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4 @settitle Red Gnus 0.70 Manual
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233 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
240 \thispagestyle{empty}
242 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
244 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
245 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
246 are preserved on all copies.
248 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
249 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
250 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
251 permission notice identical to this one.
253 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
254 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
263 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
265 Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
267 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
268 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
269 are preserved on all copies.
272 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
273 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
274 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
275 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
278 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
279 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
280 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
281 permission notice identical to this one.
283 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
284 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
290 @title Red Gnus 0.70 Manual
292 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
295 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
296 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
298 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
299 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
300 are preserved on all copies.
302 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
303 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
304 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
305 permission notice identical to this one.
307 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
308 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
317 @top The Red Gnus Newsreader
321 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
322 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
323 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
326 This manual corresponds to Red Gnus 0.70
337 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
338 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
340 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
341 being accused of plagiarism:
343 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
344 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
345 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
346 even read news with it!
348 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
349 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
350 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
351 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
352 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
359 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
360 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
361 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
362 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
363 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
364 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
365 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
366 * Various:: General purpose settings.
367 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
368 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
369 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
370 * Key Index:: Key Index.
374 @chapter Starting Gnus
379 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
380 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
383 @findex gnus-other-frame
384 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
385 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
386 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
388 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
392 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
393 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
394 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
395 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
396 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
397 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
398 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
399 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
400 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
401 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
402 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
406 @node Finding the News
407 @section Finding the News
410 @vindex gnus-select-method
412 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
413 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
414 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
415 native method. All groups that are not fetched with this method are
418 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
419 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
422 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
425 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
428 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
431 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
432 certainly be much faster.
434 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
436 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
437 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
438 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
439 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
440 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
441 that fails as well, Gnus will will try to use the machine that is
442 running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
444 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
445 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
446 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
447 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
449 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
450 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
451 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
452 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
453 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
454 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
456 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
458 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
459 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
460 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
461 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
462 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
463 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
465 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
467 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
468 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
469 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
470 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
471 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
472 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
475 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
476 would typically set this variable to
479 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
484 @section The First Time
485 @cindex first time usage
487 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
488 be subscribed by default.
490 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
491 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
492 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
493 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
496 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
497 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is here
498 defined as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
500 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
501 help you with most common problems.
503 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
504 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
508 @node The Server is Down
509 @section The Server is Down
510 @cindex server errors
512 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
513 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
514 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
516 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
517 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
518 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
519 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
520 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
521 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
522 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
524 @findex gnus-no-server
525 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
527 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
528 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
529 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
530 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
531 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
532 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
537 @section Slave Gnusae
540 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
541 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
542 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
543 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
545 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
548 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
549 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
550 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
551 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
552 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
553 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
554 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
556 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
557 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
558 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
559 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
560 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
561 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
562 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
563 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
565 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
566 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
569 @node Fetching a Group
570 @section Fetching a Group
571 @cindex fetching a group
573 @findex gnus-fetch-group
574 It it sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
575 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
576 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
577 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
578 It takes the group name as a parameter.
586 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
587 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
588 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
589 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
590 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
591 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
592 is @code{t} by default. If you set this variable to @code{always}, then
593 Gnus will query the backends for new groups even when you do the @kbd{g}
594 command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
597 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
598 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
599 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
603 @node Checking New Groups
604 @subsection Checking New Groups
606 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
607 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
608 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
609 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
610 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
611 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
612 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
613 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
614 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
615 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
617 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
618 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
619 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
620 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
621 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
622 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
623 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
624 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
625 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
626 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
627 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
629 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
630 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
631 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
632 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
633 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
634 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
637 @node Subscription Methods
638 @subsection Subscription Methods
640 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
641 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
642 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
644 This variable should contain a function. Some handy pre-fab values
649 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
650 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
651 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
652 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
653 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
655 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
656 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
657 Subscribe all new groups randomly.
659 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
660 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
661 Subscribe all new groups alphabetically.
663 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
664 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
665 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
666 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
667 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
668 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
669 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
670 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
671 up. Or something like that.
673 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
674 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
675 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
676 you about @strong{all} new groups.
678 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
679 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
684 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
685 A closely related variable is
686 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
687 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
688 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
689 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
692 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above to
693 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
694 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
697 @node Filtering New Groups
698 @subsection Filtering New Groups
700 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
701 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
702 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
705 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
708 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
709 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
710 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
711 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
712 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
713 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
714 subscribing these groups.
715 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
716 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
718 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
719 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
720 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
721 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
722 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
723 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
724 and if the the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
725 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
727 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
728 Yet another variable that meddles here is
729 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
730 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
731 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
732 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
733 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
734 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
735 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
736 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
738 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
739 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
742 @node Changing Servers
743 @section Changing Servers
744 @cindex changing servers
746 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
747 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
748 very flaky and you want to use another.
750 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
751 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
755 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
756 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
757 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
758 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
761 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
762 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
763 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
764 functions more than absolutely necessary.
766 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
767 @findex gnus-change-server
768 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
769 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
770 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
771 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
772 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
774 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
775 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
776 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
777 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
778 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
780 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
781 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
782 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
783 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
784 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
785 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
789 @section Startup Files
790 @cindex startup files
795 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
796 information is traditionally stored in this file.
798 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
799 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
800 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
801 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
802 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
803 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
804 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
806 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
807 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
808 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
809 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file.
811 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
812 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
813 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
814 the file and save some space, as well as making exit from Gnus faster.
815 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
816 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
818 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
819 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
820 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
821 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
822 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
823 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
824 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
825 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
826 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
827 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
828 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
829 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
831 @vindex gnus-startup-file
832 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
833 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
834 file being whatever that one is with a @samp{.eld} appended.
836 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
837 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
838 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
839 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
840 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
841 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
842 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
843 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
844 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
845 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
848 (defun turn-off-backup ()
849 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
851 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
852 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
855 @vindex gnus-init-file
856 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
857 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus.el} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
858 (@file{~/.gnus.el} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
859 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{.emacs} and
860 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff.
868 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
869 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
870 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
871 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
872 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
875 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
876 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
879 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
880 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
881 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
883 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
884 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
885 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
886 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
887 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
888 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
891 @node The Active File
892 @section The Active File
894 @cindex ignored groups
896 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
897 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
898 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
900 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
901 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
902 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
903 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
904 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
905 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
906 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
909 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
910 @c if you set it to anything else.
912 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
914 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
915 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
916 reading the active file. This variable is @code{t} by default.
918 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
919 you actually subscribe to.
921 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
922 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
923 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
924 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
926 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
927 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
928 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
929 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
930 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
931 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
933 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
934 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
935 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
936 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
937 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
938 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
940 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
941 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
944 @node Startup Variables
945 @section Startup Variables
950 @vindex gnus-load-hook
951 A hook that is run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
952 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
953 times you start Gnus.
955 @item gnus-startup-hook
956 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
957 A hook that is run after starting up Gnus successfully.
959 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
960 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
961 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
962 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
963 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
964 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
965 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
966 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
968 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
969 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
970 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
971 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
972 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
973 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
975 @item gnus-no-groups-message
976 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
977 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
979 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
980 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
981 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
983 @item gnus-startup-jingle
984 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
985 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
986 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
991 @node The Group Buffer
992 @chapter The Group Buffer
995 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
996 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
997 long as Gnus is active.
1000 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1001 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1002 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1003 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1004 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1005 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1006 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1007 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1008 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1009 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1010 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1011 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1012 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1013 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1014 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1015 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1016 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1020 @node Group Buffer Format
1021 @section Group Buffer Format
1024 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1025 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1026 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1030 @node Group Line Specification
1031 @subsection Group Line Specification
1032 @cindex group buffer format
1034 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1035 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1037 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1040 25: news.announce.newusers
1041 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1046 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1047 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1048 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1049 asterisk at the beginning of the line?)
1051 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1052 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1053 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1054 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1055 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1056 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1058 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1060 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1061 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1062 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1063 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1066 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1067 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1068 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1070 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1075 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1078 Whether the group is subscribed.
1081 Level of subscribedness.
1084 Number of unread articles.
1087 Number of dormant articles.
1090 Number of ticked articles.
1093 Number of read articles.
1096 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1097 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1100 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1103 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1112 Newsgroup description.
1115 @samp{m} if moderated.
1118 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1127 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1131 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1134 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1135 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1136 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1137 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1138 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1141 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1143 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1147 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1151 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1152 be a letter. @sc{gnus} will call the function
1153 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1154 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1155 paratere as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1156 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1161 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1162 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1163 group, or a bogus native group.
1166 @node Group Modeline Specification
1167 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1168 @cindex group modeline
1170 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1171 The mode line can be changed by setting
1172 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). It
1173 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1177 The native news server.
1179 The native select method.
1183 @node Group Highlighting
1184 @subsection Group Highlighting
1185 @cindex highlighting
1186 @cindex group highlighting
1188 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1189 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1190 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1191 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1192 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1194 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1198 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1200 ,(custom-face-lookup "Red" nil nil t nil nil))
1201 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) .
1202 ,(custom-face-lookup "SeaGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1204 ,(custom-face-lookup "SpringGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1206 ,(custom-face-lookup "SteelBlue" nil nil t nil nil))
1208 ,(custom-face-lookup "SkyBlue" nil nil t nil nil))))
1211 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1218 The number of unread articles in the group.
1222 Whether the group is a mail group.
1224 The level of the group.
1226 The score of the group.
1228 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1230 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1233 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1234 topic being inserted.
1237 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1238 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1239 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1241 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1242 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1243 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1244 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1245 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1248 @node Group Maneuvering
1249 @section Group Maneuvering
1250 @cindex group movement
1252 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1253 expected, hopefully.
1259 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1260 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1261 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1267 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1268 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1269 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1273 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1274 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1278 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1279 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1283 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1284 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1285 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1289 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1290 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1291 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1294 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1300 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1301 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1302 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1307 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1308 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1309 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1313 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1314 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1315 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1318 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1319 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1320 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1321 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1325 @node Selecting a Group
1326 @section Selecting a Group
1327 @cindex group selection
1332 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1333 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1334 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1335 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1336 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1337 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1338 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1339 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1340 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1341 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1345 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1346 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1347 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1348 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1349 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1353 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1354 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1355 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1356 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1357 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1358 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1359 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1360 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer.
1361 This might be useful if you want to toggle threading before entering the
1365 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1366 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1367 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1368 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1369 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1373 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1374 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1375 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1376 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1377 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1378 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1379 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1380 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1383 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1384 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1385 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1386 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1391 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1392 full summary buffer.
1395 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1398 Select the most high-scored article in the group when entering the
1402 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1403 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1404 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1408 @node Subscription Commands
1409 @section Subscription Commands
1410 @cindex subscription
1418 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1419 Toggle subscription to the current group
1420 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1426 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1427 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1428 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1429 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1435 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1436 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1442 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1443 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1446 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1447 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1448 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1449 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1450 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1456 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1457 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1461 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1462 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1465 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1466 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1467 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1468 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1469 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1470 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1471 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1472 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1473 @file{.newsrc} file.
1477 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1487 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1488 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1489 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1490 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1491 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1496 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1497 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1498 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1502 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1503 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1504 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1506 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1507 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1508 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1509 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1510 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1511 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1518 @section Group Levels
1522 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1523 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1524 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1525 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1526 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1528 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1534 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1535 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1536 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1537 prompted for a level.
1540 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1541 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1542 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1543 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1544 Gnus considers groups on between levels 1 and
1545 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1546 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1547 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1548 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1549 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (default 9),
1550 completely dead. Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly
1551 the same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what
1552 articles you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and
1553 living groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely
1554 for reasons of efficiency.
1556 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1557 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1559 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1560 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1561 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1563 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1564 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1565 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1566 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1567 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1568 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1569 relevant legal ranges.
1571 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1572 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1573 will only move to groups that are of the same level (or lower). In
1574 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1575 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1576 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1579 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1580 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1581 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1584 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1585 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1586 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1587 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1590 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1591 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1592 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1593 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1595 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1596 Gnus will normally just activate groups that are on level
1597 @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to activate
1598 unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable to
1599 5. The default is 6.
1603 @section Group Score
1606 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1607 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1608 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1611 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1612 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1613 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1614 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1615 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1616 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1617 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1619 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1620 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1621 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1622 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1623 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1624 action after each summary exit, you can add
1625 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1626 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1627 slow things down somewhat.
1630 @node Marking Groups
1631 @section Marking Groups
1632 @cindex marking groups
1634 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1635 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1636 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1637 bidding on those groups.
1639 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1640 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1641 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1649 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1650 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1656 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1657 Remove the mark from the current group
1658 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1662 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1663 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1667 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1668 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1672 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1673 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1677 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1678 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1679 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1682 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1684 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1685 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1686 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1687 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1688 the command to be executed.
1691 @node Foreign Groups
1692 @section Foreign Groups
1693 @cindex foreign groups
1695 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1696 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1697 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1698 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1705 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1706 @cindex making groups
1707 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1708 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1709 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1713 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1714 @cindex renaming groups
1715 Rename the current group to something else
1716 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is legal only on some
1717 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1723 @findex gnus-group-customize
1724 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1728 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1729 @cindex renaming groups
1730 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1731 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1735 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1736 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1737 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1741 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1742 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1743 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1747 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1749 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1750 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1755 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1756 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1760 @cindex (ding) archive
1761 @cindex archive group
1762 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1763 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1764 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1765 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1766 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1767 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1768 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1772 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1774 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1775 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1776 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1777 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1781 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1783 Read an arbitrary directory as if with were a newsgroup with the
1784 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1785 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1789 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1790 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1792 Make a group based on some file or other
1793 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1794 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1795 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1796 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs}, and
1797 @code{forward}. If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will
1798 guess at the file type. @xref{Document Groups}.
1802 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1807 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1808 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1809 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1810 search engine type and the search string. Legal search engine types
1811 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1812 @xref{Web Searches}.
1815 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1816 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1817 This function will delete the current group
1818 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1819 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1820 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1821 absolutely sure of what you are doing.
1825 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1826 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1827 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1831 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1832 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1833 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1836 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1839 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1840 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1841 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1842 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1843 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers.
1846 @node Group Parameters
1847 @section Group Parameters
1848 @cindex group parameters
1850 The group parameters store information local to a particular group:
1855 If the group parameter list contains an element that looks like
1856 @code{(to-address . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used by
1857 the backend when doing followups and posts. This is primarily useful in
1858 mail groups that represent closed mailing lists---mailing lists where
1859 it's expected that everybody that writes to the mailing list is
1860 subscribed to it. Since using this parameter ensures that the mail only
1861 goes to the mailing list itself, it means that members won't receive two
1862 copies of your followups.
1864 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
1865 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
1866 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
1867 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
1868 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
1869 list address instead.
1873 If the group parameter list has an element that looks like
1874 @code{(to-list . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used when
1875 doing a @kbd{a} in any group. It is totally ignored when doing a
1876 followup---except that if it is present in a news group, you'll get mail
1877 group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
1879 @item broken-reply-to
1880 @cindex broken-reply-to
1881 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
1882 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
1883 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
1884 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
1885 broken behavior. So there!
1889 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
1890 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
1894 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list, Gnus will treat
1895 all responses as if they were responses to news articles. This can be
1896 useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a news group.
1900 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list and set to
1901 @code{t}, new composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current
1902 group. If it is present and set to @code{none}, no @code{Gcc:} header
1903 will be generated, if it is present and a string, this string will be
1904 inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header (this symbol takes precedence over
1905 any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later).
1909 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list, all articles that
1910 are read will be marked as expirable. For an alternative approach,
1911 @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
1914 @cindex total-expire
1915 If this symbol is present, all read articles will be put through the
1916 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
1921 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
1922 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
1923 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
1924 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
1925 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
1926 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
1929 @cindex score file group parameter
1930 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
1931 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. This
1932 means that all score commands you issue will end up in that file.
1935 @cindex adapt file group parameter
1936 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
1937 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
1938 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
1941 When unsubscribing to a mailing list you should never send the
1942 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
1943 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
1944 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
1947 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} says which articles to
1948 display on entering the group. Legal values are:
1952 Display all articles, both read and unread.
1955 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
1960 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
1961 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
1962 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
1965 @item @var{(variable form)}
1966 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
1967 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
1968 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
1969 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
1970 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
1971 @code{eval}ed there.
1973 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
1974 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
1975 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
1976 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
1977 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
1981 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group.
1983 Also @pxref{Topic Parameters}.
1986 @node Listing Groups
1987 @section Listing Groups
1988 @cindex group listing
1990 These commands all list various slices of the groups that are available.
1998 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
1999 List all groups that have unread articles
2000 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2001 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2002 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2003 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2010 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2011 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2012 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2013 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2014 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2015 unsubscribed groups).
2019 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2020 List all unread groups on a specific level
2021 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2022 with no unread articles.
2026 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2027 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2028 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2029 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2034 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2035 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2039 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2040 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2041 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2045 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2046 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2050 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2051 List absolutely all groups that are in the active file(s) of the
2052 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2053 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2054 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2055 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list group that
2056 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they are killed groups.
2057 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2061 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2062 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2063 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2067 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2068 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2069 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2073 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2074 @cindex visible group parameter
2075 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2076 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2077 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2078 get the same effect.
2080 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2081 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2082 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2083 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2084 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2087 @node Sorting Groups
2088 @section Sorting Groups
2089 @cindex sorting groups
2091 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2092 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2093 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2094 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2095 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2096 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2101 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2102 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2103 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2105 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2106 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2107 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2109 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2110 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2111 Sort by group level.
2113 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2114 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2115 Sort by group score.
2117 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2118 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2119 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2120 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}.
2122 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2123 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2124 Sort by number of unread articles.
2126 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2127 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2128 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2133 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2134 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2138 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2139 some sorting criteria:
2143 @kindex G S a (Group)
2144 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2145 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2146 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2149 @kindex G S u (Group)
2150 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2151 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2152 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2155 @kindex G S l (Group)
2156 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2157 Sort the group buffer by group level
2158 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2161 @kindex G S v (Group)
2162 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2163 Sort the group buffer by group score
2164 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}).
2167 @kindex G S r (Group)
2168 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2169 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2170 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2173 @kindex G S m (Group)
2174 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2175 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2176 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2180 When given a prefix, all these commands will sort in reverse order.
2182 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2186 @kindex G P a (Group)
2187 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2188 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2189 group name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2192 @kindex G P u (Group)
2193 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2194 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by the number of
2195 unread articles (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2198 @kindex G P l (Group)
2199 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2200 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group level
2201 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2204 @kindex G P v (Group)
2205 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2206 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group score
2207 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}).
2210 @kindex G P r (Group)
2211 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2212 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group rank
2213 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}).
2216 @kindex G P m (Group)
2217 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2218 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2219 backend name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2225 @node Group Maintenance
2226 @section Group Maintenance
2227 @cindex bogus groups
2232 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2233 Find bogus groups and delete them
2234 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2238 @findex gnus-find-new-newsgroups
2239 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-find-new-newsgroups}). If
2240 given a prefix, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server for
2244 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2245 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2246 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2247 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2250 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2251 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2252 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2253 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2258 @node Browse Foreign Server
2259 @section Browse Foreign Server
2260 @cindex foreign servers
2261 @cindex browsing servers
2266 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2267 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2268 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2269 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2272 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2273 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2274 will be use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2275 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2277 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2282 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2283 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2287 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2288 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2291 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2292 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2293 Enter the current group and display the first article
2294 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2297 @kindex RET (Browse)
2298 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2299 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2303 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2304 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2305 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2311 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2312 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2316 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2317 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2318 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2323 @section Exiting Gnus
2324 @cindex exiting Gnus
2326 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2331 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2332 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2333 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2334 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2338 @findex gnus-group-exit
2339 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2343 @findex gnus-group-quit
2344 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2345 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2348 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2349 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2350 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2351 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2352 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2357 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2358 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2359 trying to customize meta-variables.
2364 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2365 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2366 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2372 @section Group Topics
2375 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2376 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2377 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2378 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2379 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2380 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2388 2: alt.religion.emacs
2391 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2393 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2394 13: comp.sources.unix
2397 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2399 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2400 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2401 is a toggling command.)
2403 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2404 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2405 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2406 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2409 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2410 the hook for the group mode:
2413 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2417 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2418 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2419 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2420 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2421 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2425 @node Topic Variables
2426 @subsection Topic Variables
2427 @cindex topic variables
2429 Now, if you select a topic, if will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2430 really neat, I think.
2432 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2433 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2434 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2447 Number of groups in the topic.
2449 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2451 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2454 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2455 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2456 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2459 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2460 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2462 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2463 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2464 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2467 @node Topic Commands
2468 @subsection Topic Commands
2469 @cindex topic commands
2471 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2472 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2473 definitions slightly.
2479 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2480 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2481 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2485 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2486 Move the current group to some other topic
2487 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2488 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2492 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2493 Copy the current group to some other topic
2494 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2495 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2499 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2500 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2501 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2502 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2506 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2507 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2508 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2512 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2513 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2514 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2518 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2519 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2520 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2523 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2524 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2525 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2526 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2530 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2532 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2533 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2534 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2535 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2536 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2537 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2540 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2541 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2542 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2543 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2544 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2548 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2549 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2550 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2554 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2555 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2556 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2561 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2562 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2565 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2566 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2567 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2571 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2572 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2573 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2577 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2578 @cindex group parameters
2579 @cindex topic parameters
2581 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2582 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2588 @subsection Topic Sorting
2589 @cindex topic sorting
2591 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2597 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2598 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2599 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2600 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2603 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2604 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2605 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2606 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2609 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2610 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2611 Sort the current topic by group level
2612 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2615 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2616 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2617 Sort the current topic by group score
2618 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}).
2621 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2622 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2623 Sort the current topic by group rank
2624 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2627 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2628 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2629 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2630 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2634 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2637 @node Topic Topology
2638 @subsection Topic Topology
2639 @cindex topic topology
2642 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2648 2: alt.religion.emacs
2651 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2653 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2654 13: comp.sources.unix
2657 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2658 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2659 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2664 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2665 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2669 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2670 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2671 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2672 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2673 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2674 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2676 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2677 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2678 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2681 @node Topic Parameters
2682 @subsection Topic Parameters
2683 @cindex topic parameters
2685 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2686 ancestor) topic parameters. All legal group parameters are legal topic
2687 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2689 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2690 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2691 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2692 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2698 2: alt.religion.emacs
2702 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2704 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2705 13: comp.sources.unix
2709 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2710 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2711 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2712 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2713 @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2714 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2716 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2717 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2718 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2719 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2720 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2722 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2723 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2724 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2725 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2726 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2727 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2728 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2729 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2732 @node Misc Group Stuff
2733 @section Misc Group Stuff
2736 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2737 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2738 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2739 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
2746 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2747 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2748 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2752 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2753 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). The current
2754 group name will be used as the default.
2758 @findex gnus-group-mail
2759 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
2763 Variables for the group buffer:
2767 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
2768 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
2769 @code{gnus-group-mode-hook} is called after the group buffer has been
2772 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
2773 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2774 @code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} is called after the group buffer is
2775 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
2778 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2779 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2780 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
2781 whether they are empty or not.
2786 @node Scanning New Messages
2787 @subsection Scanning New Messages
2788 @cindex new messages
2789 @cindex scanning new news
2795 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
2796 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
2797 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
2798 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
2799 command will force a total rereading of the active file(s) from the
2804 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
2805 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
2806 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
2807 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
2808 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
2809 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
2811 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
2812 @cindex activating groups
2814 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
2815 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
2820 @findex gnus-group-restart
2821 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
2822 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
2823 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
2827 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
2828 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
2830 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
2831 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
2835 @node Group Information
2836 @subsection Group Information
2837 @cindex group information
2838 @cindex information on groups
2846 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
2847 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
2850 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
2851 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
2852 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
2853 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
2854 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
2855 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
2856 for fetching the file.
2858 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
2859 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
2864 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
2865 @cindex describing groups
2866 @cindex group description
2867 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
2868 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
2869 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
2873 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
2874 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
2875 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
2880 @findex gnus-version
2881 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
2885 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
2886 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
2889 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
2892 @findex gnus-info-find-node
2893 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
2897 @node Group Timestamp
2898 @subsection Group Timestamp
2900 @cindex group timestamps
2902 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
2903 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
2904 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
2907 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
2910 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
2912 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
2913 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
2916 (setq gnus-group-line-format
2917 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
2920 This will result in lines looking like:
2923 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
2924 0: custom 19961002T012713
2927 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
2928 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
2932 (setq gnus-group-line-format
2933 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
2938 @subsection File Commands
2939 @cindex file commands
2945 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
2946 @vindex gnus-init-file
2947 @cindex reading init file
2948 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
2949 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
2953 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
2954 @cindex saving .newsrc
2955 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
2956 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
2957 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
2960 @c @kindex Z (Group)
2961 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
2962 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
2967 @node The Summary Buffer
2968 @chapter The Summary Buffer
2969 @cindex summary buffer
2971 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
2972 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
2974 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
2975 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
2977 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
2980 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
2981 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
2982 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
2983 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
2984 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
2985 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
2986 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
2987 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
2988 * Threading:: How threads are made.
2989 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
2990 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
2991 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
2992 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
2993 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
2994 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
2995 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
2996 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
2997 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
2998 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
2999 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3000 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3001 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3002 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3003 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3004 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3005 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3009 @node Summary Buffer Format
3010 @section Summary Buffer Format
3011 @cindex summary buffer format
3014 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3015 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3016 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3019 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3020 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3021 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3022 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3023 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3024 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined function exist:
3025 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3026 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3027 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3028 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3029 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead.
3031 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3032 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3033 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3034 with those specs that require it. The default is @samp{}.
3037 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3038 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3040 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3041 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3042 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3043 lines a a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3044 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3046 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3048 The following format specification characters are understood:
3056 Subject if the article is the root or the previous article had a
3057 different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3058 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @samp{}.)
3060 Full @code{From} header.
3062 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3064 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3065 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3066 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3067 may be more thorough.
3069 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3072 Number of lines in the article.
3074 Number of characters in the article.
3076 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3078 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3079 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3081 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3082 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3084 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3085 for adopted articles.
3087 One space for each thread level.
3089 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3097 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3098 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3099 default level. If the difference between
3100 @code{gnus-summary-default-level} and the score is less than
3101 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3109 The @code{Date} in @code{YY-MMM} format.
3111 The @code{Date} in @code{YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS} format.
3117 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3118 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3120 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3121 article has any children.
3125 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3126 be a letter. @sc{gnus} will call the function
3127 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3128 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3129 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3130 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3133 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3134 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3135 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3136 that. This means that it is illegal to have these specs after a
3137 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3138 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3140 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3141 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3143 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3146 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3147 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3149 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3150 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar. Set
3151 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you like. The default
3152 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3154 Here are the elements you can play with:
3160 Unprefixed group name.
3162 Current article number.
3166 Number of unread articles in this group.
3168 Number of unselected articles in this group.
3170 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3171 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3172 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3173 and no unselected ones.
3175 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3176 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3178 Subject of the current article.
3182 Name of the current score file.
3184 Number of dormant articles.
3186 Number of ticked articles.
3188 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3190 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3194 @node Summary Highlighting
3195 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3199 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3200 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3201 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3202 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3203 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3205 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3206 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3207 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3208 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3210 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3211 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3212 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) that is used to
3213 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3215 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3216 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3217 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3218 list where the elements are on the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3219 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3220 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3222 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3223 ((> score default) . bold))
3225 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3226 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3230 @node Summary Maneuvering
3231 @section Summary Maneuvering
3232 @cindex summary movement
3234 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3235 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3237 None of these commands select articles.
3242 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3243 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3244 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3245 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3246 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3250 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3251 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3252 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3253 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3254 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3259 @kindex G j (Summary)
3260 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3261 Ask for an article number and then go to that article
3262 (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3265 @kindex G g (Summary)
3266 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3267 Ask for an article number and then go the summary line of that article
3268 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3271 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3272 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3273 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3274 to the group buffer.
3276 Variables related to summary movement:
3280 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3281 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3282 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3283 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3284 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3285 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3286 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3287 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3288 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3289 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3290 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3291 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3292 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3293 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3295 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3296 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3297 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3298 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3299 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3300 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) This variable is not
3301 particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3303 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3304 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3305 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3306 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3307 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3309 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3310 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3311 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3312 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3313 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3314 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3315 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3316 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3322 @node Choosing Articles
3323 @section Choosing Articles
3324 @cindex selecting articles
3327 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3328 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3332 @node Choosing Commands
3333 @subsection Choosing Commands
3335 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3336 and they all select and display an article.
3340 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3341 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3342 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3343 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3348 @kindex G n (Summary)
3349 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3350 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3355 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3356 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3361 @kindex G N (Summary)
3362 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3363 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3368 @kindex G P (Summary)
3369 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3370 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3373 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3374 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3375 Go to the next article with the same subject
3376 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3379 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3380 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3381 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3382 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3386 @kindex G f (Summary)
3388 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3389 Go to the first unread article
3390 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3394 @kindex G b (Summary)
3396 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3397 Go to the article with the highest score
3398 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3403 @kindex G l (Summary)
3404 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3405 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3408 @kindex G p (Summary)
3409 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3410 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3411 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3412 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3413 history as you like.
3417 @node Choosing Variables
3418 @subsection Choosing Variables
3420 Some variables that are relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3423 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3424 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3425 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3426 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3427 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3428 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3430 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3431 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3432 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3433 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3435 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3436 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3437 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3438 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3439 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3440 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3441 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3442 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3443 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3444 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3445 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3446 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3447 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3448 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3453 @node Paging the Article
3454 @section Scrolling the Article
3455 @cindex article scrolling
3460 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3461 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3462 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3463 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3464 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3467 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3468 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3469 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3472 @kindex RET (Summary)
3473 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3474 Scroll the current article one line forward
3475 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3479 @kindex A g (Summary)
3481 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3482 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3483 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3484 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3485 the way it came from the server.
3490 @kindex A < (Summary)
3491 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3492 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3493 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3498 @kindex A > (Summary)
3499 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3500 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3504 @kindex A s (Summary)
3506 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3507 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3508 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3513 @node Reply Followup and Post
3514 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3517 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3518 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3522 @node Summary Mail Commands
3523 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3525 @cindex composing mail
3527 Commands for composing a mail message:
3533 @kindex S r (Summary)
3535 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3536 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3537 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3542 @kindex S R (Summary)
3543 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3544 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3545 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3546 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3549 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3550 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3551 Forward the current article to some other person
3552 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3553 headers of the forwarded article.
3558 @kindex S m (Summary)
3559 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3560 Send a mail to some other person
3561 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3564 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3565 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3566 @cindex bouncing mail
3567 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3568 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3569 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3570 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3571 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3572 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3573 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3574 very well fail, though.
3577 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3578 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3579 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3580 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3581 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3582 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3583 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3584 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3585 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3586 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3588 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3589 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3590 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3591 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3592 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
3595 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3596 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3597 Digest the current series and forward the result using mail
3598 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
3599 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3602 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3603 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3604 @cindex crossposting
3605 @cindex excessive crossposting
3606 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3607 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3609 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3610 This command is provided as a way to fight back agains the current
3611 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3612 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3613 command understands the process/prefix convention
3614 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
3619 @node Summary Post Commands
3620 @subsection Summary Post Commands
3622 @cindex composing news
3624 Commands for posting a news article:
3630 @kindex S p (Summary)
3631 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
3632 Post an article to the current group
3633 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
3638 @kindex S f (Summary)
3639 @findex gnus-summary-followup
3640 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
3644 @kindex S F (Summary)
3646 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
3647 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
3648 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
3649 process/prefix convention.
3652 @kindex S n (Summary)
3653 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3654 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3655 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
3658 @kindex S n (Summary)
3659 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3660 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3661 message through mail and include the original message
3662 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
3663 the process/prefix convention.
3666 @kindex S o p (Summary)
3667 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
3668 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
3669 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3670 headers of the forwarded article.
3673 @kindex S O p (Summary)
3674 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
3675 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
3676 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}).
3679 @kindex S u (Summary)
3680 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
3681 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
3682 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
3686 @node Canceling and Superseding
3687 @section Canceling Articles
3688 @cindex canceling articles
3689 @cindex superseding articles
3691 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
3692 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
3694 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
3696 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
3698 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
3699 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
3700 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
3701 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
3703 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
3704 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
3707 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
3708 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
3709 your original article.
3711 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
3713 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
3714 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
3715 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
3718 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
3719 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
3720 have posted almost the same article twice.
3722 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
3723 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
3724 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
3725 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
3726 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
3727 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
3728 header by substituting one of those words for the word
3729 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
3730 you would do normally. The previous article will be
3731 canceled/superseded.
3733 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
3736 @node Marking Articles
3737 @section Marking Articles
3738 @cindex article marking
3739 @cindex article ticking
3742 There are several marks you can set on an article.
3744 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
3745 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
3746 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
3748 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
3751 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
3752 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
3753 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
3757 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
3761 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
3762 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
3766 @node Unread Articles
3767 @subsection Unread Articles
3769 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
3774 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
3775 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
3777 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
3778 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
3779 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
3780 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
3781 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
3785 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
3786 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
3788 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
3789 are followups to it.
3792 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
3793 Markes as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
3795 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
3800 @subsection Read Articles
3801 @cindex expirable mark
3803 All the following marks mark articles as read.
3808 @vindex gnus-del-mark
3809 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
3810 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
3813 @vindex gnus-read-mark
3814 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
3817 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
3818 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
3819 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
3822 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
3823 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
3826 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
3827 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
3830 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
3831 Marked as read by having a too low score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
3834 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
3835 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
3838 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
3839 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
3842 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
3843 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
3846 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
3847 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
3851 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
3852 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
3853 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
3857 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
3858 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
3860 One more special mark, though:
3864 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
3865 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
3867 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
3868 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
3869 control the expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
3870 articles that are marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
3876 @subsection Other Marks
3877 @cindex process mark
3880 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
3886 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
3887 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
3888 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
3889 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
3890 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
3893 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
3894 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
3895 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
3896 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
3899 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
3900 Articles that are stored in the article cache will be marked with an
3901 @samp{*} in the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}).
3904 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
3905 Articles that are ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
3906 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
3907 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}.
3910 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
3911 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
3912 It the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
3913 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
3914 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
3917 @vindex gnus-process-mark
3918 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}. A
3919 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
3920 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
3921 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
3922 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
3926 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
3927 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
3928 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
3930 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
3931 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
3932 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
3936 @subsection Setting Marks
3937 @cindex setting marks
3939 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
3945 @kindex M t (Summary)
3946 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
3947 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
3952 @kindex M ? (Summary)
3953 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
3954 Mark the current article as dormant
3955 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}).
3959 @kindex M d (Summary)
3961 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
3962 Mark the current article as read
3963 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
3967 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
3968 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
3969 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
3974 @kindex M k (Summary)
3975 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
3976 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
3977 and then select the next unread article
3978 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
3982 @kindex M K (Summary)
3983 @kindex C-k (Summary)
3984 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
3985 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
3986 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
3989 @kindex M C (Summary)
3990 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
3991 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
3994 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
3995 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
3996 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
3997 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4000 @kindex M H (Summary)
4001 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4002 Catchup the current group to point
4003 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4006 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4007 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4008 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4009 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4012 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4013 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4014 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4015 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4019 @kindex M c (Summary)
4020 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4021 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4022 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4023 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}).
4027 @kindex M e (Summary)
4029 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4030 Mark the current article as expirable
4031 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4034 @kindex M b (Summary)
4035 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4036 Set a bookmark in the current article
4037 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4040 @kindex M B (Summary)
4041 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4042 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4043 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4046 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4047 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4048 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4049 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4052 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4053 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4054 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4055 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4058 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4059 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4060 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4061 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4062 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4065 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4066 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4067 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4068 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4069 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4070 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4071 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4072 The default is @code{t}.
4075 @node Setting Process Marks
4076 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4077 @cindex setting process marks
4084 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4085 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4086 Mark the current article with the process mark
4087 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4088 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4092 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4093 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4094 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4095 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4098 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4099 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4100 Remove the process mark from all articles
4101 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4104 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4105 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4106 Invert the list of process marked articles
4107 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4110 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4111 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4112 Mark articles by a regular expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4115 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4116 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4117 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4120 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4121 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4122 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4123 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4126 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4127 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4128 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4129 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4132 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4133 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4134 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4135 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4138 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4139 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4140 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4143 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4144 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4145 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4146 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4149 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4150 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4151 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4154 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4155 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4156 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4157 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4160 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4161 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4162 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4163 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4166 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4167 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4168 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4169 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4172 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4173 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4174 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4175 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4184 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4185 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4186 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4193 @kindex / / (Summary)
4194 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4195 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4196 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4199 @kindex / a (Summary)
4200 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4201 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4202 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4206 @kindex / u (Summary)
4208 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4209 Limit the summary buffer to articles that are not marked as read
4210 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4211 buffer to articles that are strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4212 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4215 @kindex / m (Summary)
4216 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4217 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have not been marked
4218 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4221 @kindex / n (Summary)
4222 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4223 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4224 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4225 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4228 @kindex / w (Summary)
4229 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4230 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4231 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4235 @kindex / v (Summary)
4236 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4237 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4238 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4242 @kindex M S (Summary)
4243 @kindex / E (Summary)
4244 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4245 Display all expunged articles
4246 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4249 @kindex / D (Summary)
4250 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4251 Display all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4254 @kindex / d (Summary)
4255 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4256 Hide all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4259 @kindex / c (Summary)
4260 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4261 Hide all dormant articles that have no children
4262 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4265 @kindex / C (Summary)
4266 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4267 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4268 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4269 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4277 @cindex article threading
4279 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put replies to
4280 articles directly after the articles they reply to---in a hierarchical
4284 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4285 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4289 @node Customizing Threading
4290 @subsection Customizing Threading
4291 @cindex customizing threading
4297 @item gnus-show-threads
4298 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4299 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4300 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4301 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
4302 slower and more awkward.
4304 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4305 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4306 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4307 more old headers---headers to articles that are marked as read. If you
4308 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
4309 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
4310 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
4311 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
4312 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
4313 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4314 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4315 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
4317 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4318 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4319 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4320 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4321 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4322 articles that belong in the same thread together. This will leave
4323 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
4324 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4325 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
4326 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
4327 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4328 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
4329 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4330 @code{nil} by default.
4332 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4333 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4334 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4335 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4336 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4337 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4338 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subjects lines. If
4339 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4340 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4341 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4342 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4344 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4345 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4346 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects.
4348 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4349 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4350 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4351 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4352 simplification is used.
4354 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4355 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4356 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4357 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4359 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4361 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4367 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4368 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4369 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4370 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4375 (mapconcat 'identity
4376 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4378 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4381 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4384 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4385 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4386 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4387 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4388 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4389 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4390 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process. The
4391 default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4393 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4394 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4395 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4396 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4397 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4398 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4399 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever includes unrelated
4400 articles, but it's also means that people who have posted with broken
4401 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4405 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4406 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4407 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4408 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4410 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4411 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4412 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4415 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4419 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4420 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4423 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4424 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4425 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4426 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4427 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4428 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4430 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4431 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4432 There are four possible values:
4434 @cindex adopting articles
4439 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4440 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4441 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4442 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4445 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4446 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4447 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4448 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4449 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4450 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4451 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4454 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4455 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4456 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4460 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4461 display them after one another.
4464 Don't gather loose threads.
4467 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4468 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4469 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
4472 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
4473 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
4474 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
4477 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4478 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4479 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
4480 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
4481 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
4484 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
4485 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
4486 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
4491 @node Thread Commands
4492 @subsection Thread Commands
4493 @cindex thread commands
4499 @kindex T k (Summary)
4500 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
4501 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
4502 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
4503 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
4504 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
4509 @kindex T l (Summary)
4510 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
4511 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
4512 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
4513 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
4516 @kindex T i (Summary)
4517 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
4518 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
4519 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
4522 @kindex T # (Summary)
4523 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4524 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
4525 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4528 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
4529 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4530 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
4531 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4534 @kindex T T (Summary)
4535 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
4536 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
4539 @kindex T s (Summary)
4540 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
4541 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
4542 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
4545 @kindex T h (Summary)
4546 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
4547 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
4550 @kindex T S (Summary)
4551 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
4552 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
4555 @kindex T H (Summary)
4556 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
4557 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
4560 @kindex T t (Summary)
4561 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
4562 Re-thread the thread the current article is part of
4563 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
4564 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
4567 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
4568 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
4569 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
4570 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}.
4574 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
4575 understand the numeric prefix.
4580 @kindex T n (Summary)
4581 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
4582 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
4585 @kindex T p (Summary)
4586 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
4587 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
4590 @kindex T d (Summary)
4591 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
4592 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
4595 @kindex T u (Summary)
4596 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
4597 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
4600 @kindex T o (Summary)
4601 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
4602 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
4605 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
4606 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
4607 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
4608 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
4609 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
4610 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
4611 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If is
4612 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
4613 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
4614 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
4615 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
4616 that have subjects that are fuzzily equal will be included.
4622 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
4623 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
4624 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
4625 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4626 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
4627 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4628 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
4629 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
4630 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which is a list of functions.
4631 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
4632 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
4633 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
4634 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
4635 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
4637 Each function takes two threads and return non-@code{nil} if the first
4638 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
4639 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread. If you use
4640 more than one function, the primary sort key should be the last function
4641 in the list. You should probably always include
4642 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
4643 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
4644 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
4645 ascending article order.
4647 If you would like to sort by score, then by subject, and finally by
4648 number, you could do something like:
4651 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4652 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4653 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4654 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
4657 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
4658 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
4659 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
4660 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
4661 which the articles arrived.
4663 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
4667 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4669 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
4670 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
4673 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
4674 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
4675 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
4676 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
4679 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
4680 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
4681 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
4682 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
4683 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
4684 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
4685 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
4686 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
4687 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
4688 is uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
4689 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
4690 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
4691 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
4693 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
4697 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
4698 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
4699 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
4704 @node Asynchronous Fetching
4705 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
4706 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
4707 @cindex article pre-fetch
4710 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
4711 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
4712 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
4713 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
4714 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
4716 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
4717 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
4719 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
4720 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
4721 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
4722 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
4723 connection is blocked.
4725 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
4726 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
4727 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
4728 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
4730 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
4731 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
4732 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
4733 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
4736 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
4739 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
4740 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
4741 happen automatically.
4743 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
4744 You can control how many articles that are to be pre-fetched by setting
4745 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
4746 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
4747 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
4748 pre-fetch all the articles that it can without bound. If it is
4749 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be made.
4751 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
4752 @findex gnus-async-read-p
4753 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
4754 articles, for instance. Which articles to pre-fetch is controlled by
4755 the @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable. This function should
4756 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
4757 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
4758 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
4759 data structure as the only parameter.
4761 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles that are
4762 shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
4765 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
4766 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
4767 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
4768 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
4771 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
4774 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
4775 preferrably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
4776 It's also probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
4778 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
4779 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
4780 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
4781 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
4785 Remove articles when they are read.
4788 Remove articles when exiting the group.
4791 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
4793 @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
4794 If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
4795 from the next group.
4798 @node Article Caching
4799 @section Article Caching
4800 @cindex article caching
4803 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
4804 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
4805 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
4806 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
4807 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
4809 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
4811 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
4812 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
4813 @vindex gnus-use-cache
4814 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
4815 all articles that are ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
4816 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
4817 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
4818 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
4820 When re-select a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
4821 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
4822 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
4823 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
4824 as dormant, and don't worry.
4826 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
4828 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
4829 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
4830 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
4831 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
4832 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
4833 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
4834 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
4835 articles that are marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
4836 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
4837 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
4839 @findex gnus-jog-cache
4840 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
4841 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
4842 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, and store them in
4843 the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this command if 1)
4844 your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really, really slow
4845 and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk. Seriously.
4847 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
4848 It is likely that you do not want caching on some groups. For instance,
4849 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
4850 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
4851 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space. To limit the caching,
4852 you could set the @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to
4853 @samp{^nnml}, for instance. This variable is @code{nil} by
4856 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
4857 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
4858 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
4859 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
4860 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
4861 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
4862 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
4863 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
4864 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
4868 @node Persistent Articles
4869 @section Persistent Articles
4870 @cindex persistent articles
4872 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
4873 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
4874 useful in my opinion.
4876 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
4877 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
4878 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
4879 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
4880 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
4881 the expiry going on at the news server.
4883 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
4884 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
4885 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
4891 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
4892 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
4895 @kindex M-* (Summary)
4896 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
4897 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
4898 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
4902 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
4904 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
4905 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
4906 interested in persistent articles:
4909 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
4913 @node Article Backlog
4914 @section Article Backlog
4916 @cindex article backlog
4918 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
4919 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
4920 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
4921 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
4922 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
4923 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
4924 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
4925 increase memory usage some.
4927 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
4928 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
4929 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
4930 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
4931 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
4932 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
4933 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
4935 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
4938 @node Saving Articles
4939 @section Saving Articles
4940 @cindex saving articles
4942 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
4943 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
4944 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
4945 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
4946 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
4948 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
4949 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
4950 unwanted headers before saving the article.
4952 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
4953 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
4954 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
4955 deleted before saving.
4961 @kindex O o (Summary)
4963 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
4964 Save the current article using the default article saver
4965 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
4968 @kindex O m (Summary)
4969 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
4970 Save the current article in mail format
4971 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
4974 @kindex O r (Summary)
4975 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
4976 Save the current article in rmail format
4977 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
4980 @kindex O f (Summary)
4981 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
4982 Save the current article in plain file format
4983 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
4986 @kindex O F (Summary)
4987 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
4988 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
4989 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
4992 @kindex O b (Summary)
4993 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
4994 Save the current article body in plain file format
4995 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
4998 @kindex O h (Summary)
4999 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5000 Save the current article in mh folder format
5001 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5004 @kindex O v (Summary)
5005 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5006 Save the current article in a VM folder
5007 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5010 @kindex O p (Summary)
5011 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5012 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5013 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5016 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5017 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5018 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5019 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5020 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5021 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5022 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5023 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5024 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5025 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5026 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5027 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5031 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5032 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5033 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5034 functions below, or you can create your own.
5038 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5039 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5040 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5041 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5042 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5043 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5044 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5046 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5047 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5048 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5049 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5050 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5051 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5053 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5054 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5055 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5056 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5057 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5058 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5059 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5061 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5062 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5063 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5064 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5065 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5067 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5068 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5069 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5070 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5071 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5074 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5075 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5076 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5077 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5078 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}. The former creates capitalized names, and
5079 the latter does not.
5081 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5082 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5083 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5084 reader to use this setting.
5087 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5088 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5089 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5090 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5093 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5094 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5095 available functions that generate names:
5099 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5100 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5101 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5103 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5104 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5105 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5107 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5108 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5109 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5111 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5112 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5113 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5116 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5117 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5118 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5119 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5120 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5124 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5125 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5126 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5127 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5130 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5131 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5132 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5133 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5134 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5135 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5136 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5137 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5138 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5140 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5141 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5142 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5143 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5145 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5146 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5147 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5150 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5151 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5152 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5153 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5154 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5155 all the files in the toplevel directory
5156 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5157 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5158 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5159 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5161 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5162 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5163 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5164 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5165 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5168 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5172 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5173 (setq gnus-default-article-save 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5176 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5177 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5178 the toplevel directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5179 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5182 @node Decoding Articles
5183 @section Decoding Articles
5184 @cindex decoding articles
5186 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5187 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5190 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5191 * Shared Articles:: Unshar articles.
5192 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5193 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5194 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5197 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5198 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5199 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5200 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5201 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5203 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5204 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5205 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5207 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5208 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5209 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5211 Subjects that are nonstandard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5212 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5213 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5216 @node Uuencoded Articles
5217 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5219 @cindex uuencoded articles
5224 @kindex X u (Summary)
5225 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5226 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5229 @kindex X U (Summary)
5230 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5231 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5232 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5235 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5236 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5237 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5240 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5241 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5242 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5243 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5246 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5247 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5248 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5249 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5250 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5252 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5253 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5254 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5255 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5258 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5259 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5260 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5261 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5262 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5263 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5267 @node Shared Articles
5268 @subsection Shared Articles
5270 @cindex shared articles
5275 @kindex X s (Summary)
5276 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5277 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5280 @kindex X S (Summary)
5281 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5282 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5285 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5286 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5287 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5290 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5291 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5292 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5293 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5297 @node PostScript Files
5298 @subsection PostScript Files
5304 @kindex X p (Summary)
5305 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5306 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5309 @kindex X P (Summary)
5310 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5311 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5312 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5315 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5316 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5317 View the current PostScript series
5318 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5321 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5322 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5323 View and save the current PostScript series
5324 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5328 @node Decoding Variables
5329 @subsection Decoding Variables
5331 Adjective, not verb.
5334 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5335 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5336 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5340 @node Rule Variables
5341 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5342 @cindex rule variables
5344 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5345 variables are on the form
5348 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5355 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5356 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5358 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5359 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5362 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5363 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
5366 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5367 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5368 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
5369 user and default view rules.
5371 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5372 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5373 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
5378 @node Other Decode Variables
5379 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
5382 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5384 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5385 All functions in this list will be called right each file has been
5386 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
5387 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
5388 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
5392 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
5393 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
5396 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
5397 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
5398 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
5401 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5402 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5403 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
5404 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
5405 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
5408 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5409 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5410 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
5412 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5413 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5414 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
5415 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
5416 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
5419 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5420 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5421 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
5423 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5424 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5425 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
5426 looking for files to display.
5428 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
5429 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
5430 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
5433 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5434 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5435 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
5438 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5439 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5440 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
5443 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5444 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5445 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
5448 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5449 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5450 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark articles that were
5451 unsuccessfully decoded as unread.
5453 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5454 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5455 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
5456 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
5458 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5459 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5461 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
5462 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
5463 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
5464 @code{metamail} for viewing.
5466 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5467 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5468 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
5469 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
5470 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
5471 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
5472 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
5473 simply dropped them.
5478 @node Uuencoding and Posting
5479 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
5483 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5484 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5485 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
5486 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
5487 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
5488 for you when you post the article.
5490 @item gnus-uu-post-length
5491 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
5492 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
5493 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
5495 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
5496 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
5497 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
5498 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen are able
5499 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
5500 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
5501 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
5503 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5504 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5505 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
5506 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
5507 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
5508 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
5509 Default is @code{t}.
5515 @subsection Viewing Files
5516 @cindex viewing files
5517 @cindex pseudo-articles
5519 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
5520 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
5521 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
5522 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
5523 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
5524 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
5525 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
5527 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
5528 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
5529 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
5530 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
5532 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
5533 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
5534 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
5536 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
5537 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
5538 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
5539 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
5540 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
5542 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
5543 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
5544 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
5545 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
5546 a list of parameters to that command.
5548 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
5549 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
5550 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
5552 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
5553 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
5554 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
5557 @node Article Treatment
5558 @section Article Treatment
5560 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
5561 object of newsreaders are to actually, like, read what people have
5562 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
5563 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
5564 these articles easier.
5567 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
5568 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look niced.
5569 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
5570 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
5571 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
5572 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
5573 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
5577 @node Article Highlighting
5578 @subsection Article Highlighting
5581 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
5582 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
5587 @kindex W H a (Summary)
5588 @findex gnus-article-highlight
5589 Highlight the current article (@code{gnus-article-highlight}).
5592 @kindex W H h (Summary)
5593 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
5594 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
5595 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
5596 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
5597 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
5598 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
5599 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name and
5600 @var{content} is the face for highlighting the header value. The first
5601 match made will be used. Note that @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^}
5602 prepended---Gnus will add one.
5605 @kindex W H c (Summary)
5606 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
5607 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
5609 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
5612 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5614 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5615 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
5616 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
5618 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5619 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5620 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
5622 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
5623 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
5624 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
5626 @item gnus-cite-face-list
5627 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
5628 List of faces used for highlighting citations. When there are citations
5629 from multiple articles in the same message, Gnus will try to give each
5630 citation from each article its own face. This should make it easier to
5633 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
5634 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
5635 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
5637 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5638 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5639 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
5641 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5642 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5643 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
5644 that it's a citation.
5646 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5647 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5648 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
5650 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5651 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5652 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
5654 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
5655 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
5656 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
5657 cited text belonging to the attribution.
5663 @kindex W H s (Summary)
5664 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
5665 @vindex gnus-signature-face
5666 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
5667 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
5668 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
5669 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
5670 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
5676 @node Article Fontisizing
5677 @subsection Article Fontisizing
5679 @cindex article emphasis
5681 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
5682 @kindex W e (Summary)
5683 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
5684 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
5685 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
5686 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
5688 @vindex gnus-article-emphasis
5689 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
5690 @code{gnus-article-emphasis} variable. This is an alist where the first
5691 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
5692 that says what regular expression grouping used to find the entire
5693 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
5694 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
5695 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
5699 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
5700 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
5701 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
5704 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
5705 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
5706 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
5707 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
5708 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
5709 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
5710 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
5711 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
5712 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
5713 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
5714 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
5715 @code{gnus-emphasis-undeline-bold}, and
5716 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
5718 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
5719 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
5720 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
5724 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
5728 @node Article Hiding
5729 @subsection Article Hiding
5730 @cindex article hiding
5732 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
5733 too much cruft in most articles.
5738 @kindex W W a (Summary)
5739 @findex gnus-article-hide
5740 Do maximum hiding on the summary buffer (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}).
5743 @kindex W W h (Summary)
5744 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
5745 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
5749 @kindex W W b (Summary)
5750 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
5751 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
5752 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
5755 @kindex W W s (Summary)
5756 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
5757 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
5761 @kindex W W p (Summary)
5762 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
5763 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}).
5766 @kindex W W P (Summary)
5767 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
5768 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) gruft
5769 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
5772 @kindex W W c (Summary)
5773 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
5774 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
5775 customizing the hiding:
5779 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
5780 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
5781 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
5782 50), hide the cited text.
5784 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
5785 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
5786 The cited text must be have at least this length (default 10) before it
5789 @item gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
5790 @vindex gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
5791 Gnus adds buttons show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
5792 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
5793 by this format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
5798 Start point of the hidden text.
5800 End point of the hidden text.
5802 Length of the hidden text.
5805 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
5806 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
5807 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
5812 @kindex W W C (Summary)
5813 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
5814 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
5815 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
5816 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
5817 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
5821 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
5822 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
5823 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
5825 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
5826 citation customization.
5829 @node Article Washing
5830 @subsection Article Washing
5832 @cindex article washing
5834 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
5835 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
5837 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
5838 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
5844 @kindex W l (Summary)
5845 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
5846 Remove page breaks from the current article
5847 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}).
5850 @kindex W r (Summary)
5851 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
5852 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
5853 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
5856 @kindex W t (Summary)
5857 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
5858 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
5859 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
5862 @kindex W v (Summary)
5863 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
5864 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
5865 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
5868 @kindex W m (Summary)
5869 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
5870 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
5871 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
5874 @kindex W o (Summary)
5875 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
5876 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
5879 @kindex W w (Summary)
5880 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
5881 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
5882 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
5883 late and certainly after any highlighting.
5886 @kindex W c (Summary)
5887 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
5888 Remove CR (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
5891 @kindex W q (Summary)
5892 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
5893 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
5896 @kindex W f (Summary)
5898 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
5899 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
5900 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
5901 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
5902 Look for and display any X-Face headers
5903 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
5904 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
5905 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
5906 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
5907 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
5908 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
5909 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
5910 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
5911 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
5912 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
5913 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
5914 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
5915 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
5919 @kindex W b (Summary)
5920 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
5921 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
5924 @kindex W B (Summary)
5925 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
5926 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
5927 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
5930 @kindex W E l (Summary)
5931 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
5932 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
5933 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
5936 @kindex W E m (Summary)
5937 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
5938 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
5939 lines with a single empty line.
5940 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
5943 @kindex W E t (Summary)
5944 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
5945 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
5946 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
5949 @kindex W E a (Summary)
5950 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
5951 Do all the three commands above
5952 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
5957 @node Article Buttons
5958 @subsection Article Buttons
5961 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
5962 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
5963 with the minimum of fuzz.
5965 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
5966 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
5967 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
5972 @item gnus-button-alist
5973 @vindex gnus-button-alist
5974 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
5977 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
5983 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
5984 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that match embedded URLs:
5985 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
5988 Gnus has to know which parts of the match is to be highlighted. This is
5989 a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp that is to be
5990 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
5993 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
5994 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
5995 avoid false matches.
5998 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6001 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6002 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6006 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6009 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6012 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6013 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6014 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6015 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6016 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6019 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6022 @var{header} is a regular expression.
6024 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6025 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6026 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6027 default values of the variables above.
6029 @item gnus-article-button-face
6030 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6031 Face used on buttons.
6033 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6034 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6035 Face is used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6041 @subsection Article Date
6043 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6044 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6045 when the article was sent.
6050 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6051 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6052 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6053 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6056 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6057 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6058 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6061 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6062 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6063 Say how much time has (e)lapsed between the article was posted and now
6064 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}).
6067 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6068 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6069 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6070 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and is
6071 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6072 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6073 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6078 @node Article Signature
6079 @subsection Article Signature
6081 @cindex article signature
6083 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6084 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6085 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6086 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6087 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6088 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6089 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6090 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6091 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6094 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6095 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6096 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6097 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6098 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6099 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6100 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6101 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6104 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6107 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6108 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6113 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6116 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6119 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6120 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6122 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6123 in question is not a signature.
6126 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6130 @node Summary Sorting
6131 @section Summary Sorting
6132 @cindex summary sorting
6134 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6135 can't really see why you'd want that.
6140 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
6141 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
6142 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
6145 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
6146 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
6147 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
6150 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
6151 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
6152 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
6155 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
6156 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
6157 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
6160 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
6161 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
6162 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
6165 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
6166 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
6167 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
6170 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
6171 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
6172 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
6173 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
6174 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
6178 @node Finding the Parent
6179 @section Finding the Parent
6180 @cindex parent articles
6181 @cindex referring articles
6183 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
6185 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
6186 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
6187 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
6188 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
6189 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
6190 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
6191 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
6192 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
6194 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
6195 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
6196 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
6197 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
6198 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
6201 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
6202 @kindex A R (Summary)
6203 You can have Gnus fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References}
6204 header of the article by pushing @kbd{A R}
6205 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
6207 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
6208 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
6210 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
6211 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
6212 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
6213 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
6214 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
6215 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
6216 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
6218 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
6219 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
6220 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
6221 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
6222 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the same
6223 as the one that keeps the spool you are reading from updated, but that's
6224 not really necessary.
6226 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
6227 not do a particularly excellent job of it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
6228 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
6229 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
6230 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
6231 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
6234 @node Alternative Approaches
6235 @section Alternative Approaches
6237 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
6238 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
6241 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
6242 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
6247 @subsection Pick and Read
6248 @cindex pick and read
6250 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{nn}) use a two-phased
6251 reading interface. The user first marks the articles she wants to read
6252 from a summary buffer. Then she starts reading the articles with just
6253 an article buffer displayed.
6255 @findex gnus-pick-mode
6256 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
6257 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
6258 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
6259 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
6260 it makes one additional command for switching to the summary buffer
6263 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
6268 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6269 Pick the article on the current line
6270 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}). If given a numerical prefix,
6271 go to the article on that line and pick that article. (The line number
6272 is normally displayed on the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
6275 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
6276 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
6277 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
6278 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
6282 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6283 Unpick the article (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6287 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6288 Unpick all articles (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6292 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6293 Pick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6297 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6298 Unpick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6302 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6303 Pick the region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6307 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6308 Unpick the region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6312 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6313 Pick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6317 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6318 Unpick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6322 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6323 Pick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6327 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-buffer
6328 Unpick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-buffer}).
6332 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
6333 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
6334 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
6335 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
6336 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
6337 will still be visible when you are reading.
6341 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
6344 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
6347 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
6348 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
6350 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
6351 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
6352 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
6354 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
6355 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different than the
6356 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
6357 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
6358 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
6359 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
6360 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
6364 @subsection Binary Groups
6365 @cindex binary groups
6367 @findex gnus-binary-mode
6368 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
6369 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
6370 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
6371 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
6372 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
6373 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
6376 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
6377 In fact, the only way to see the actual articles if you have turned this
6378 mode on is the @kbd{g} command (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
6380 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
6381 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
6385 @section Tree Display
6388 @vindex gnus-use-trees
6389 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
6390 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
6391 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
6394 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
6397 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
6398 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
6399 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
6401 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6402 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6403 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers. The default
6404 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}. For a list of legal specs, @pxref{Summary
6407 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
6408 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
6409 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
6410 default is @code{modeline}.
6412 @item gnus-tree-line-format
6413 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
6414 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
6415 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
6416 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
6417 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
6418 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
6424 The name of the poster.
6426 The @code{From} header.
6428 The number of the article.
6430 The opening bracket.
6432 The closing bracket.
6437 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6439 Variables related to the display are:
6442 @item gnus-tree-brackets
6443 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
6444 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
6445 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
6446 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
6447 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}))}.
6449 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6450 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6451 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
6452 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
6456 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
6457 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
6458 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
6459 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
6460 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
6461 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}.
6463 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
6464 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
6465 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
6466 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
6467 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
6468 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
6469 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
6473 Here's and example from a horizontal tree buffer:
6476 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
6486 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
6490 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
6491 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
6493 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
6495 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
6501 @node Mail Group Commands
6502 @section Mail Group Commands
6503 @cindex mail group commands
6505 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
6506 illegal in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
6508 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
6509 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6514 @kindex B e (Summary)
6515 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
6516 Expire all expirable articles in the group
6517 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
6520 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
6521 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
6522 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
6523 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
6524 articles that are eligible for expiry in the current group will
6525 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
6528 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
6529 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
6530 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
6531 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
6532 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
6535 @kindex B m (Summary)
6537 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
6538 Move the article from one mail group to another
6539 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6542 @kindex B c (Summary)
6544 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
6545 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
6546 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
6549 @kindex B C (Summary)
6550 @cindex crosspost mail
6551 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
6552 Crosspost the current article to some other group
6553 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
6554 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
6555 be properly updated.
6558 @kindex B i (Summary)
6559 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
6560 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
6561 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
6562 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
6565 @kindex B r (Summary)
6566 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
6567 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6571 @kindex B w (Summary)
6573 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
6574 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
6575 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
6576 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
6577 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}).
6580 @kindex B q (Summary)
6581 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
6582 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
6583 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
6584 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
6587 @kindex B p (Summary)
6588 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
6589 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
6590 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
6591 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
6592 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
6593 article from your news server (or rather, from
6594 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
6595 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
6596 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
6597 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
6598 just not have arrived yet.
6602 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
6603 @cindex moving articles
6604 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
6605 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
6606 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
6607 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
6608 suggestions you find reasonable.
6611 @node Various Summary Stuff
6612 @section Various Summary Stuff
6615 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
6616 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
6617 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
6618 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
6622 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
6623 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
6624 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
6626 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
6627 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
6628 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
6629 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
6630 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
6631 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
6634 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
6635 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
6636 Is is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
6637 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
6638 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
6643 @node Summary Group Information
6644 @subsection Summary Group Information
6649 @kindex H f (Summary)
6650 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
6651 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
6652 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
6653 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
6654 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
6655 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
6656 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
6657 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} probably will be used for
6661 @kindex H d (Summary)
6662 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
6663 Give a brief description of the current group
6664 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
6665 rereading the description from the server.
6668 @kindex H h (Summary)
6669 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
6670 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
6671 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
6674 @kindex H i (Summary)
6675 @findex gnus-info-find-node
6676 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
6680 @node Searching for Articles
6681 @subsection Searching for Articles
6686 @kindex M-s (Summary)
6687 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
6688 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
6689 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
6692 @kindex M-r (Summary)
6693 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
6694 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
6695 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
6699 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
6700 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
6701 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
6702 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}).
6705 @kindex M-& (Summary)
6706 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
6707 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
6708 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
6711 @node Summary Generation Commands
6712 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
6717 @kindex Y g (Summary)
6718 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
6719 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
6722 @kindex Y c (Summary)
6723 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
6724 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
6725 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
6730 @node Really Various Summary Commands
6731 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
6736 @kindex C-d (Summary)
6737 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
6738 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
6739 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
6740 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
6741 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
6742 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
6743 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages on
6744 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
6748 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
6749 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
6750 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
6751 several documents into one biiig group
6752 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
6753 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
6754 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
6755 command understands the process/prefix convention
6756 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6759 @kindex C-t (Summary)
6760 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
6761 Toggle truncation of summary lines
6762 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
6763 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
6764 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
6768 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
6769 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
6770 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
6775 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
6776 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
6777 @cindex summary exit
6778 @cindex exiting groups
6780 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
6781 group and return you to the group buffer.
6787 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
6789 @findex gnus-summary-exit
6790 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
6791 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
6792 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
6793 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
6794 called before doing much of the exiting, and calls
6795 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
6796 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exiting
6801 @kindex Z E (Summary)
6803 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
6804 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
6805 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
6809 @kindex Z c (Summary)
6811 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
6812 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
6813 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
6816 @kindex Z C (Summary)
6817 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
6818 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
6819 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
6822 @kindex Z n (Summary)
6823 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
6824 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
6825 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
6828 @kindex Z R (Summary)
6829 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
6830 Exit this group, and then enter it again
6831 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
6832 all articles, both read and unread.
6836 @kindex Z G (Summary)
6837 @kindex M-g (Summary)
6838 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
6839 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
6840 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
6841 articles, both read and unread.
6844 @kindex Z N (Summary)
6845 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
6846 Exit the group and go to the next group
6847 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
6850 @kindex Z P (Summary)
6851 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
6852 Exit the group and go to the previous group
6853 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
6856 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
6857 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
6860 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
6861 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
6862 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
6863 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
6864 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
6865 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
6866 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
6867 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
6868 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
6869 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
6870 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
6871 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
6873 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
6875 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
6876 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
6877 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
6878 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
6879 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
6880 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
6881 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
6882 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
6883 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
6886 @node Crosspost Handling
6887 @section Crosspost Handling
6891 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
6892 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
6893 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
6894 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
6895 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
6896 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
6899 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
6900 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
6901 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
6902 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
6903 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
6905 @cindex cross-posting
6908 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
6909 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
6910 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
6911 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
6912 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
6913 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
6914 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
6915 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
6916 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
6917 the cross reference mechanism.
6919 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
6920 @cindex overview.fmt
6921 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
6922 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
6923 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
6924 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
6925 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
6926 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
6929 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
6930 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
6931 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
6936 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
6939 @node Duplicate Suppression
6940 @section Duplicate Suppression
6942 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
6943 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
6944 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
6945 approach may not work satisfactorily for some users for various
6950 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
6951 is evil and not very common.
6954 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
6955 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
6958 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
6959 different @sc{nntp} servers.
6962 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
6965 I'm sure there are other situations that @code{Xref} handling fails as
6966 well, but these four are the most common situations.
6968 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
6969 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
6970 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
6971 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
6972 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
6973 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
6974 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
6977 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
6978 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
6979 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
6980 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
6981 article as read the the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
6985 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
6986 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
6987 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
6989 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
6990 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
6991 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
6992 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
6993 However, this means that only duplicate articles that is read in a
6994 single Gnus session are suppressed.
6996 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
6997 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
6998 This variables says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
6999 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7001 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7002 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7003 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list. The
7004 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7007 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
7008 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7009 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7010 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7011 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
7012 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7013 to you to figure out, I think.
7016 @node The Article Buffer
7017 @chapter The Article Buffer
7018 @cindex article buffer
7020 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7021 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7022 tell Gnus otherwise.
7025 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7026 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
7027 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7028 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7029 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7033 @node Hiding Headers
7034 @section Hiding Headers
7035 @cindex hiding headers
7036 @cindex deleting headers
7038 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7039 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7041 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7042 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7043 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7044 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7045 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7046 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7047 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7048 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7049 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7051 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7055 @item gnus-visible-headers
7056 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7057 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7058 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7059 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7061 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7062 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7065 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7068 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers that are to
7071 @item gnus-ignored-headers
7072 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
7073 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
7074 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
7075 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
7076 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
7078 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
7079 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
7082 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
7085 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers that are to
7088 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
7089 variable will have no effect.
7093 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
7094 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
7095 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
7096 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
7097 the headers are to be displayed.
7099 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
7100 and then the subject, you might say something like:
7103 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
7106 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
7107 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers that
7108 are listed in this variable.
7110 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7111 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7112 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
7113 You can hide further boring headers by entering
7114 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
7115 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
7116 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
7117 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
7118 @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove from sight.
7120 These conditions are:
7123 Remove all empty headers.
7125 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
7128 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
7129 @code{Newsgroups} header.
7131 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
7134 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
7138 To include the four first elements, you could say something like;
7141 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
7142 '(empty newsgroups followup-to reply-to))
7145 This is also the default value for this variable.
7149 @section Using @sc{mime}
7152 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
7153 while people stand around yawning.
7155 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
7156 while all newsreaders die of fear.
7158 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
7159 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
7160 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
7162 @vindex gnus-show-mime
7163 @vindex gnus-show-mime-method
7164 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
7165 @findex metamail-buffer
7166 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
7167 @code{gnus-show-mime-method}, which is @code{metamail-buffer} by
7168 default. Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
7169 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
7170 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
7171 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
7172 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
7173 buffer. These can't be avoided.
7175 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the summary
7176 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
7177 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
7178 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
7179 comes streaming out out your speakers, and you can't find the volume
7180 button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you,
7181 and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the
7182 program to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly
7183 decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
7185 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
7188 @node Customizing Articles
7189 @section Customizing Articles
7190 @cindex article customization
7192 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7193 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
7194 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
7195 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
7197 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7198 By default this hook just contains @code{gnus-article-hide-headers},
7199 @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}, and
7200 @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight}, but there are thousands, nay
7201 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
7202 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
7203 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
7204 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
7205 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
7207 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
7208 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
7209 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
7210 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
7211 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
7214 @node Article Keymap
7215 @section Article Keymap
7217 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
7218 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
7219 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
7220 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
7223 A few additional keystrokes are available:
7228 @kindex SPACE (Article)
7229 @findex gnus-article-next-page
7230 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
7233 @kindex DEL (Article)
7234 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
7235 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
7238 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
7239 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
7240 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
7241 @kbd{r}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
7242 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
7245 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
7246 @findex gnus-article-mail
7247 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
7248 given a prefix, include the mail.
7252 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
7253 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
7254 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
7258 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
7259 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
7260 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
7263 @kindex TAB (Article)
7264 @findex gnus-article-next-button
7265 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}. This
7266 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
7269 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
7270 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
7271 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}.
7277 @section Misc Article
7281 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
7282 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
7283 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
7284 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
7287 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
7288 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
7289 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
7290 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
7291 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
7292 the contents of the article buffer.
7294 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7295 @item gnus-article-display-hook
7296 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
7297 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
7298 hiding headers, and the like.
7300 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
7301 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
7302 Hook called in article mode buffers.
7304 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7305 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7306 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
7307 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
7309 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
7310 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
7311 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
7312 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. It accepts the same
7313 format specifications as that variable, with one extension:
7317 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
7318 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
7322 @vindex gnus-break-pages
7324 @item gnus-break-pages
7325 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
7326 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
7327 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
7328 paging will not be done.
7330 @item gnus-page-delimiter
7331 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
7332 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
7337 @node Composing Messages
7338 @chapter Composing Messages
7343 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
7344 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
7345 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
7346 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
7347 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
7348 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
7349 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
7352 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
7353 * Post:: Posting and following up.
7354 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
7355 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
7356 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
7357 @c * Posting Styles:: An easier way to configure some key elements.
7358 @c * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
7359 @c * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
7362 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
7363 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
7369 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
7372 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
7373 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
7374 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
7375 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
7383 Variables for composing news articles:
7386 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7387 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7388 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
7389 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
7390 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
7391 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to sent the
7392 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
7393 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
7394 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
7397 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7398 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7399 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
7400 file. It is 1000 by default.
7405 @node Posting Server
7406 @section Posting Server
7408 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
7409 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
7411 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
7413 @vindex gnus-post-method
7415 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
7416 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
7417 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
7418 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
7419 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
7422 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
7425 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
7426 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
7427 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
7428 the ``current'' server for posting.
7430 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
7431 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
7433 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
7434 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
7439 @section Mail and Post
7441 Here's a list of variables that are relevant to both mailing and
7445 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
7446 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
7447 @cindex mailing lists
7449 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists that are
7450 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
7451 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
7452 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
7453 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
7454 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that match the groups that
7455 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
7456 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
7457 still a pain, though.
7461 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
7462 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
7463 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
7466 @findex ispell-message
7468 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
7472 @node Archived Messages
7473 @section Archived Messages
7474 @cindex archived messages
7475 @cindex sent messages
7477 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail you send.
7478 The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to store
7479 the mail. If you want to disable this completely, you should set
7480 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil}.
7482 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
7483 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
7484 use to store sent messages. The default is:
7488 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive/"))
7491 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
7492 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
7493 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
7494 directory chosen, you could say something like:
7497 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
7498 '(nnfolder "archive"
7499 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
7500 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
7501 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
7504 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
7506 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
7507 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
7508 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
7510 This variable can be:
7514 Messages will be saved in that group.
7515 @item a list of strings
7516 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
7517 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
7518 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
7520 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
7525 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
7527 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
7530 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
7532 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
7535 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
7537 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7538 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
7539 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
7540 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
7545 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7546 '((if (message-news-p)
7551 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
7552 messages in one file per month:
7555 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7556 '((if (message-news-p)
7558 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
7559 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
7562 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
7563 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
7564 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
7565 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
7566 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
7567 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
7568 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
7569 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
7570 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
7571 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
7573 That's the default method of archiving sent mail. Gnus also a different
7574 way for the people who don't like the default method. In that case you
7575 should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil}; this will
7578 XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
7579 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.
7582 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
7583 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
7584 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
7585 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
7586 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
7589 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
7590 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
7591 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
7596 @c @node Posting Styles
7597 @c @section Posting Styles
7598 @c @cindex posting styles
7601 @c All them variables, they make my head swim.
7603 @c So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
7604 @c on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
7605 @c and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
7608 @c @vindex gnus-posting-styles
7609 @c One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
7610 @c variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
7611 @c came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
7612 @c a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
7617 @c (signature . "Peace and happiness")
7618 @c (organization . "What me?"))
7620 @c (signature . "Death to everybody"))
7621 @c ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
7622 @c (organization . "Emacs is it")))
7625 @c As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
7626 @c @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
7627 @c ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
7628 @c over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
7629 @c applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
7630 @c the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
7631 @c @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
7632 @c signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
7634 @c The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
7635 @c string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
7636 @c If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
7637 @c arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
7638 @c referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
7639 @c any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
7642 @c Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
7643 @c attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
7644 @c can be one of @code{signature}, @code{organization} or @code{from}. The
7645 @c attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
7646 @c a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
7649 @c The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
7650 @c return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
7651 @c list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
7653 @c So here's a new example:
7656 @c (setq gnus-posting-styles
7658 @c (signature . "~/.signature")
7659 @c (from . "user@@foo (user)")
7660 @c ("X-Home-Page" . (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
7661 @c (organization . "People's Front Against MWM"))
7663 @c (signature . my-funny-signature-randomizer))
7664 @c ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
7665 @c (signature . my-quote-randomizer))
7666 @c (posting-from-work-p
7667 @c (signature . "~/.work-signature")
7668 @c (from . "user@@bar.foo (user)")
7669 @c (organization . "Important Work, Inc"))
7671 @c (signature . "~/.mail-signature"))))
7678 @c If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
7679 @c you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
7680 @c craazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save the
7681 @c message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some other
7682 @c day, and send it when you feel its finished.
7684 @c Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
7685 @c some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
7686 @c automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
7687 @c If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
7688 @c article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
7692 @c @vindex gnus-draft-group-directory
7693 @c The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
7694 @c @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
7695 @c @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{gnus-draft-group-directory}
7696 @c controls both the name of the group and the location---the leaf element
7697 @c in the path will be used as the name of the group. What makes this
7698 @c group special is that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any
7699 @c articles as read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
7701 @c If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
7704 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
7705 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
7706 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
7707 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
7708 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
7709 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
7710 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
7711 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
7712 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
7713 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
7714 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
7715 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
7716 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
7717 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
7719 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
7720 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
7721 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
7723 @c @findex gnus-summary-send-draft
7724 @c @kindex S D c (Summary)
7725 @c When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
7726 @c draft group and push @kbd{S D c} (@code{gnus-summary-send-draft}) to do
7727 @c that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
7729 @c Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
7732 @c @findex gnus-summary-send-all-drafts
7733 @c If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
7734 @c doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{S D a} command
7735 @c (@code{gnus-summary-send-all-drafts}). This command understands the
7736 @c process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7739 @c @node Rejected Articles
7740 @c @section Rejected Articles
7741 @c @cindex rejected articles
7743 @c Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
7744 @c doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
7745 @c @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
7746 @c Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
7748 @c These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
7749 @c (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
7750 @c fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
7751 @c you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
7752 @c articles until some later time when the server feels better.
7754 @c The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
7755 @c (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
7756 @c typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
7759 @node Select Methods
7760 @chapter Select Methods
7761 @cindex foreign groups
7762 @cindex select methods
7764 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group that is not read by the usual (or
7765 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
7766 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
7767 personal mail group.
7769 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
7770 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
7771 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
7772 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
7773 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
7774 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
7776 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
7777 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
7779 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
7782 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
7783 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
7784 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
7785 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
7786 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
7788 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
7791 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
7792 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
7793 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
7794 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
7795 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
7799 @node The Server Buffer
7800 @section The Server Buffer
7802 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
7803 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
7804 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
7805 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
7806 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
7807 backend represents a virtual server.
7809 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
7810 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
7811 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
7812 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
7814 These select methods specifications can sometimes become quite
7815 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
7816 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
7817 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
7818 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
7819 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
7820 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
7822 To enter the server buffer, user the @kbd{^}
7823 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
7826 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
7827 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
7828 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
7829 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
7830 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
7831 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
7834 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
7835 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
7838 @node Server Buffer Format
7839 @subsection Server Buffer Format
7840 @cindex server buffer format
7842 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
7843 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
7844 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
7845 variable, with some simple extensions:
7850 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
7853 The name of this server.
7856 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
7859 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
7862 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
7863 The mode line can also be customized by using the
7864 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable. The following specs are
7875 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
7878 @node Server Commands
7879 @subsection Server Commands
7880 @cindex server commands
7886 @findex gnus-server-add-server
7887 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
7891 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
7892 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
7895 @kindex SPACE (Server)
7896 @findex gnus-server-read-server
7897 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
7901 @findex gnus-server-exit
7902 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
7906 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
7907 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
7911 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
7912 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
7916 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
7917 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
7921 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
7922 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
7926 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
7927 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
7928 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
7933 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
7934 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
7935 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
7936 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
7941 @node Example Methods
7942 @subsection Example Methods
7944 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
7947 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
7950 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
7956 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
7957 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
7960 After these two elements, there may be a arbitrary number of
7961 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
7963 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
7964 port 15 from that machine. This is what the select method should
7968 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
7971 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
7972 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example.
7974 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
7975 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
7976 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
7980 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
7983 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
7986 Here's the method for a public spool:
7990 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
7991 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
7995 @node Creating a Virtual Server
7996 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
7998 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
7999 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
8001 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
8002 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
8003 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
8005 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
8007 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
8008 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
8009 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
8010 will contain the following:
8020 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
8021 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
8022 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
8025 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
8026 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
8027 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
8030 @node Servers and Methods
8031 @subsection Servers and Methods
8033 Wherever you would normally use a select method
8034 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
8035 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
8036 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
8040 @node Unavailable Servers
8041 @subsection Unavailable Servers
8043 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
8044 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
8045 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
8046 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
8047 actually the case or not.
8049 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
8050 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to the server
8051 @samp{nepholococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
8052 away from you, the machine is quite, so it takes 1 minute just to find
8053 out that it refuses connection from you today. If Gnus were to attempt
8054 to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't attempt to do
8055 that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'', it will
8056 regard that server as ``down''.
8058 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
8059 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
8061 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
8062 with the following commands:
8068 @findex gnus-server-open-server
8069 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
8070 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
8074 @findex gnus-server-close-server
8075 Close the connection (if any) to the server
8076 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
8080 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
8081 Mark the current server as unreachable
8082 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
8085 @kindex M-o (Server)
8086 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
8087 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
8088 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
8091 @kindex M-c (Server)
8092 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
8093 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
8094 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
8098 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
8099 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from all servers
8100 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
8106 @section Getting News
8107 @cindex reading news
8108 @cindex news backends
8110 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
8111 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
8112 or it can read from a local spool.
8115 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
8116 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
8121 @subsection @sc{nntp}
8124 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
8125 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
8126 server as the, uhm, address.
8128 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
8129 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
8130 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
8131 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8133 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
8134 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
8135 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
8137 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
8142 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
8143 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
8144 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
8146 @cindex authentification
8147 @cindex nntp authentification
8148 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8149 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
8150 @code{nntp-server-opened-hook} is run after a connection has been made.
8151 It can be used to send commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has
8152 been contacted. By default is sends the command @code{MODE READER} to
8153 the server with the @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function.
8155 @item nntp-authinfo-function
8156 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
8157 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
8158 server. Available functions include:
8161 @item nntp-send-authinfo
8162 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8163 This function will used you current login name as the user name and will
8164 prompt you for the password. This is the default.
8166 @item nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8167 @findex nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8168 This function will prompt you for both user name and password.
8170 @item nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8171 @findex nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8172 This function will use your current login name as the user name and will
8173 read the @sc{nntp} password from @file{~/.nntp-authinfo}.
8176 @item nntp-server-action-alist
8177 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
8178 This is an list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
8179 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
8180 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
8183 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
8187 You probably don't want to do that, though.
8189 The default value is
8192 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
8193 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook nntp-send-mode-reader)))
8196 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
8197 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
8199 @item nntp-maximum-request
8200 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
8201 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
8202 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
8203 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
8204 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
8205 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
8206 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
8208 @item nntp-connection-timeout
8209 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
8210 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
8211 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
8212 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
8213 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
8214 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
8215 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
8216 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
8217 no timeouts are done.
8219 @item nntp-command-timeout
8220 @vindex nntp-command-timeout
8221 @cindex PPP connections
8222 @cindex dynamic IP addresses
8223 If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
8224 address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
8225 changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
8226 waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
8227 unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
8228 then, if it sits waiting longer than that number of seconds for a reply
8229 from the server, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
8230 the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
8231 likely number is 30 seconds.
8233 @item nntp-retry-on-break
8234 @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
8235 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
8236 hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
8239 @item nntp-server-hook
8240 @vindex nntp-server-hook
8241 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
8244 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
8245 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
8246 @item nntp-open-server-function
8247 @vindex nntp-open-server-function
8248 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Two pre-made
8249 functions are @code{nntp-open-network-stream}, which is the default, and
8250 simply connects to some port or other on the remote system. The other
8251 is @code{nntp-open-rlogin}, which does an rlogin on the remote system,
8252 and then does a telnet to the @sc{nntp} server available there.
8254 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
8255 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
8256 If you use @code{nntp-open-rlogin} as the
8257 @code{nntp-open-server-function}, this list will be used as the
8258 parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
8260 @item nntp-end-of-line
8261 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
8262 String to use as end-of-line markers when talking to the @sc{nntp}
8263 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
8264 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
8266 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
8267 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
8268 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
8272 @vindex nntp-address
8273 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
8275 @item nntp-port-number
8276 @vindex nntp-port-number
8277 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
8280 @item nntp-buggy-select
8281 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
8282 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
8284 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
8285 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
8286 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
8287 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks whether @sc{nov}
8288 can be used automatically.
8290 @item nntp-xover-commands
8291 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
8294 List of strings that are used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
8295 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
8299 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
8300 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
8301 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
8302 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
8303 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
8304 lines that you do not want, and will not use. This variable says how
8305 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
8306 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
8307 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
8308 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
8309 @code{nntp} will never split requests.
8311 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
8312 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
8313 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
8315 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8316 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8317 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
8318 server closes connection.
8324 @subsection News Spool
8328 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
8329 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
8330 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
8333 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @samp{} (or
8334 anything else) as the address.
8336 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
8337 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
8338 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
8339 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
8343 @item nnspool-inews-program
8344 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
8345 Program used to post an article.
8347 @item nnspool-inews-switches
8348 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
8349 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
8351 @item nnspool-spool-directory
8352 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
8353 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
8354 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
8356 @item nnspool-nov-directory
8357 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
8358 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
8359 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
8361 @item nnspool-lib-dir
8362 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
8363 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
8365 @item nnspool-active-file
8366 @vindex nnspool-active-file
8367 The path of the active file.
8369 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
8370 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
8371 The path of the group descriptions file.
8373 @item nnspool-history-file
8374 @vindex nnspool-history-file
8375 The path of the news history file.
8377 @item nnspool-active-times-file
8378 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
8379 The path of the active date file.
8381 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
8382 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
8383 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
8386 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8387 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8389 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
8390 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
8391 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
8397 @section Getting Mail
8398 @cindex reading mail
8401 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
8405 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
8406 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
8407 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
8408 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
8409 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
8410 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
8411 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
8412 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
8413 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
8414 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
8415 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
8419 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
8420 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
8422 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
8423 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
8424 and things will happen automatically.
8426 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a one file per
8427 mail backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
8430 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
8431 '((nnml "private")))
8434 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
8435 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
8436 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
8437 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
8438 like any other group.
8440 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
8443 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8444 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8445 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8449 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
8450 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
8451 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
8454 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
8455 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though,
8456 especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
8459 @node Splitting Mail
8460 @subsection Splitting Mail
8461 @cindex splitting mail
8462 @cindex mail splitting
8464 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
8465 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
8466 to be split into groups.
8469 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8470 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8471 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8475 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
8476 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
8477 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
8478 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
8479 determine if it belongs in this mail group.
8481 If the first element is the special symbol @code{junk}, then messages
8482 that match the regexp will disappear into the aether. Use with
8485 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
8486 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
8487 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
8488 mail belongs in that group.
8490 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
8491 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any
8492 mails that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps.
8494 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
8495 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
8496 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
8497 message. The function should return a list of groups names that it
8498 thinks should carry this mail message.
8500 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent
8501 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
8502 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
8503 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
8505 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
8506 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
8507 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
8508 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
8509 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
8511 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
8514 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
8515 the crossposted articles. However, not all files systems support hard
8516 links. If that's the case for you, set
8517 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
8518 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
8520 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
8521 @kindex nnmail-split-history
8522 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
8523 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
8525 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
8526 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
8527 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
8528 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
8529 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
8530 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
8531 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
8532 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
8536 @node Mail Backend Variables
8537 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
8539 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
8543 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
8544 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
8545 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
8546 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
8548 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
8549 @item nnmail-spool-file
8553 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
8554 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
8555 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
8556 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
8557 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
8558 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
8559 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
8560 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
8561 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
8562 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
8563 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
8564 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
8565 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
8566 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
8567 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
8569 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
8570 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
8573 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
8574 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
8575 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
8576 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
8577 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
8578 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
8580 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
8581 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
8582 @item nnmail-use-procmail
8583 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
8584 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
8585 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
8586 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
8589 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
8590 @item nnmail-crash-box
8591 When the mail backends read a spool file, it is first moved to this
8592 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
8593 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
8596 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
8597 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
8598 This is run in a buffer that holds all the new incoming mail, and can be
8599 used for, well, anything, really.
8601 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
8602 @item nnmail-split-hook
8603 @findex article-decode-rfc1522
8604 @findex RFC1522 decoding
8605 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
8606 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
8607 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
8608 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
8609 in the buffer will show up in any files. @code{article-decode-rfc1522}
8610 is one likely function to add to this hook.
8612 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8613 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
8614 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8615 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
8616 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
8617 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
8618 starting to handle the new mail) and
8619 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
8620 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
8621 default file modes the new mail files get:
8624 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8625 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
8627 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
8628 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
8631 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
8632 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
8633 This variable says where to move the incoming mail to while processing
8634 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
8635 inhabits (i.e., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
8636 it will be used instead.
8638 @item nnmail-movemail-program
8639 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
8640 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
8641 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
8643 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
8644 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
8647 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
8648 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
8649 @cindex incoming mail files
8650 @cindex deleting incoming files
8651 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
8652 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{nil} by
8653 default for reasons of security.
8655 Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
8656 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
8657 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point.) By not deleting the
8658 Incoming* files, one can be sure to not lose mail -- if Gnus totally
8659 whacks out, one can always recover what was lost.
8661 Delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
8663 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
8664 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
8665 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
8666 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories like
8667 @file{mail.misc/}. If it is @code{nil}, the same group will end up in
8670 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
8671 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
8673 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
8678 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
8679 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
8680 @cindex mail splitting
8681 @cindex fancy mail splitting
8683 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
8684 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
8685 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
8686 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
8687 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
8688 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
8690 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
8693 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
8694 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
8695 ;; from real errors.
8696 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
8698 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
8699 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
8700 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
8701 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
8702 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
8703 ;; Other mailing lists...
8704 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
8705 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
8707 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen"))
8708 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
8712 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
8713 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
8714 the five possible split syntaxes:
8719 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group name.
8722 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, and the first
8723 element is a string, then that means that if header FIELD (a regexp)
8724 contains VALUE (also a regexp), then store the message as specified by
8728 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
8729 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
8730 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
8731 be stored in one or more groups.
8734 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
8735 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
8738 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
8739 this message anywhere.
8742 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
8743 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
8744 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
8749 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
8750 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
8751 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
8752 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
8753 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
8755 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
8756 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
8757 are expanded as specified by the variable
8758 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
8759 the car of the cells contains the key, and the cdr contains a string.
8761 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
8762 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
8763 when all this splitting is performed.
8765 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
8766 information in the headers, you can say things like:
8769 (any "debian-\(\\w*\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
8772 That is, do @code{replace-match}-like substitions in the group names.
8775 @node Mail and Procmail
8776 @subsection Mail and Procmail
8781 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
8782 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
8783 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
8784 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
8785 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
8787 This also means that you probably don't want to set
8788 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
8791 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
8792 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
8793 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends (except
8794 @code{nnmh}) actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
8795 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
8796 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
8798 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) what groups
8801 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example.
8803 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
8804 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
8806 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
8807 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
8808 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
8809 to include all your mail groups.
8811 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
8812 method will be created automatically.
8814 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
8815 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
8816 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
8817 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
8818 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
8819 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
8820 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
8821 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
8823 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
8824 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
8825 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
8826 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
8827 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
8829 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
8830 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directory into an @code{nnmh}
8831 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
8832 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
8833 ever expiring the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is quite,
8836 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
8837 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i. e., the incoming
8838 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
8839 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
8840 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
8843 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
8844 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
8845 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
8846 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
8847 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
8851 @node Incorporating Old Mail
8852 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
8854 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
8855 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
8856 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
8859 Doing so can be quite easy.
8861 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
8862 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
8863 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
8864 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
8865 your @code{nnml} groups.
8871 Go to the group buffer.
8874 Type `G f' and give the path of the mbox file when prompted to create an
8875 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8878 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
8881 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group (@pxref{Setting
8885 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
8886 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
8889 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
8890 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
8891 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
8892 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
8893 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
8895 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
8896 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
8897 using the new mail backend.
8901 @subsection Expiring Mail
8902 @cindex article expiry
8904 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
8905 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
8906 different approach to mail reading.
8908 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
8909 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
8910 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
8911 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
8912 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
8913 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
8916 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
8917 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
8918 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
8919 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
8920 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
8921 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
8922 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
8923 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
8925 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
8926 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
8927 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
8928 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
8929 articles that are marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
8930 column in the summary buffer.
8932 Note that making a group auto-expirable don't mean that all read
8933 articles are expired---only the articles that are marked as expirable
8934 will be expired. Also note the using the @kbd{d} command won't make
8935 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
8936 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
8938 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
8939 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
8942 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
8943 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
8946 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
8947 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
8949 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
8950 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
8951 doesn't really mix very well.
8953 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
8954 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
8955 expirable article has to live. The default is seven days.
8957 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
8958 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
8959 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
8960 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
8963 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
8965 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
8967 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
8969 ((string= group "mail.junk")
8971 ((string= group "important")
8977 The group names that this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
8978 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
8980 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
8981 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can be either a number (not
8982 necessarily an integer) or the symbols @code{immediate} or
8985 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
8986 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8988 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
8989 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
8990 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
8991 easier for procmail users.
8993 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
8994 By the way, that line up there about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
8995 articles is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
8996 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
8997 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
8998 caution. Even more dangerous is the
8999 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
9000 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
9001 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
9002 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
9003 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
9004 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
9005 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
9008 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
9012 @subsection Washing Mail
9013 @cindex mail washing
9014 @cindex list server brain damage
9015 @cindex incoming mail treatment
9017 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
9018 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
9019 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
9020 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
9021 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
9022 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
9024 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
9025 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
9026 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
9029 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
9030 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
9031 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
9032 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
9035 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9036 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9037 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
9038 grand, sweeping gestures. Functions to be used include:
9041 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9042 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9043 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
9044 Emacs running on MS machines.
9048 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9049 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9050 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
9051 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
9054 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9055 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9056 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
9057 headers too make them look nice. Aaah.
9059 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9060 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9061 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
9062 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
9063 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
9064 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
9065 also be a list of regexp.
9067 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
9068 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
9071 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
9072 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
9075 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
9076 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
9077 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
9081 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9082 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9083 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
9087 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
9088 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
9089 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
9096 @subsection Duplicates
9098 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
9099 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
9100 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
9101 @cindex duplicate mails
9102 If you are a member of a couple of mailing list, you will sometime
9103 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
9104 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
9105 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
9106 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
9107 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
9108 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
9109 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
9110 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
9111 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
9112 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
9113 will generate a brand new @code{Message-ID} for the mail and insert a
9114 warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks that this is a
9115 duplicate of a different message.
9117 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
9118 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
9119 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
9120 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
9122 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
9125 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
9126 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
9130 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
9131 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
9132 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
9133 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
9134 (any mail "mail.misc")
9141 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9142 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
9147 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
9148 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
9149 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
9150 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
9151 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
9154 @node Not Reading Mail
9155 @subsection Not Reading Mail
9157 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
9158 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
9159 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
9161 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
9162 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
9164 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9165 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9166 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9167 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9168 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9169 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
9170 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
9171 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
9172 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
9173 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
9174 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
9176 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
9177 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
9181 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
9182 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
9184 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
9185 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
9186 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
9189 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
9190 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
9191 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
9192 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
9193 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
9198 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
9200 @cindex unix mail box
9202 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9203 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9204 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
9205 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
9206 which group it belongs in.
9208 Virtual server settings:
9211 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
9212 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9213 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
9215 @item nnmbox-active-file
9216 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9217 The name of the active file for the mail box.
9219 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
9220 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9221 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
9227 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
9231 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9232 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9233 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
9234 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
9235 article to say which group it belongs in.
9237 Virtual server settings:
9240 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
9241 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9242 The name of the rmail mbox file.
9244 @item nnbabyl-active-file
9245 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9246 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
9248 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9249 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9250 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
9255 @subsubsection Mail Spool
9257 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
9259 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
9260 format. It should be used with some caution.
9262 @vindex nnml-directory
9263 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files;
9264 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the correct
9265 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
9266 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
9268 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
9271 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
9272 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
9273 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
9274 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
9275 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
9276 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
9277 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
9278 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
9280 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
9281 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
9282 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes is the fastest
9283 backend when it comes to reading mail.
9285 Virtual server settings:
9288 @item nnml-directory
9289 @vindex nnml-directory
9290 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
9292 @item nnml-active-file
9293 @vindex nnml-active-file
9294 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
9296 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
9297 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
9298 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
9301 @item nnml-get-new-mail
9302 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9303 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
9305 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
9306 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
9307 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
9309 @item nnml-nov-file-name
9310 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
9311 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
9313 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9314 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9315 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
9319 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
9320 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
9321 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
9322 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
9323 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
9324 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
9325 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
9330 @subsubsection MH Spool
9332 @cindex mh-e mail spool
9334 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
9335 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
9336 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
9337 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
9339 Virtual server settings:
9342 @item nnmh-directory
9343 @vindex nnmh-directory
9344 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
9346 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
9347 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9348 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
9351 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
9352 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
9353 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
9354 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
9355 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
9356 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
9357 to set this variable to @code{t}.
9362 @subsubsection Mail Folders
9364 @cindex mbox folders
9365 @cindex mail folders
9367 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
9368 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
9369 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
9372 Virtual server settings:
9375 @item nnfolder-directory
9376 @vindex nnfolder-directory
9377 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
9379 @item nnfolder-active-file
9380 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
9381 The name of the active file.
9383 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9384 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9385 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
9387 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
9388 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9389 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
9392 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
9393 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
9394 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
9395 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
9396 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
9397 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
9401 @section Other Sources
9403 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
9404 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
9408 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
9409 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
9410 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
9411 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
9412 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
9413 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
9417 @node Directory Groups
9418 @subsection Directory Groups
9420 @cindex directory groups
9422 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
9423 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
9426 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp}, that most
9427 wonderful of all wonderful Emacs packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I
9428 didn't think much about it---a backend to read directories. Big deal.
9430 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
9431 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
9432 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the the directory name,
9433 @code{ange-ftp} will actually allow you to read this directory over at
9434 @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
9436 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
9438 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
9439 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
9440 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
9441 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
9444 @node Anything Groups
9445 @subsection Anything Groups
9448 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
9449 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
9450 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
9453 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
9454 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
9455 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
9456 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
9457 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
9458 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
9459 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
9460 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
9461 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
9462 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
9465 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
9466 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
9467 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
9468 in the article buffer, just as usual.
9470 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
9471 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
9472 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
9473 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
9475 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
9476 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
9477 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
9478 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
9479 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
9480 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
9481 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
9482 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
9487 @item nneething-map-file-directory
9488 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
9489 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
9490 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
9492 @item nneething-exclude-files
9493 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
9494 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
9495 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
9497 @item nneething-map-file
9498 @vindex nneething-map-file
9499 Name of the map files.
9503 @node Document Groups
9504 @subsection Document Groups
9506 @cindex documentation group
9509 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
9510 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
9517 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
9522 The standard Unix mbox file.
9524 @cindex MMDF mail box
9526 The MMDF mail box format.
9529 Several news articles appended into a file.
9532 @cindex rnews batch files
9533 The rnews batch transport format.
9534 @cindex forwarded messages
9543 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
9544 @cindex RFC 341 digest
9545 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
9547 @item standard-digest
9548 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
9551 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
9554 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
9555 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
9556 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
9559 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
9560 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
9561 group. And that's it.
9563 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
9564 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
9565 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
9566 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
9567 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
9568 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
9569 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
9570 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
9571 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
9572 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
9574 Virtual server variables:
9577 @item nndoc-article-type
9578 @vindex nndoc-article-type
9579 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
9580 @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{news}, @code{rnews},
9581 @code{mime-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, or @code{guess}.
9583 @item nndoc-post-type
9584 @vindex nndoc-post-type
9585 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
9586 a mail group. There are two legal values: @code{mail} (the default)
9591 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
9595 @node Document Server Internals
9596 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
9598 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
9599 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
9600 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
9601 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
9603 First, here's an example document type definition:
9607 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
9608 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
9611 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
9612 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
9613 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
9614 types can be defined with very few settings:
9618 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
9619 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
9623 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
9624 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
9626 @item head-begin-function
9627 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
9630 @item nndoc-head-begin
9631 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
9634 @item nndoc-head-end
9635 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
9636 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
9638 @item body-begin-function
9639 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
9643 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
9646 @item body-end-function
9647 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
9651 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
9653 @item nndoc-file-end
9654 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
9655 regexp will be totally ignored.
9659 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
9660 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
9661 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
9662 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
9663 something that's palatable for Gnus:
9666 @item prepare-body-function
9667 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
9668 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
9669 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
9671 @item article-transform-function
9672 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
9673 meant to be used how more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
9674 body of the article.
9676 @item generate-head-function
9677 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
9678 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
9679 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
9680 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
9684 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
9689 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
9690 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
9691 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
9692 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
9694 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
9695 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
9696 (subtype digest guess))
9699 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
9700 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
9701 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
9702 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
9703 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
9705 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
9706 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
9707 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
9708 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
9709 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for each
9710 type. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
9711 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
9712 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
9713 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
9714 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
9715 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest legal number.
9723 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
9724 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
9725 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
9727 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
9728 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
9729 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
9732 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
9733 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
9734 that interested in doing things properly.
9736 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
9737 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
9740 First some terminology:
9745 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
9746 get news and/or mail from.
9749 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
9750 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
9753 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
9757 @item message packets
9758 These are packets made at the server, and typically contains lots of
9759 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
9760 default, where @var{X} is a number.
9762 @item response packets
9763 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
9764 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
9765 default, where @var{X} is a number.
9775 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
9776 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
9777 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
9778 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
9781 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
9784 You put the packet in your home directory.
9787 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
9788 the native or secondary server.
9791 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
9792 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
9795 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
9799 You transfer this packet to the server.
9802 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
9805 You then repeat until you die.
9809 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
9810 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
9813 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
9814 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
9815 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
9820 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
9822 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
9826 @kindex G s b (Group)
9827 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
9828 Pack all unread articles in the current group
9829 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
9830 process/prefix convention.
9833 @kindex G s w (Group)
9834 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
9835 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
9838 @kindex G s s (Group)
9839 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
9840 Send all replies from the replies packet
9841 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
9844 @kindex G s p (Group)
9845 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
9846 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
9849 @kindex G s r (Group)
9850 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
9851 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
9854 @kindex O s (Summary)
9855 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
9856 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
9857 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
9858 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9863 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
9868 @item gnus-soup-directory
9869 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
9870 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
9871 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
9873 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
9874 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
9875 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
9876 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
9878 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
9879 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
9880 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
9883 @item gnus-soup-packer
9884 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
9885 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
9886 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
9888 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
9889 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
9890 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
9891 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
9893 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
9894 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
9895 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
9897 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
9898 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
9899 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
9900 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
9906 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
9909 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
9910 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
9911 you can read them at leisure.
9913 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
9917 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
9918 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
9919 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
9920 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
9922 @item nnsoup-directory
9923 @vindex nnsoup-directory
9924 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
9925 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
9927 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
9928 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
9929 All replies will stored in this directory before being packed into a
9930 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
9932 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
9933 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
9934 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
9935 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
9936 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
9938 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
9939 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
9940 The index type of the replies packet. The is @samp{?n}, which means
9941 ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
9943 @item nnsoup-active-file
9944 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
9945 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
9946 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
9947 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
9948 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
9951 @vindex nnsoup-packer
9952 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
9953 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
9955 @item nnsoup-unpacker
9956 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
9957 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
9958 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
9960 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
9961 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
9962 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
9965 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
9966 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
9967 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
9974 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
9976 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
9977 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
9978 more for that to happen.
9980 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
9981 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
9982 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
9985 In specific, this is what it does:
9988 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
9989 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
9992 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
9993 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
9994 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
9998 @subsection Web Searches
10002 @cindex InReference
10003 @cindex Usenet searches
10004 @cindex searching the Usenet
10006 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
10007 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
10008 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
10009 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
10010 searches without having to use a browser.
10012 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
10013 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
10014 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
10015 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
10016 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
10018 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
10019 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
10020 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
10021 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
10022 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@code{Duplicate
10023 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
10024 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
10025 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
10026 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
10027 header---mark all articles that were posted before the last date you
10028 read the group as read.
10030 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
10031 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
10032 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
10033 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
10034 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
10035 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
10037 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
10038 to use @code{nnweb}.
10040 Virtual server variables:
10045 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
10046 are @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
10049 @vindex nnweb-search
10050 The search string to feed to the search engine.
10052 @item nnweb-max-hits
10053 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
10054 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
10057 @item nnweb-type-definition
10058 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
10059 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
10060 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
10065 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
10069 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
10072 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
10075 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
10079 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
10086 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
10087 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
10088 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
10091 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
10092 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
10093 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
10095 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
10101 @item nngateway-address
10102 @vindex nngateway-address
10103 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
10105 @item nngateway-header-transformation
10106 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
10107 News headers have often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
10108 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
10109 transformation should be called, and defaults to
10110 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
10111 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
10114 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
10115 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address---an article with this
10116 @code{Newsgroups} header:
10119 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
10122 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
10125 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
10130 So, to use this, simply say something like:
10133 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
10137 @node Combined Groups
10138 @section Combined Groups
10140 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
10144 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
10145 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
10149 @node Virtual Groups
10150 @subsection Virtual Groups
10152 @cindex virtual groups
10154 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
10157 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small group, you can
10158 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
10159 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
10161 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
10162 regexp to match component groups.
10164 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
10165 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
10166 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
10167 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
10168 the virtual group.)
10170 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
10171 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
10174 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
10177 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
10178 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
10180 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
10181 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
10182 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
10183 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
10186 "^nntp+some.server.jp:soc.motss$\\|^nntp+some.server.no:soc.motss$"
10189 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
10190 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
10191 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
10192 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
10193 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}.
10195 One limitation, however---all groups that are included in a virtual
10196 group has to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
10197 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
10199 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
10200 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
10201 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
10202 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
10203 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
10204 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
10205 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
10206 effect if you have two virtual groups that contain the same component
10207 group. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
10208 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
10209 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
10212 @node Kibozed Groups
10213 @subsection Kibozed Groups
10217 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
10218 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
10219 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
10220 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
10222 @kindex G k (Group)
10223 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
10226 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
10227 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
10228 @code{nnkiboze} group. There most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
10229 and @code{nnvirtual} ends.
10231 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
10232 must have a score file to say what articles that are to be included in
10233 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
10235 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
10236 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
10237 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
10238 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
10239 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
10240 all the articles in all the components groups and run them through the
10241 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
10242 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
10244 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
10245 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
10246 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
10247 Stranger things have happened.
10249 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
10250 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
10252 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
10253 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
10254 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
10255 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
10256 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
10257 on what groups that have been searched through to find component
10260 Articles that are marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have their
10261 @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
10268 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
10269 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
10270 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
10273 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
10274 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
10275 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
10276 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
10277 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
10279 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
10280 before generating the summary buffer.
10282 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
10283 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
10284 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
10286 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
10287 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
10288 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
10289 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
10292 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
10293 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
10294 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
10295 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
10296 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
10297 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
10298 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
10299 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
10300 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
10301 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
10302 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
10303 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
10304 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
10305 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
10306 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
10307 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
10311 @node Summary Score Commands
10312 @section Summary Score Commands
10313 @cindex score commands
10315 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
10316 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
10317 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
10318 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
10319 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
10321 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
10322 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
10323 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
10324 score file the current one.
10326 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
10331 @kindex V s (Summary)
10332 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
10333 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
10336 @kindex V S (Summary)
10337 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
10338 Display the score of the current article
10339 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
10342 @kindex V t (Summary)
10343 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
10344 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
10345 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
10348 @kindex V R (Summary)
10349 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
10350 Run the current summary through the scoring process
10351 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
10352 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
10353 effect you're having.
10356 @kindex V a (Summary)
10357 @findex gnus-summary-score-entry
10358 Add a new score entry, and allow specifying all elements
10359 (@code{gnus-summary-score-entry}).
10362 @kindex V c (Summary)
10363 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
10364 Make a different score file the current
10365 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
10368 @kindex V e (Summary)
10369 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
10370 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
10371 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
10375 @kindex V f (Summary)
10376 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
10377 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
10378 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
10381 @kindex V F (Summary)
10382 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
10383 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
10384 after editing score files.
10387 @kindex V C (Summary)
10388 @findex gnus-score-customize
10389 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
10390 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
10393 @kindex I C-i (Summary)
10394 @findex gnus-summary-raise-score
10395 Increase the score of the current article
10396 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-score}).
10399 @kindex L C-l (Summary)
10400 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
10401 Lower the score of the current article
10402 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-score}).
10405 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
10410 @kindex V m (Summary)
10411 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
10412 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
10413 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
10416 @kindex V x (Summary)
10417 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
10418 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
10419 expunge all articles below this score
10420 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
10423 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
10424 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
10429 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
10430 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
10432 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
10433 keys are available:
10437 Score on the author name.
10440 Score on the subject line.
10443 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
10446 Score on thread---the References line.
10452 Score on the number of lines.
10455 Score on the Message-ID.
10458 Score on followups.
10468 The third key is the match type. Which match types are legal depends on
10469 what headers you are scoring on.
10481 Substring matching.
10513 Greater than number.
10518 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
10519 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
10520 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
10524 Temporary score entry.
10527 Permanent score entry.
10530 Immediately scoring.
10535 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
10536 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
10537 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
10538 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
10540 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
10541 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
10542 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
10543 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
10544 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
10546 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
10547 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
10548 pretend they are keymaps or not.
10551 @node Group Score Commands
10552 @section Group Score Commands
10553 @cindex group score commands
10555 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
10560 @kindex W f (Group)
10561 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
10562 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
10563 all the time. This command will flush the cache
10564 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
10569 @node Score Variables
10570 @section Score Variables
10571 @cindex score variables
10575 @item gnus-use-scoring
10576 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
10577 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
10578 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
10580 @item gnus-kill-killed
10581 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
10582 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
10583 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
10584 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
10585 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
10586 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
10587 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
10589 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
10590 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
10591 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
10592 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
10593 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
10595 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
10596 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
10597 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
10598 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
10600 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
10601 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
10602 @cindex score cache
10603 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
10604 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
10605 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files that are
10606 unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
10607 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
10608 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
10609 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
10612 @item gnus-save-score
10613 @vindex gnus-save-score
10614 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
10615 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
10616 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
10618 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
10619 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
10620 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
10621 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
10622 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
10623 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
10624 manually entered data.
10626 @item gnus-summary-default-score
10627 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
10628 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
10630 @item gnus-score-over-mark
10631 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
10632 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
10633 default. Default is @samp{+}.
10635 @item gnus-score-below-mark
10636 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
10637 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
10638 default. Default is @samp{-}.
10640 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
10641 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
10642 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
10643 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
10645 Predefined functions available are:
10648 @item gnus-score-find-single
10649 @findex gnus-score-find-single
10650 Only apply the group's own score file.
10652 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
10653 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
10654 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
10655 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
10656 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
10657 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
10658 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
10659 then a regexp match is done.
10661 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
10662 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
10664 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
10665 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
10666 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
10667 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
10669 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
10670 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
10671 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
10672 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
10673 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
10676 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
10677 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
10678 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
10679 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
10680 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
10681 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
10684 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
10685 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
10686 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
10687 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
10688 are expired. It's 7 by default.
10690 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
10691 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
10692 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
10693 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
10694 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
10695 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
10696 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
10699 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
10700 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
10701 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
10706 @node Score File Format
10707 @section Score File Format
10708 @cindex score file format
10710 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
10711 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
10712 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
10714 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
10718 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
10720 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
10722 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
10724 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
10729 (mark-and-expunge -10)
10733 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
10734 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
10735 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
10736 (gnus-summary-make-false-root 'empty))
10740 This example demonstrates absolutely everything about a score file.
10742 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
10743 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
10744 has to be legal syntactically, if not semantically.
10746 Six keys are supported by this alist:
10751 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
10752 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
10753 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
10754 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
10755 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
10756 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
10757 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
10758 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
10759 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
10760 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
10761 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
10762 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
10763 to articles that matches these score entries.
10765 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
10766 score entry has one to four elements.
10770 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
10771 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
10775 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
10776 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
10777 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
10778 is successful. If this element is not present, the
10779 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
10780 instead. This is 1000 by default.
10783 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
10784 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
10785 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
10786 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
10787 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 ce.
10790 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
10791 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
10792 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
10793 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
10796 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
10797 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
10798 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
10799 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
10800 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
10801 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
10802 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
10803 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
10804 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
10805 instead, if you feel like.
10808 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
10809 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}. When matching on @code{Lines}, be
10810 careful because some backends (like @code{nndir}) do not generate
10811 @code{Lines} header, so every article ends up being marked as having 0
10812 lines. This can lead to strange results if you happen to lower score of
10813 the articles with few lines.
10816 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
10817 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
10818 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
10819 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
10820 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
10821 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
10822 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
10826 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
10827 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
10828 ISO8601 compact format first---@samp{YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS}. If you want to
10829 match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in every year, you
10830 could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string, for instance.
10831 (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so this will
10832 match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where the article
10833 was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the whole
10836 @item Head, Body, All
10837 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
10841 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
10842 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
10843 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
10844 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
10845 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
10846 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
10850 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
10851 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread that is
10852 started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
10853 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
10854 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
10855 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
10856 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
10857 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
10858 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
10859 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread.
10864 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
10865 lower than this number will be marked as read.
10868 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
10869 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
10871 @item mark-and-expunge
10872 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
10873 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
10876 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
10877 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
10878 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
10879 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
10880 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
10883 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
10884 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
10887 @item exclude-files
10888 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
10889 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
10893 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
10894 ignored when handling global score files.
10897 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
10898 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}).
10901 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
10902 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
10903 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
10904 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
10906 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
10910 (mark-and-expunge -100)
10913 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
10914 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
10915 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
10916 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
10917 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
10919 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
10920 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
10921 ordinary scoring rules.
10924 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
10925 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
10926 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
10927 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
10928 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
10929 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
10930 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
10931 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
10932 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
10933 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
10934 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
10938 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
10939 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
10940 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
10941 file for a number of groups.
10944 @cindex local variables
10945 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
10946 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
10947 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
10948 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
10953 @node Score File Editing
10954 @section Score File Editing
10956 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
10957 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
10958 with a mode for that.
10960 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
10961 additional commands:
10966 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
10967 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
10968 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
10969 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
10972 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
10973 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
10974 Insert the current date in numerical format
10975 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
10976 you were wondering.
10979 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
10980 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
10981 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
10982 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
10983 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
10988 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
10990 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
10991 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
10993 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
10994 e} to begin editing score files.
10997 @node Adaptive Scoring
10998 @section Adaptive Scoring
10999 @cindex adaptive scoring
11001 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
11002 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
11003 stupidity, to be precise.
11005 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
11006 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
11007 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
11008 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
11009 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
11010 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
11011 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
11012 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
11013 variable to @code{(word line)}.
11015 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
11016 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
11017 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
11018 might look something like this:
11021 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
11022 '((gnus-unread-mark)
11023 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
11024 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
11025 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
11026 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
11027 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
11028 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
11029 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
11030 (gnus-ancient-mark)
11031 (gnus-low-score-mark)
11032 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
11035 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
11036 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
11037 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
11038 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
11039 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
11040 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
11043 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
11044 will be applied to each article.
11046 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
11047 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
11048 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
11049 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
11051 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
11052 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
11053 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
11054 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
11056 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
11057 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
11058 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
11059 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
11061 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
11062 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
11063 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
11064 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
11065 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
11066 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
11068 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
11069 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
11070 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
11071 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
11072 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
11073 aspirins afterwards.)
11075 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
11076 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
11077 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
11079 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
11080 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
11081 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
11083 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
11084 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
11085 let you use different rules in different groups.
11087 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
11088 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
11089 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
11092 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
11093 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
11094 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
11095 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
11096 the length of the match is less than
11097 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
11098 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
11101 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
11102 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
11103 headers. If you adapt on words, the
11104 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
11105 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
11108 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
11109 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
11110 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
11111 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
11112 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
11115 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
11116 word that appears in subjects of articles that are marked with
11117 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
11118 score with 30 points.
11120 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
11121 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
11122 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
11123 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
11124 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
11126 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
11127 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
11128 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
11129 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
11131 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
11132 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
11133 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
11136 @node Home Score File
11137 @section Home Score File
11139 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
11140 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
11141 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
11142 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
11144 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
11145 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
11146 could perhaps use the same home score file.
11148 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
11149 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
11154 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
11158 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
11159 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
11163 A list. The elements in this list can be:
11167 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
11168 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
11171 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
11172 the home score file.
11175 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
11178 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
11183 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
11186 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11187 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
11190 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
11191 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
11194 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11195 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
11198 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
11200 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
11201 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
11202 their own home score files:
11205 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11206 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
11207 '("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
11208 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
11209 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE"))
11212 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
11213 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
11214 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
11215 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
11216 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
11218 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
11219 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
11220 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
11221 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
11222 precedence over this variable.
11225 @node Followups To Yourself
11226 @section Followups To Yourself
11228 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
11229 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
11230 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
11231 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
11232 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
11233 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
11237 @item gnus-score-followup-article
11238 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
11239 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
11242 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
11243 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
11244 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
11248 @vindex message-sent-hook
11249 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
11250 @code{message-sent-hook}.
11252 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
11253 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
11257 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
11258 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
11261 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
11262 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
11267 "<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf@@.*eyesore.no>" 1000 nil r)
11270 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
11271 is system-dependent.
11275 @section Scoring Tips
11276 @cindex scoring tips
11282 @cindex scoring crossposts
11283 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
11284 the @code{Xref} header.
11286 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
11289 @item Multiple crossposts
11290 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
11291 more than, say, 3 groups:
11293 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
11296 @item Matching on the body
11297 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
11298 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
11299 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
11300 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
11301 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
11302 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
11303 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
11306 @item Marking as read
11307 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
11308 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
11309 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
11313 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
11315 @item Negated character classes
11316 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
11317 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
11318 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
11322 @node Reverse Scoring
11323 @section Reverse Scoring
11324 @cindex reverse scoring
11326 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
11327 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
11328 like this in your score file:
11332 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
11337 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
11338 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
11341 @node Global Score Files
11342 @section Global Score Files
11343 @cindex global score files
11345 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
11346 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
11347 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
11349 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
11350 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
11351 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
11353 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
11354 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
11355 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
11356 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
11357 files are applicable to which group.
11359 Say you want to use the score file
11360 @file{/ftp@@ftp.ifi.uio.no:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
11361 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
11364 (setq gnus-global-score-files
11365 '("/ftp@@ftp.ifi.uio.no:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
11366 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
11369 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
11370 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
11371 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
11372 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
11373 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
11375 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
11376 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
11378 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
11379 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
11380 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
11381 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
11382 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
11383 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
11385 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
11391 Articles that are heavily crossposted are probably junk.
11393 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
11395 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
11397 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
11398 lowered out of existence.
11400 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
11401 articles completely.
11404 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
11405 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
11406 old articles for a long time.
11409 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
11410 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
11411 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
11412 holding our breath yet?
11416 @section Kill Files
11419 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
11420 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
11421 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
11423 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
11424 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
11425 files into score files.
11427 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
11428 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
11429 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
11430 that isn't a very good idea.
11432 Normal kill files look like this:
11435 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11436 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
11440 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove them from
11441 the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
11443 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
11444 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
11447 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
11452 @kindex M-k (Summary)
11453 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
11454 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
11457 @kindex M-K (Summary)
11458 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
11459 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
11462 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
11467 @kindex M-k (Group)
11468 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
11469 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
11472 @kindex M-K (Group)
11473 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
11474 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
11477 Kill file variables:
11480 @item gnus-kill-file-name
11481 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
11482 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
11483 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
11484 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
11485 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
11486 course) is called just @file{KILL}.
11488 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
11489 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
11490 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
11491 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
11494 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
11495 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
11496 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
11497 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
11498 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
11499 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
11500 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
11501 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
11502 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
11504 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
11505 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
11506 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
11511 @node Converting Kill Files
11512 @section Converting Kill Files
11514 @cindex converting kill files
11516 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
11517 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
11518 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
11521 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
11522 You can fetch it from
11523 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
11525 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
11526 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
11527 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
11535 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
11536 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
11537 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
11539 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
11540 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
11541 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
11542 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
11543 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
11544 Once it has found for you some people you agree with it tells you, in
11545 the form of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use
11546 this prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
11550 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
11551 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
11552 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
11553 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
11557 @node Using GroupLens
11558 @subsection Using GroupLens
11560 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
11562 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
11563 better bit in town is at the moment.
11565 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
11569 @item gnus-use-grouplens
11570 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
11571 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
11572 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
11574 @item grouplens-pseudonym
11575 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
11576 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
11577 with the Better Bit Bureau.
11579 @item grouplens-newsgroups
11580 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
11581 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
11585 Thats the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
11586 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
11587 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
11588 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
11589 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
11590 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
11593 @node Rating Articles
11594 @subsection Rating Articles
11596 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
11597 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
11598 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
11599 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
11602 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
11607 @kindex r (GroupLens)
11608 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
11609 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
11612 @kindex k (GroupLens)
11613 @findex grouplens-score-thread
11614 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
11615 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
11616 threads in rec.humor.
11620 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
11621 the score of the article you're reading.
11626 @kindex n (GroupLens)
11627 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
11628 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
11631 @kindex , (GroupLens)
11632 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
11633 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
11637 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
11638 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
11641 @node Displaying Predictions
11642 @subsection Displaying Predictions
11644 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
11645 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
11646 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
11647 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
11648 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
11650 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
11651 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
11652 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
11653 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
11654 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
11655 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
11656 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
11657 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
11658 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
11659 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
11660 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
11661 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
11662 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
11664 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
11665 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
11666 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
11667 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
11669 The following are legal values for that variable.
11672 @item prediction-spot
11673 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
11676 @item confidence-interval
11677 A numeric confidence interval.
11679 @item prediction-bar
11680 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
11682 @item confidence-bar
11683 Numerical confidence.
11685 @item confidence-spot
11686 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
11688 @item prediction-num
11689 Plain-old numeric value.
11691 @item confidence-plus-minus
11692 Prediction +/i confidence.
11697 @node GroupLens Variables
11698 @subsection GroupLens Variables
11702 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
11703 The summary line format used in summary buffers that are GroupLens
11704 enhanced. It accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format
11705 (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}). The default is
11706 @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
11708 @item grouplens-bbb-host
11709 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
11712 @item grouplens-bbb-port
11713 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
11715 @item grouplens-score-offset
11716 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
11717 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
11720 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
11721 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
11722 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
11727 @node Advanced Scoring
11728 @section Advanced Scoring
11730 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
11731 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
11732 about a particular subject? Or what about if you really don't want to
11733 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
11734 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
11736 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
11740 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
11741 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
11742 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
11746 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
11747 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
11749 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
11750 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
11751 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
11752 non-@code{nil} value.
11754 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
11755 operator, and various match operators.
11762 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
11763 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
11764 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
11769 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
11770 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
11771 then this operator will return @code{false}.
11776 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
11777 inverse of the value of its argument.
11781 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
11782 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
11783 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
11784 current article. @code{2-} will make score fules apply to the
11785 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
11786 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) say how far back into
11787 the ancestry you want to go.
11789 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
11790 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
11791 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
11792 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
11793 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
11796 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
11797 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
11799 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
11800 when he's talking about Gnus:
11804 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11805 ("subject" "Gnus"))
11811 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
11815 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11822 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
11823 really don't want to read what he's written:
11827 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11828 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
11832 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
11833 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
11834 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
11841 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
11842 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
11843 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
11844 ("body" "white.*socks"))
11848 The possibilities are endless.
11851 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
11852 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
11854 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
11855 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
11856 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
11857 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
11858 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
11859 (@samp{body}, @code{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
11860 @samp{subject}) first.
11862 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
11863 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
11874 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
11875 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
11881 ("subject" "Gnus")))
11888 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
11889 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
11894 @section Score Decays
11895 @cindex score decays
11898 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
11899 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
11900 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
11901 use them in any sensible way.
11903 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
11904 @findex gnus-decay-score
11905 @vindex gnus-score-decay-function
11906 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
11907 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
11908 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
11909 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
11910 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-score-decay-function}
11911 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
11912 definition of that function:
11915 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
11918 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
11920 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
11922 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
11925 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
11926 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
11927 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
11928 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
11932 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
11935 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
11938 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
11942 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
11943 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
11944 the new score, which should be an integer.
11946 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
11947 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
11954 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
11955 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
11956 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
11957 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
11958 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
11959 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
11960 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
11961 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
11962 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
11963 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
11964 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
11965 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
11966 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
11967 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
11968 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
11972 @node Process/Prefix
11973 @section Process/Prefix
11974 @cindex process/prefix convention
11976 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
11977 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
11979 This is a method for figuring out what articles that the user wants the
11980 command to be performed on.
11984 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
11985 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
11986 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
11987 with the current one.
11989 @vindex transient-mark-mode
11990 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
11991 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
11993 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
11994 process mark, perform the operation on the articles that are marked with
11997 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
11998 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
12000 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
12003 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
12004 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
12005 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
12006 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12008 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
12009 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
12010 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
12011 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
12012 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
12013 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
12014 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
12015 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
12019 @section Interactive
12020 @cindex interaction
12024 @item gnus-novice-user
12025 @vindex gnus-novice-user
12026 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
12027 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
12028 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
12029 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
12032 @item gnus-expert-user
12033 @vindex gnus-expert-user
12034 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will never ever be asked any
12035 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
12036 matter how strange.
12038 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
12039 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
12040 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
12041 is @code{t} by default.
12043 @item gnus-interactive-exit
12044 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
12045 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
12050 @node Formatting Variables
12051 @section Formatting Variables
12052 @cindex formatting variables
12054 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables that
12055 are called things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
12056 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
12057 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
12058 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
12061 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
12062 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
12063 lots of percentages everywhere.
12066 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
12067 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
12068 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
12069 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
12072 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
12073 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
12074 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
12075 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
12076 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
12077 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
12078 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
12079 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
12081 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
12082 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
12084 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
12085 @findex gnus-update-format
12086 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
12087 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
12088 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
12089 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
12093 @node Formatting Basics
12094 @subsection Formatting Basics
12096 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
12097 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
12098 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
12100 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
12101 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
12102 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
12103 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
12104 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
12107 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
12108 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
12109 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
12110 less than 4 characters wide.
12113 @node Advanced Formatting
12114 @subsection Advanced Formatting
12116 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
12117 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
12118 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
12119 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
12121 These are the legal modifiers:
12126 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
12130 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
12135 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
12138 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
12143 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
12146 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
12149 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
12152 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
12156 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
12157 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
12158 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
12159 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
12160 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
12161 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
12162 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
12164 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
12165 last operation, padding.
12167 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
12168 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
12169 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
12170 @xref{Compilation}.
12173 @node User-Defined Specs
12174 @subsection User-Defined Specs
12176 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
12177 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
12178 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
12179 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
12180 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
12181 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
12182 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
12183 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
12184 should protect against that.
12186 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
12187 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
12188 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
12189 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
12193 @node Formatting Fonts
12194 @subsection Formatting Fonts
12196 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
12197 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
12198 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
12199 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
12202 Text inside the @samp{%[} and @samp{%]} specifiers will have their
12203 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
12204 default. If you say @samp{%1[} instead, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1}
12205 instead, and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes
12206 for the @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
12207 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
12209 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
12212 ;; Create three face types.
12213 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
12214 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
12216 ;; We want the article count to be in
12217 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
12218 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
12219 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
12221 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
12222 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
12224 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
12225 (setq gnus-group-line-format
12226 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
12229 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
12230 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
12232 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
12233 mode-line variables.
12236 @node Windows Configuration
12237 @section Windows Configuration
12238 @cindex windows configuration
12240 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
12242 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
12243 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
12244 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
12245 @code{t} by default.
12247 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
12248 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
12249 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
12252 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
12253 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
12254 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
12258 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
12259 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
12260 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
12261 possible names is listed below.
12263 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
12264 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
12267 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
12271 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
12272 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
12273 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
12274 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
12275 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
12276 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
12277 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
12278 size spec per split.
12280 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
12283 Here's a more complicated example:
12286 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
12287 (summary 0.25 point)
12288 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
12292 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
12293 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
12294 occupy, not a percentage.
12296 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
12297 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
12298 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
12299 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
12300 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
12303 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
12306 (article (horizontal 1.0
12311 (summary 0.25 point)
12316 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
12317 @code{horizontal} thingie?
12319 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
12320 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
12321 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
12322 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
12323 the screen is to be given to this strip.
12325 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
12326 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
12327 lines from the splits.
12329 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a legal split
12333 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
12334 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
12335 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
12336 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
12337 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] ")"
12338 size = number | frame-params
12339 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
12342 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
12343 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
12344 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
12345 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
12347 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
12348 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
12349 @cindex window height
12350 @cindex window width
12351 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
12352 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
12353 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
12354 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
12355 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
12356 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
12358 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
12359 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
12360 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
12361 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
12363 @findex gnus-configure-frame
12364 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
12365 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
12366 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
12367 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
12368 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
12369 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
12370 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
12371 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
12372 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
12373 configuration list.
12376 (gnus-configure-frame
12380 (article 0.3 point))
12388 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
12389 @code{frame} split:
12392 (gnus-configure-frame
12395 (summary 0.25 point)
12397 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
12398 (user-position . t)
12399 (left . -1) (top . 1))
12404 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
12405 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
12406 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
12407 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
12408 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
12409 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
12412 Here's a list of all possible keys for
12413 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
12415 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
12416 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
12417 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
12418 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
12419 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft},
12420 @code{pipe}, @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}.
12422 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
12423 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
12424 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
12428 (message (horizontal 1.0
12429 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
12431 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
12436 @findex gnus-add-configuration
12437 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
12438 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
12439 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
12440 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
12443 (gnus-add-configuration
12444 '(article (vertical 1.0
12446 (summary .25 point)
12450 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
12451 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
12452 Gnus has been loaded.
12454 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
12455 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
12456 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
12457 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
12458 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
12462 @section Compilation
12463 @cindex compilation
12464 @cindex byte-compilation
12466 @findex gnus-compile
12468 Remember all those line format specification variables?
12469 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
12470 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
12471 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
12472 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
12473 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
12476 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
12477 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
12478 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
12479 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
12480 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
12481 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
12482 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
12486 @section Mode Lines
12489 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
12490 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
12491 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
12492 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
12493 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
12494 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
12495 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
12498 @cindex display-time
12500 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
12501 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
12502 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
12503 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
12504 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
12505 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
12506 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
12507 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
12510 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
12512 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
12513 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
12515 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
12516 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
12517 (length display-time-string)))))
12520 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
12521 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either.
12524 @node Highlighting and Menus
12525 @section Highlighting and Menus
12527 @cindex highlighting
12530 @vindex gnus-visual
12531 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the prettifying Gnus
12532 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
12533 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
12536 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
12537 following elements are legal, and are all included by default:
12540 @item group-highlight
12541 Do highlights in the group buffer.
12542 @item summary-highlight
12543 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
12544 @item article-highlight
12545 Do highlights in the article buffer.
12547 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
12549 Create menus in the group buffer.
12551 Create menus in the summary buffers.
12553 Create menus in the article buffer.
12555 Create menus in the browse buffer.
12557 Create menus in the server buffer.
12559 Create menus in the score buffers.
12561 Create menus in all buffers.
12564 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
12565 buffers, you could say something like:
12568 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
12571 If you want only highlighting and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
12574 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
12577 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
12578 in all Gnus buffers.
12580 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
12583 @item gnus-mouse-face
12584 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
12585 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
12586 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
12588 @item gnus-display-type
12589 @vindex gnus-display-type
12590 This variable is symbol indicating the display type Emacs is running
12591 under. The symbol should be one of @code{color}, @code{grayscale} or
12592 @code{mono}. If Gnus guesses this display attribute wrongly, either set
12593 this variable in your @file{~/.emacs} or set the resource
12594 @code{Emacs.displayType} in your @file{~/.Xdefaults}.
12596 @item gnus-background-mode
12597 @vindex gnus-background-mode
12598 This is a symbol indicating the Emacs background brightness. The symbol
12599 should be one of @code{light} or @code{dark}. If Gnus guesses this
12600 frame attribute wrongly, either set this variable in your @file{~/.emacs} or
12601 set the resource @code{Emacs.backgroundMode} in your @file{~/.Xdefaults}.
12602 `gnus-display-type'.
12605 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
12609 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
12610 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
12611 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
12613 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
12614 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
12615 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
12617 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
12618 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
12619 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
12621 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
12622 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
12623 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
12625 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
12626 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
12627 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
12629 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
12630 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
12631 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
12642 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
12643 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
12644 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
12645 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
12646 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
12650 @vindex gnus-carpal
12651 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
12652 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
12653 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
12658 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
12659 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
12660 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
12662 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
12663 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
12664 Face used on buttons.
12666 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
12667 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
12668 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
12670 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
12671 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
12672 Buttons in the group buffer.
12674 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
12675 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
12676 Buttons in the summary buffer.
12678 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
12679 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
12680 Buttons in the server buffer.
12682 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
12683 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
12684 Buttons in the browse buffer.
12687 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
12688 is either a cons cell where the car contains a text to be displayed and
12689 the cdr contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
12697 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
12698 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
12699 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
12700 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
12701 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
12703 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
12704 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
12705 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
12707 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
12708 been idle for thirty minutes:
12711 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
12714 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
12718 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
12721 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter works together
12722 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
12723 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
12725 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
12726 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
12727 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
12728 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
12730 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
12731 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
12732 @var{idle} minutes.
12734 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
12735 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
12738 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
12739 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
12740 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
12742 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
12743 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
12744 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
12745 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
12747 @vindex gnus-use-demon
12748 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
12749 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
12751 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
12752 your @file{.gnus} file:
12754 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
12756 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
12759 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
12760 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
12761 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
12762 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
12763 Some ready-made functions to do this has been created:
12764 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
12765 @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just
12766 put those functions in your @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
12768 @findex gnus-demon-init
12769 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
12770 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
12771 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
12772 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
12773 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
12775 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you overdo it. Adding
12776 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
12777 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
12786 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
12787 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
12789 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
12790 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
12791 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
12792 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
12795 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
12796 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
12797 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
12798 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
12800 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
12801 this will make spam disappear.
12803 There are some variables to customize, of course:
12806 @item gnus-use-nocem
12807 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
12808 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
12811 @item gnus-nocem-groups
12812 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
12813 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
12814 default is @code{("alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
12816 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
12817 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
12818 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
12819 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
12820 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;" "jem@@xpat.com;" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
12821 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
12823 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
12826 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
12827 @cindex Chris Lewis
12828 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
12829 usenet abuse than anybody else.
12832 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
12833 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
12834 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
12836 @item jem@@xpat.com;
12838 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
12841 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
12842 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
12843 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
12846 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
12847 ones you want to listen to.
12849 @item gnus-nocem-directory
12850 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
12851 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
12852 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
12854 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
12855 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
12856 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
12857 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
12858 might then see old spam.
12866 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
12867 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
12868 over your shoulder as you read news.
12871 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
12872 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
12873 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
12874 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
12875 * Picon Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
12880 @subsection Picon Basics
12882 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
12885 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
12886 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
12887 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
12888 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
12889 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
12890 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
12891 @code{GIF} formats.
12894 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases, point
12895 your Web browser at
12896 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
12898 @vindex gnus-picons-database
12899 Gnus expects picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
12900 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
12903 @node Picon Requirements
12904 @subsection Picon Requirements
12906 To use have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
12907 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
12910 Additionally, you must have @code{xpm} support compiled into XEmacs.
12912 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
12913 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you must have
12914 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
12915 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
12919 @subsection Easy Picons
12921 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
12922 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
12925 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
12926 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
12927 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-prepare-hook 'gnus-group-display-picons t)
12928 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
12933 @subsection Hard Picons
12935 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
12936 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
12937 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
12938 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
12939 feature, you need to first decide where to display them.
12943 @item gnus-picons-display-where
12944 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
12945 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
12946 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
12947 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
12948 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
12949 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
12950 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
12954 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
12955 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
12957 Now that you've made that decision, you need to add the following
12958 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get
12959 displayed at the right time.
12961 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
12962 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
12964 @item gnus-article-display-picons
12965 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
12966 Looks up and display the picons for the author and the author's domain
12967 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to
12968 the @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
12970 @item gnus-group-display-picons
12971 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
12972 Displays picons representing the current group. This function should
12973 be added to the @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook} or to the
12974 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} if @code{gnus-picons-display-where}
12975 is set to @code{article}.
12977 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
12978 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
12979 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
12980 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
12984 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
12985 to the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
12988 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
12992 @node Picon Configuration
12993 @subsection Picon Configuration
12995 The following variables offer further control over how things are
12996 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
12997 don't need to worry about.
13000 @item gnus-picons-database
13001 @vindex gnus-picons-database
13002 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
13003 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
13004 subdirectories. Defaults to @file{/usr/local/faces}.
13006 @item gnus-picons-news-directory
13007 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directory
13008 Sub-directory of the faces database containing the icons for
13011 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
13012 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
13013 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
13014 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc/MISC")} is the default.
13016 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
13017 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
13018 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
13019 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
13020 want to add @samp{unknown} to this list.
13022 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
13023 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
13024 The command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
13025 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
13026 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
13027 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
13029 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
13030 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
13031 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
13032 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
13034 @item gnus-picons-buffer
13035 @vindex gnus-picons-buffer
13036 The name of the buffer that @code{picons} points to. Defaults to
13037 @samp{*Icon Buffer*}.
13046 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
13047 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
13048 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
13050 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
13051 Gnus---it's all just data that is designed to look nice to the user.
13052 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
13053 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
13054 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
13055 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
13056 @code{undo} function.
13058 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
13059 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
13060 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
13061 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
13062 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
13063 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
13064 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
13065 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
13066 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
13067 never be totally undoable.
13069 @findex gnus-undo-mode
13070 @vindex gnus-use-undo
13072 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
13073 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
13074 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
13075 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
13080 @section Moderation
13083 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
13084 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
13085 @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
13088 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
13092 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
13095 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
13097 If you are the moderation of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
13102 You split your incoming mail by matching on
13103 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
13104 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
13107 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
13108 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
13111 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
13112 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
13116 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
13119 (setq gnus-moderated-list
13120 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
13124 @node XEmacs Enhancements
13125 @section XEmacs Enhancements
13128 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
13129 advantage of that. Relevant variables include:
13132 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
13133 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
13134 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
13135 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
13136 unusual directory structure.
13138 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
13139 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
13140 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
13141 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
13143 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
13144 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
13145 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
13146 Legal values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
13147 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
13148 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
13150 @item gnus-use-toolbar
13151 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
13152 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
13153 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
13154 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
13156 @item gnus-group-toolbar
13157 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
13158 The toolbar in the group buffer.
13160 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
13161 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
13162 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
13164 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
13165 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
13166 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
13168 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
13169 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
13170 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
13176 @node Various Various
13177 @section Various Various
13183 @item gnus-directory
13184 @vindex gnus-directory
13185 All Gnus directories will be initialized from this variable, which
13186 defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or @file{~/News/}
13187 if that variable isn't set.
13189 @item gnus-default-directory
13190 @vindex gnus-default-directory
13191 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
13192 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
13193 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
13194 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
13195 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
13196 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
13199 @vindex gnus-verbose
13200 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
13201 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
13202 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
13203 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
13204 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
13206 @item gnus-verbose-backends
13207 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
13208 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
13209 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
13211 @item nnheader-max-head-length
13212 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
13213 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
13214 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
13215 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
13216 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
13217 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
13218 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
13219 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
13222 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
13223 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
13224 This variable says how big a piece of each article to read when doing
13225 the operation described above.
13227 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13228 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13230 @cindex illegal characters in file names
13231 @cindex characters in file names
13232 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
13233 For instance, if @samp{:} is illegal as a file character in file names
13234 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
13237 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13241 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
13242 Windows (phooey) systems.
13244 @item gnus-hidden-properties
13245 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
13246 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
13247 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
13248 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
13250 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
13251 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
13252 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
13253 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
13254 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
13256 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
13257 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
13258 String used to separate to shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
13267 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
13268 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
13270 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
13272 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
13278 Not because of victories @*
13281 but for the common sunshine,@*
13283 the largess of the spring.
13287 but for the day's work done@*
13288 as well as I was able;@*
13289 not for a seat upon the dais@*
13290 but at the common table.@*
13295 @chapter Appendices
13298 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
13299 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
13300 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
13301 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
13302 * A Programmers Guide to Gnus:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
13303 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
13304 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
13312 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
13313 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
13315 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
13316 can point your (feh!) web browser to
13317 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
13318 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
13319 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
13321 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
13322 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
13323 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
13324 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
13325 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
13326 appropriate name, don't you think?)
13328 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
13329 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
13330 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
13331 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
13333 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
13334 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution.
13336 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'') was
13337 released under the name ``Gnus 5.2''.
13339 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun.
13341 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a name that is prefixed --
13342 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Mamey Sapote Gnus''
13343 -- don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
13344 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
13345 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
13349 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
13350 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
13351 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
13352 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
13353 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
13354 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
13355 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
13362 What's the point of Gnus?
13364 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
13365 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
13366 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
13367 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
13368 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
13369 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
13370 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
13371 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
13372 keep track of millions of people who post?
13374 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
13375 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
13376 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
13377 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
13378 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
13379 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
13380 everywhere I could imagine useful. By doing so, I'm inviting every one
13381 of you to explore and invent.
13383 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x hail-emacs}.
13386 @node Compatibility
13387 @subsection Compatibility
13389 @cindex compatibility
13390 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
13391 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
13392 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
13397 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
13401 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
13404 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @pxref{Decoding
13407 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
13408 buffers. All variables that are relevant while reading a group are
13409 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
13410 important variables have their values copied into their global
13411 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
13412 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
13414 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
13415 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
13416 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
13417 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
13418 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
13422 @cindex highlighting
13423 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
13424 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
13425 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
13426 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
13427 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
13428 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
13431 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
13432 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
13433 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
13434 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
13436 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
13437 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
13438 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
13439 to stop doing it the old way.
13441 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
13443 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
13445 @cindex reporting bugs
13447 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
13448 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
13449 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
13453 @subsection Conformity
13455 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
13456 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
13463 There are no known breaches of this standard.
13467 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
13469 @item Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
13470 @cindex Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
13471 Gnus has been through the Seal process and failed. I think it'll pass
13472 the next inspection.
13474 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
13475 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
13476 We do have some breaches to this one.
13481 Gnus does no MIME handling, and this standard-to-be seems to think that
13482 MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
13485 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
13486 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
13487 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
13488 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
13489 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
13492 Gnus does line breaking on this header. I infer from RFC1036 that being
13493 conservative in what you output is not creating 5000-character lines, so
13494 it seems like a good idea to me. However, this standard-to-be says that
13495 whitespace in the @code{References} header is to be preserved, so... It
13496 doesn't matter one way or the other to Gnus, so if somebody tells me
13497 what The Way is, I'll change it. Or not.
13502 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliantly with regards to the texts
13503 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
13508 @subsection Emacsen
13514 Gnus should work on :
13519 Emacs 19.32 and up.
13522 XEmacs 19.14 and up.
13525 Mule versions based on Emacs 19.32 and up.
13529 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
13530 reliably, at least.
13532 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
13533 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
13534 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
13539 @subsection Contributors
13540 @cindex contributors
13542 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
13543 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
13544 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
13545 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
13546 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
13547 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
13548 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
13549 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
13550 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
13551 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
13553 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
13559 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
13562 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
13563 well as numerous other things).
13566 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
13569 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
13572 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
13573 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
13576 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
13577 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
13580 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
13583 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
13586 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
13589 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
13592 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinsky---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
13593 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
13596 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
13599 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
13602 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
13605 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
13609 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
13612 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
13615 Ricardo Nassif, Mark Borges, and Jost Krieger---proof-reading.
13618 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
13621 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports.
13625 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
13634 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
13638 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
13649 Massimo Campostrini,
13653 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
13667 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
13668 Francois Felix Ingrand,
13672 Thor Kristoffersen,
13682 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
13688 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
13696 Randal L. Schwartz,
13713 Katsumi Yamaoka. @c Yamaoka
13716 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
13719 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
13720 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
13724 @subsection New Features
13725 @cindex new features
13728 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
13729 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
13730 * Red Gnus:: The future---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
13733 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
13734 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
13735 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
13739 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
13741 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
13746 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
13747 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
13750 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
13751 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
13754 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
13757 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
13758 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
13759 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
13762 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
13763 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
13764 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
13765 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
13768 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
13769 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
13772 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
13773 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
13774 (@pxref{The Active File}).
13777 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
13778 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
13781 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
13782 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
13783 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
13786 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
13787 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
13788 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
13791 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
13792 the @file{.emacs} file.
13795 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
13796 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
13799 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
13800 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
13803 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
13804 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
13807 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
13808 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
13811 Gnus can fetch articles asynchronously on a second connection to the
13812 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
13815 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
13818 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
13819 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
13822 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
13823 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
13826 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
13827 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
13830 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
13833 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
13834 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
13837 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
13841 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
13845 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
13846 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
13849 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
13855 @node September Gnus
13856 @subsubsection September Gnus
13858 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
13863 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
13864 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
13868 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
13869 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
13873 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
13877 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
13878 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
13881 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
13885 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
13888 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
13891 A @code{trn}-line tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
13894 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
13898 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
13899 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
13902 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
13906 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
13910 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
13914 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
13918 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
13921 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
13922 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
13925 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
13929 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
13930 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
13933 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
13936 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
13937 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
13938 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
13941 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
13945 The Gnus cache is much faster.
13948 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
13952 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-address and
13953 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13956 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
13957 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
13960 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
13961 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13964 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
13965 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
13966 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
13969 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
13970 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
13973 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
13976 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
13979 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
13980 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
13984 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
13987 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
13990 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
13991 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
13994 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
13998 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
14001 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
14004 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
14008 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
14011 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
14015 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
14018 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
14021 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
14022 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
14025 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
14026 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
14030 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
14031 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
14034 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
14038 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
14039 buffer to allow easier treatment.
14042 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
14045 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
14049 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
14053 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
14054 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
14057 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
14061 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
14062 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
14065 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
14066 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
14069 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
14073 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
14076 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
14077 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
14081 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
14084 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
14090 @subsubsection Red Gnus
14092 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
14097 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
14100 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
14101 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
14104 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
14105 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
14109 Article washing status can be displayed in the
14110 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
14113 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
14116 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
14117 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
14120 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
14124 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
14125 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}).
14128 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
14129 Server Internals}).
14132 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
14136 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
14139 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
14140 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
14143 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
14144 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
14145 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
14148 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
14149 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
14152 A way to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed when
14153 generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
14156 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
14160 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
14161 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
14164 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
14165 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
14168 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
14172 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
14175 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
14179 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
14180 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
14183 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
14184 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
14187 A new command for reading collections of documents
14188 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
14189 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
14192 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
14196 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
14197 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
14200 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
14201 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
14202 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
14205 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
14206 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
14210 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
14214 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
14218 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
14222 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
14226 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
14227 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
14230 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
14233 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-emphasize)
14239 @node Newest Features
14240 @subsection Newest Features
14243 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
14246 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
14250 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
14252 Really do unbinhexing.
14255 And much, much, much more. There is more to come than has already been
14256 implemented. (But that's always true, isn't it?)
14258 @file{<URL:http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/rgnus/todo>} is where the actual
14259 up-to-the-second todo list is located, so if you're really curious, you
14260 could point your Web browser over that-a-way.
14265 @section The Manual
14269 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
14270 either @code{texi2dvi}
14272 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
14273 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
14275 to get what you hold in your hands now.
14277 The following conventions have been used:
14282 This is a @samp{string}
14285 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
14288 This is a @file{file}
14291 This is a @code{symbol}
14295 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
14299 (setq flargnoze "yes")
14302 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
14305 (setq flumphel 'yes)
14308 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
14309 ever get them confused.
14313 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
14314 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
14315 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
14316 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
14317 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
14318 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
14319 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
14326 @section Terminology
14328 @cindex terminology
14333 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
14334 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
14335 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
14336 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
14337 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
14341 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
14342 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
14343 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
14344 not posting, and replying is not following up.
14348 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
14352 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
14357 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
14358 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
14359 is all done by the backends.
14363 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
14364 default, way of getting news.
14368 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
14369 These are groups that use different backends for getting news.
14373 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
14374 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
14378 A message that has been posted as news.
14381 @cindex mail message
14382 A message that has been mailed.
14386 A mail message or news article
14390 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
14395 The rest of an article. Everything that is not in the head is in the
14400 A line from the head of an article.
14404 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
14405 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
14409 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
14410 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
14411 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
14412 normal @sc{head} format.
14416 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
14417 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
14418 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
14419 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
14420 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
14421 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
14423 @item killed groups
14424 @cindex killed groups
14425 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
14426 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
14428 @item zombie groups
14429 @cindex zombie groups
14430 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
14433 @cindex active file
14434 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
14435 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
14436 is rather large, as you might surmise.
14439 @cindex bogus groups
14440 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
14441 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
14442 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
14446 A machine than one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
14448 @item select method
14449 @cindex select method
14450 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
14453 @item virtual server
14454 @cindex virtual server
14455 A named select method. Since a select methods defines all there is to
14456 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the things as a
14457 whole is a virtual server.
14461 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
14462 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
14465 @item ephemeral groups
14466 @cindex ephemeral groups
14467 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
14468 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
14469 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
14472 @cindex solid groups
14473 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
14474 group buffer are solid groups.
14479 @node Customization
14480 @section Customization
14481 @cindex general customization
14483 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
14484 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
14485 for some quite common situations.
14488 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
14489 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
14490 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
14491 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
14495 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
14496 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
14498 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
14499 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
14500 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
14504 @item gnus-read-active-file
14505 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
14506 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
14507 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
14508 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
14509 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
14511 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
14512 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
14513 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
14514 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
14518 @node Slow Terminal Connection
14519 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
14521 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that
14522 runs Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce the
14523 amount of data that is sent over the wires as much as possible.
14527 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
14528 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
14529 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
14530 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
14531 horizontal and vertical recentering.
14533 @item gnus-visible-headers
14534 Cut down on the headers that are included in the articles to the
14535 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
14536 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
14537 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
14539 @item gnus-article-display-hook
14540 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
14542 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
14543 '(gnus-article-hide-headers gnus-article-hide-signature
14544 gnus-article-hide-citation))
14547 @item gnus-use-full-window
14548 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
14549 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
14550 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
14551 want to read them anyway.
14553 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
14554 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
14557 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
14558 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
14559 lines, which might save some time.
14563 @node Little Disk Space
14564 @subsection Little Disk Space
14567 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
14568 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
14572 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
14573 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
14574 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
14575 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14578 @item gnus-save-killed-list
14579 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
14580 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
14581 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
14582 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
14588 @subsection Slow Machine
14589 @cindex slow machine
14591 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
14592 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
14594 Set@code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
14595 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
14597 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
14598 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
14599 summary buffer faster.
14601 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
14602 processing a bit faster.
14605 @node Troubleshooting
14606 @section Troubleshooting
14607 @cindex troubleshooting
14609 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
14617 Make sure your computer is switched on.
14620 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
14621 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
14625 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
14626 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
14627 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
14628 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
14631 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
14635 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
14636 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
14637 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
14638 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
14639 something like that.
14642 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
14645 @cindex reporting bugs
14647 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
14649 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
14650 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
14651 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
14652 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
14654 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
14655 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
14656 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
14657 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
14660 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
14661 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you send back
14662 just ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
14663 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
14664 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
14665 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
14667 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
14668 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
14669 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
14672 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
14673 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
14675 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
14676 @cindex ding mailing list
14677 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@ifi.uio.no}.
14678 Write to @samp{ding-request@@ifi.uio.no} to subscribe.
14681 @node A Programmers Guide to Gnus
14682 @section A Programmer@'s Guide to Gnus
14684 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
14685 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
14686 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
14687 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
14690 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
14691 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
14692 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
14693 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
14694 and general method of operations.
14697 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
14698 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
14699 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
14700 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
14701 * Group Info:: The group info format.
14702 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
14703 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
14707 @node Backend Interface
14708 @subsection Backend Interface
14710 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
14711 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
14712 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
14713 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
14714 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
14715 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
14717 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
14718 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
14719 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
14720 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
14721 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
14722 been opened, the function should fail.
14724 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
14725 name. Take this example:
14729 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
14730 (nntp-port-number 4324))
14733 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
14734 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
14736 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
14737 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
14738 server environments that it pulls down/pushes up when needed.
14740 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
14741 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
14742 always check whether are present before attempting to call.
14744 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
14745 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
14746 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
14747 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
14748 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
14749 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
14752 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
14753 some might be said to not be. The latter are backends that generally
14754 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
14755 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
14758 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
14761 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
14764 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
14765 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
14766 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
14767 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
14768 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
14769 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
14773 @node Required Backend Functions
14774 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
14778 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
14780 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
14781 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
14782 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
14783 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
14785 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
14786 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
14787 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
14788 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
14790 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try to fetch "extra
14791 headers, in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
14792 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
14793 article number in @code{articles}, and fill in the gaps as well. The
14794 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
14795 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
14796 number, do maximum fetches.
14798 Here's an example HEAD:
14801 221 1056 Article retrieved.
14802 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
14803 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
14804 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
14805 Subject: Re: Something very droll
14806 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
14807 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
14809 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
14810 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
14811 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
14815 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
14816 these in the data buffer.
14818 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
14822 head = error / valid-head
14823 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
14824 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
14825 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
14826 header = <text> eol
14829 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
14830 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
14834 nov-buffer = *nov-line
14835 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
14836 field = <text except TAB>
14839 For a closer explanation what should be in those fields,
14843 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
14845 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
14846 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that defines this virtual server.
14848 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
14849 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
14850 server. In fact, it should do so.
14852 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
14853 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
14856 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
14858 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
14859 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
14862 There should be no data returned.
14865 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
14867 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
14868 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
14869 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
14870 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
14872 There should be no data returned.
14875 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
14877 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
14878 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
14879 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
14880 attempt to reconnect to a server that is has lost connection to.
14882 There should be no data returned.
14885 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
14887 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
14889 There should be no data returned.
14892 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
14894 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
14895 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
14896 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
14897 it would be nice if that were possible.
14899 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
14900 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
14901 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
14902 another, and Gnus mainly request articles to be inserted directly into
14903 its article buffer.
14905 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
14906 the car is the group name the article was fetched from, and the cdr is
14907 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
14908 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
14909 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
14910 on successful article retrievement.
14913 @item (nnchoke-open-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
14915 Make @var{group} the current group.
14917 There should be no data returned by this function.
14920 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
14922 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
14923 making @var{group} the current group.
14925 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
14928 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
14931 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
14934 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
14935 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
14936 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
14937 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
14938 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
14939 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
14940 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
14941 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
14944 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
14945 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
14946 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
14950 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
14952 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
14953 a no-op on most backends.
14955 There should be no data returned.
14958 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
14960 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
14963 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
14966 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
14967 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
14970 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
14971 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
14974 active-file = *active-line
14975 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
14977 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
14980 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
14981 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
14982 (@samp{=other-group} or none of the above (@samp{y}).
14985 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
14987 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
14988 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
14989 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
14990 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
14991 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
14992 clear if the posting could not be completed.
14994 There should be no result data from this function.
14999 @node Optional Backend Functions
15000 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
15004 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
15006 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
15007 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
15008 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
15010 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
15011 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
15012 former is in the same format as the data from
15013 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
15014 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
15017 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
15021 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
15023 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
15024 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
15025 information (as is the case with virtual an imap groups). This function
15026 may alter the info in any manner it sees fit, and should return the
15027 (altered) group info. This function may alter the group info
15028 destructively, so no copying is needed before boogeying.
15030 There should be no result data from this function.
15033 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
15035 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
15036 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
15037 user is following up is news or mail. This function should return
15038 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
15039 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
15040 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
15041 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
15042 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
15044 There should be no result data from this function.
15047 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
15049 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
15050 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
15051 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
15052 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
15053 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
15055 The only use for this that I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
15056 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
15057 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
15060 There should be no result data from this function.
15063 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
15065 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
15066 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
15067 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
15068 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
15069 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
15070 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
15071 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
15073 There should be no result data from this function.
15076 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
15078 The result data from this function should be a description of
15082 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
15084 description = <text>
15087 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
15089 The result data from this function should be the description of all
15090 groups available on the server.
15093 description-buffer = *description-line
15097 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
15099 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
15100 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
15101 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
15104 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
15106 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
15108 There should be no return data.
15111 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
15113 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
15114 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
15115 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
15116 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
15117 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
15120 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
15123 There should be no result data returned.
15126 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
15129 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
15130 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
15132 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
15133 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
15134 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
15135 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
15136 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
15137 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
15139 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
15140 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
15143 The function should return a cons where the car is the group name and
15144 the cdr is the article number that the article was entered as.
15146 There should be no data returned.
15149 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
15151 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
15152 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
15153 this function in short order.
15155 The function should return a cons where the car is the group name and
15156 the cdr is the article number that the article was entered as.
15158 There should be no data returned.
15161 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
15163 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
15164 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
15166 There should be no data returned.
15169 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
15171 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
15172 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
15173 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
15175 There should be no data returned.
15178 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
15180 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
15181 articles that are in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
15183 There should be no data returned.
15188 @node Error Messaging
15189 @subsubsection Error Messaging
15191 @findex nnheader-report
15192 @findex nnheader-get-report
15193 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
15194 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
15195 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
15196 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
15197 there are many of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
15198 This function always returns @code{nil}.
15201 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
15203 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
15206 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
15207 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
15208 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
15209 takes one argument---the server symbol.
15211 Internally, these function access @var{backend}@code{-status-string}, so
15212 the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
15213 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
15216 @node Writing New Backends
15217 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
15219 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
15220 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
15221 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
15222 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
15223 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
15226 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
15227 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
15228 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
15230 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
15231 package called @code{nnoo}.
15233 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
15234 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
15241 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
15242 parameters. For instance:
15245 (nnoo-declare nndir
15249 @code{nndir} has here declared that it intends to inherit functions from
15250 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
15253 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
15254 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
15255 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
15257 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
15258 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
15259 a function in those backends.
15262 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
15263 "Where nndir will look for groups."
15264 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
15267 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
15268 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
15269 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
15271 @item nnoo-define-basics
15272 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
15276 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
15280 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
15281 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
15282 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
15284 @item nnoo-map-functions
15285 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
15286 functions from the parent backends.
15289 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
15290 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15291 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
15294 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
15295 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
15296 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
15297 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
15300 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
15301 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
15302 haven't already been defined.
15308 nnmh-request-newgroups)
15312 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
15313 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
15314 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
15319 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
15322 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
15323 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15327 (require 'nnheader)
15331 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
15333 (nnoo-declare nndir
15336 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
15337 "Where nndir will look for groups."
15338 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
15340 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
15341 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
15344 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
15345 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
15346 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
15348 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
15349 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
15351 ;;; Interface functions.
15353 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
15355 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
15356 (setq nndir-directory
15357 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
15359 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
15360 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
15361 (push `(nndir-current-group
15362 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
15364 (push `(nndir-top-directory
15365 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
15367 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
15369 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
15370 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15371 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15372 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
15373 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
15377 nnmh-status-message
15379 nnmh-request-newgroups))
15385 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
15386 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
15388 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
15389 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
15390 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
15391 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
15393 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
15394 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
15399 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
15402 The abilities can be:
15406 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
15408 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
15410 This backend supports both mail and news.
15412 This is neither a post or mail backend---it's something completely
15415 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
15416 articles and groups.
15418 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
15419 true for almost all backends.
15420 @item prompt-address
15421 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
15422 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
15423 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
15427 @node Mail-like Backends
15428 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
15430 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
15431 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
15432 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
15433 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
15436 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
15437 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
15438 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
15441 It simply just calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will a few parameters,
15442 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
15445 This function takes four parameters.
15449 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
15452 @item exit-function
15453 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
15455 @item temp-directory
15456 Where the temporary files should be stored.
15459 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
15460 performed for one group only.
15463 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
15464 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
15465 find the article number assigned to this article.
15467 The function also uses the following variables:
15468 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
15469 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
15470 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
15471 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
15475 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
15476 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
15480 @node Score File Syntax
15481 @subsection Score File Syntax
15483 Score files are meant to be easily parsable, but yet extremely
15484 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
15485 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
15487 Here's a typical score file:
15491 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
15498 BNF definition of a score file:
15501 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
15502 element = rule / atom
15503 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
15504 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
15505 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
15506 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
15508 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
15509 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
15510 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
15511 date-header = "date"
15512 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15513 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
15514 score = "nil" / <integer>
15515 date = "nil" / <natural number>
15516 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
15517 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
15518 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
15519 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
15520 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15521 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
15522 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
15523 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15524 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
15525 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
15526 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
15527 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
15528 exclude-files / read-only / touched
15529 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
15530 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
15531 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
15532 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
15533 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
15534 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
15535 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
15536 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
15537 adapt = "adapt" [ space "nil" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
15538 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
15539 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
15540 eval = "eval" space <form>
15541 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
15544 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
15547 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
15548 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
15549 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
15550 one looong line, then that's ok.
15552 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
15557 @subsection Headers
15559 Gnus uses internally a format for storing article headers that
15560 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
15561 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
15562 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
15564 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
15565 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
15566 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
15567 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
15568 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
15569 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
15570 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
15572 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
15573 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
15574 @code{xref}. There are macros for accessing and setting these
15575 slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
15576 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
15578 The @code{xref} slot is really a @code{misc} slot. Any extra info will
15585 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
15586 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
15588 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
15589 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
15590 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
15591 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
15593 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
15597 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
15600 is transformed into
15603 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
15606 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
15607 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
15610 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
15613 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
15614 is slightly tricky:
15617 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
15623 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
15626 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
15632 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
15639 and is equal to the previous range.
15641 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
15642 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
15643 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
15647 range = simple-range / normal-range
15648 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
15649 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
15650 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
15651 number *[ " " contents ]
15654 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
15655 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
15656 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
15657 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
15658 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
15663 @subsection Group Info
15665 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
15666 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
15667 describes the group.
15669 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
15670 second is a more complex one:
15673 ("no.group" 5 (1 . 54324))
15675 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
15676 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
15678 (auto-expire (to-address "ding@@ifi.uio.no")))
15681 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
15682 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
15683 normally is a small integer. The third element is a list of ranges of
15684 read articles. The fourth element is a list of lists of article marks
15685 of various kinds. The fifth element is the select method (or virtual
15686 server, if you like). The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group
15687 parameters}, which is what this section is about.
15689 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
15690 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
15691 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
15693 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
15696 info = "(" group space level space read
15697 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
15698 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
15699 group = quote <string> quote
15700 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
15702 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
15703 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
15704 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
15705 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
15708 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
15709 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
15713 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
15714 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
15718 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
15719 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
15720 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
15722 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
15723 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
15724 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
15725 Gnus, that's very useful.
15727 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
15728 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
15729 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
15730 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
15731 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
15732 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
15733 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
15734 following function:
15737 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
15741 (,function ,@@args))
15745 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
15746 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
15747 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
15750 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
15751 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
15752 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
15755 @node Various File Formats
15756 @subsection Various File Formats
15759 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
15760 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
15764 @node Active File Format
15765 @subsubsection Active File Format
15767 The active file lists all groups that are available on the server in
15768 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
15771 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
15774 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
15775 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
15776 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
15777 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
15778 no.general 1000 900 y
15781 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
15784 active = *group-line
15785 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
15786 group = <non-white-space string>
15788 high-number = <non-negative integer>
15789 low-number = <positive integer>
15790 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
15794 @node Newsgroups File Format
15795 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
15797 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
15798 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
15799 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
15802 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
15803 Here's the definition:
15807 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
15808 group = <non-white-space string>
15810 description = <string>
15814 @node Emacs for Heathens
15815 @section Emacs for Heathens
15817 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
15818 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
15819 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
15820 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
15821 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
15822 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
15823 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
15827 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
15828 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
15833 @subsection Keystrokes
15837 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
15840 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
15843 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
15844 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
15845 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
15846 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
15847 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
15848 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
15850 The shift key is normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
15851 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
15852 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
15853 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
15854 keyboards. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
15855 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
15856 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
15858 Now, us Emacs people doesn't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
15859 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
15860 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
15861 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
15862 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
15863 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
15864 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
15866 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
15867 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
15868 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
15869 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
15870 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
15876 @subsection Emacs Lisp
15878 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
15879 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
15880 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
15881 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
15883 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
15884 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
15885 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
15886 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
15887 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
15888 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
15889 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
15892 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
15893 write the following:
15896 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
15899 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
15900 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
15901 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
15904 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
15905 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
15906 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
15907 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
15908 previous ``form'', which here is a simple @code{setq} statement.
15910 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
15911 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
15912 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
15916 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
15920 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
15923 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
15924 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
15927 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
15930 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
15931 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
15934 @include gnus-faq.texi