]
23513 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
23514 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
23515 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
23516 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
23517 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
23522 @subsection Group Info
23524 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
23525 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
23526 describes the group.
23528 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
23529 second is a more complex one:
23532 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
23534 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
23535 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
23537 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
23540 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
23541 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
23542 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
23543 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
23544 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
23545 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
23546 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
23547 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
23548 this section is about.
23550 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
23551 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
23552 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
23554 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
23557 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
23558 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
23559 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23560 group = quote <string> quote
23561 ralevel = rank / level
23562 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23563 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
23564 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23566 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
23567 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
23568 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
23569 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
23572 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
23573 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
23576 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
23577 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
23580 @item gnus-info-group
23581 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
23582 @findex gnus-info-group
23583 @findex gnus-info-set-group
23584 Get/set the group name.
23586 @item gnus-info-rank
23587 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
23588 @findex gnus-info-rank
23589 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
23590 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
23592 @item gnus-info-level
23593 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
23594 @findex gnus-info-level
23595 @findex gnus-info-set-level
23596 Get/set the group level.
23598 @item gnus-info-score
23599 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
23600 @findex gnus-info-score
23601 @findex gnus-info-set-score
23602 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
23604 @item gnus-info-read
23605 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
23606 @findex gnus-info-read
23607 @findex gnus-info-set-read
23608 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
23610 @item gnus-info-marks
23611 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
23612 @findex gnus-info-marks
23613 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
23614 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
23616 @item gnus-info-method
23617 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
23618 @findex gnus-info-method
23619 @findex gnus-info-set-method
23620 Get/set the group select method.
23622 @item gnus-info-params
23623 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
23624 @findex gnus-info-params
23625 @findex gnus-info-set-params
23626 Get/set the group parameters.
23629 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
23630 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
23632 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
23633 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
23634 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
23635 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
23638 @node Extended Interactive
23639 @subsection Extended Interactive
23640 @cindex interactive
23641 @findex gnus-interactive
23643 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
23644 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
23645 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
23648 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
23649 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
23654 The best thing to do would have been to implement
23655 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
23656 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
23657 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
23658 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
23659 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
23660 @code{interactive}.
23662 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
23667 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
23668 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
23672 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
23673 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
23674 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
23677 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
23681 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
23685 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
23691 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
23692 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
23696 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
23697 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
23698 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
23700 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
23701 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
23702 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
23703 Gnus, that's very useful.
23705 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
23706 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
23707 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
23708 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
23709 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
23710 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
23711 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
23712 following function:
23715 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
23719 (,function ,@@args))
23723 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
23724 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
23725 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
23728 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
23729 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
23730 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
23732 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
23733 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
23734 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
23737 @node Various File Formats
23738 @subsection Various File Formats
23741 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
23742 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
23746 @node Active File Format
23747 @subsubsection Active File Format
23749 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
23750 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
23753 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
23756 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
23757 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
23758 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
23759 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
23760 no.general 1000 900 y
23763 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
23766 active = *group-line
23767 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
23768 group = <non-white-space string>
23770 high-number = <non-negative integer>
23771 low-number = <positive integer>
23772 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
23775 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
23776 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
23779 @node Newsgroups File Format
23780 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
23782 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
23783 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
23784 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
23787 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
23788 Here's the definition:
23792 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
23793 group = <non-white-space string>
23795 description = <string>
23800 @node Emacs for Heathens
23801 @section Emacs for Heathens
23803 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
23804 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
23805 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
23806 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
23807 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
23808 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
23809 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
23813 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
23814 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
23819 @subsection Keystrokes
23823 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
23826 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
23829 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
23830 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
23831 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
23832 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
23833 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
23834 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
23836 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
23837 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
23838 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
23839 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
23840 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
23841 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
23842 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
23844 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
23845 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
23846 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
23847 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
23848 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
23849 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
23850 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
23852 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
23853 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
23854 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
23855 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
23856 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
23862 @subsection Emacs Lisp
23864 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
23865 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
23866 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
23867 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
23869 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
23870 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
23871 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
23872 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
23873 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
23874 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
23875 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
23878 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
23879 write the following:
23882 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
23885 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
23886 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
23887 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
23890 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
23891 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
23892 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
23893 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
23894 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
23896 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
23897 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
23898 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
23902 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
23906 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
23909 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
23910 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
23913 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
23916 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
23917 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
23920 @include gnus-faq.texi
23940 @c Local Variables:
23942 @c coding: iso-8859-1
23944 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
23945 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
23946 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
23947 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
23948 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref