3 @include gnus-overrides.texi
13 Copyright @copyright{} 1995--2015 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
16 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
17 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.3 or
18 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
19 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover Texts being ``A GNU Manual'',
20 and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the license
21 is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation License''.
23 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have the freedom to copy and
24 modify this GNU manual.''
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307 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
314 \thispagestyle{empty}
322 @dircategory Emacs network features
324 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
333 @title Gnus Manual (DEVELOPMENT VERSION)
335 @ifclear WEBHACKDEVEL
339 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
341 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
349 @top The Gnus Newsreader
353 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
354 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@acronym{NNTP}, local
355 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
358 @c Adjust ../Makefile.in if you change the following line:
359 This manual corresponds to Ma Gnus v0.14
374 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
375 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
377 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
378 being accused of plagiarism:
380 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
381 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
382 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
383 can even read news with it!
385 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
386 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
387 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
388 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
389 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
392 @c Adjust ../Makefile.in if you change the following line:
393 This manual corresponds to Ma Gnus v0.14
395 @heading Other related manuals
397 @item Message manual: Composing messages
398 @item Emacs-MIME: Composing messages; @acronym{MIME}-specific parts.
399 @item Sieve: Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
400 @item EasyPG: @acronym{PGP/MIME} with Gnus.
401 @item SASL: @acronym{SASL} authentication in Emacs.
407 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
408 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
409 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
410 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
411 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
412 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
413 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
414 * Searching:: Mail and News search engines.
415 * Various:: General purpose settings.
416 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
417 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, @acronym{FAQ}, History, Internals.
418 * GNU Free Documentation License:: The license for this documentation.
419 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
420 * Key Index:: Key Index.
422 @c Doesn't work right in html.
423 @c FIXME Do this in a more standard way.
425 Other related manuals
427 * Message:(message). Composing messages.
428 * Emacs-MIME:(emacs-mime). Composing messages; @acronym{MIME}-specific parts.
429 * Sieve:(sieve). Managing Sieve scripts in Emacs.
430 * EasyPG:(epa). @acronym{PGP/MIME} with Gnus.
431 * SASL:(sasl). @acronym{SASL} authentication in Emacs.
435 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
439 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
440 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
441 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
442 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
443 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
444 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
445 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
446 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
447 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
448 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
452 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
453 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
454 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
458 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
459 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
460 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
461 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
462 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
463 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
464 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
465 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
466 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
467 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
468 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
469 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
470 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
471 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
472 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
473 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
474 * Non-ASCII Group Names:: Accessing groups of non-English names.
475 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
479 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
480 * Group Mode Line Specification:: The group buffer mode line.
481 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
485 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
486 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
487 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
488 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
489 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
493 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
494 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
495 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
496 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
497 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
501 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
502 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
503 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
504 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
505 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
506 * Delayed Articles:: Send articles at a later time.
507 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
508 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
509 * Threading:: How threads are made.
510 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
511 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
512 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
513 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
514 * Sticky Articles:: Article buffers that are not reused.
515 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
516 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
517 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
518 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
519 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
520 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
521 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
522 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
523 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
524 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
525 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
526 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
527 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
528 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
529 or reselecting the current group.
530 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
531 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
532 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
533 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
535 Summary Buffer Format
537 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
538 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
539 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
540 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
544 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
545 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
547 Reply, Followup and Post
549 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
550 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
551 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
552 * Canceling and Superseding::
556 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
557 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
558 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
559 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
560 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
561 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
565 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
566 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
568 Customizing Threading
570 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
571 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
572 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
573 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over@dots{} but you were wrong!
577 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
578 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
579 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
580 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
581 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
582 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
586 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
587 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
588 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
592 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
593 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
594 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
595 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
596 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
597 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
598 * Article Button Levels:: Controlling appearance of buttons.
599 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
600 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys, Gravatars
601 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
602 * Article Miscellanea:: Various other stuff.
604 Alternative Approaches
606 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
607 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
609 Various Summary Stuff
611 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
612 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
613 * Summary Generation Commands::
614 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
618 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
619 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @acronym{MIME} before reading them.
620 * HTML:: Reading @acronym{HTML} messages.
621 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
622 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
623 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
627 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
628 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
629 * POP before SMTP:: You cannot send a mail unless you read a mail.
630 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
631 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
632 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
633 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
634 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
635 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
639 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
640 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
641 * Using IMAP:: Reading mail from @acronym{IMAP}.
642 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
643 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
644 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files.
645 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
646 * Email Based Diary:: Using mails to manage diary events in Gnus.
647 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
651 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
652 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
653 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
654 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
655 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
656 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
657 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
661 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @acronym{NNTP} server.
662 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
666 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
667 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
668 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
672 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
673 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
674 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
675 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
676 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
677 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
678 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
679 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
680 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
681 * Washing Mail:: Removing cruft from the mail you get.
682 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
683 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
684 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
688 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
689 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
690 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
692 Choosing a Mail Back End
694 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
695 * Babyl:: Babyl was used by older versions of Rmail.
696 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
697 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
698 * Maildir:: Another one-file-per-message format.
699 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
700 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
705 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
706 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
710 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
711 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
712 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
713 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
714 * The Empty Backend:: The backend that never has any news.
718 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
722 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
726 * The NNDiary Back End:: Basic setup and usage.
727 * The Gnus Diary Library:: Utility toolkit on top of nndiary.
728 * Sending or Not Sending:: A final note on sending diary messages.
732 * Diary Messages:: What makes a message valid for nndiary.
733 * Running NNDiary:: NNDiary has two modes of operation.
734 * Customizing NNDiary:: Bells and whistles.
736 The Gnus Diary Library
738 * Diary Summary Line Format:: A nicer summary buffer line format.
739 * Diary Articles Sorting:: A nicer way to sort messages.
740 * Diary Headers Generation:: Not doing it manually.
741 * Diary Group Parameters:: Not handling them manually.
745 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
746 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
747 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
748 * Agent Visuals:: Ways that the agent may effect your summary buffer.
749 * Agent as Cache:: The Agent is a big cache too.
750 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
751 * Agent Regeneration:: How to recover from lost connections and other accidents.
752 * Agent and flags:: How the Agent maintains flags.
753 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with @acronym{IMAP}.
754 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
755 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
756 * Example Setup:: An example @file{~/.gnus.el} file for offline people.
757 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
758 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
762 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
763 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
764 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
768 * Group Agent Commands:: Configure groups and fetch their contents.
769 * Summary Agent Commands:: Manually select then fetch specific articles.
770 * Server Agent Commands:: Select the servers that are supported by the agent.
774 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
775 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
776 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
777 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
778 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
779 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
780 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
781 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
782 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
783 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
784 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
785 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
786 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
787 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
788 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
789 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
793 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
794 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
795 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
799 * nnir:: Searching with various engines.
800 * nnmairix:: Searching with Mairix.
804 * What is nnir?:: What does nnir do.
805 * Basic Usage:: How to perform simple searches.
806 * Setting up nnir:: How to set up nnir.
810 * Associating Engines:: How to associate engines.
814 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
815 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
816 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
817 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
818 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
819 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
820 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
821 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
822 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
823 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
824 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
825 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
826 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
827 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
828 * Thwarting Email Spam:: Simple ways to avoid unsolicited commercial email.
829 * Spam Package:: A package for filtering and processing spam.
830 * The Gnus Registry:: A package for tracking messages by Message-ID.
831 * Other modes:: Interaction with other modes.
832 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
836 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
837 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
838 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
839 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
840 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
841 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
842 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
843 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
847 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
848 * Face:: Display a funkier, teensier colored image.
849 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were
851 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
852 * Gravatars:: Display the avatar of people you read.
853 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
857 * The problem of spam:: Some background, and some solutions
858 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
859 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
860 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
864 * Spam Package Introduction::
865 * Filtering Incoming Mail::
866 * Detecting Spam in Groups::
867 * Spam and Ham Processors::
868 * Spam Package Configuration Examples::
870 * Extending the Spam package::
871 * Spam Statistics Package::
873 Spam Statistics Package
875 * Creating a spam-stat dictionary::
876 * Splitting mail using spam-stat::
877 * Low-level interface to the spam-stat dictionary::
881 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
882 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
883 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
884 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
885 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
886 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
887 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
888 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
889 * Frequently Asked Questions:: The Gnus FAQ
893 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
894 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
895 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
896 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
897 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
898 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
899 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
900 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
904 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
905 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
906 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
907 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
908 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
909 * Oort Gnus:: It's big. It's far out. Gnus 5.10/5.11.
910 * No Gnus:: Very punny. Gnus 5.12/5.13
911 * Ma Gnus:: Celebrating 25 years of Gnus.
915 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
916 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
917 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
918 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
922 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
923 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
924 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
925 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
926 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
927 * Group Info:: The group info format.
928 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
929 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
930 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
934 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
935 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
936 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
937 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
938 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
939 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
943 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
944 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
948 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
949 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
955 @chapter Starting Gnus
958 If you haven't used Emacs much before using Gnus, read @ref{Emacs for
963 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
964 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
965 your Emacs. If not, you should customize the variable
966 @code{gnus-select-method} as described in @ref{Finding the News}. For a
967 minimal setup for posting should also customize the variables
968 @code{user-full-name} and @code{user-mail-address}.
970 @findex gnus-other-frame
971 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
972 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
973 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
975 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
976 variables in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file. This file is similar to
977 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when Gnus starts.
979 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
980 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
983 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
984 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
985 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
986 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
987 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
988 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
989 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
990 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
991 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
995 @node Finding the News
996 @section Finding the News
999 First of all, you should know that there is a special buffer called
1000 @file{*Server*} that lists all the servers Gnus knows about. You can
1001 press @kbd{^} from the Group buffer to see it. In the Server buffer,
1002 you can press @kbd{RET} on a defined server to see all the groups it
1003 serves (subscribed or not!). You can also add or delete servers, edit
1004 a foreign server's definition, agentize or de-agentize a server, and
1005 do many other neat things. @xref{Server Buffer}.
1006 @xref{Foreign Groups}. @xref{Agent Basics}.
1008 @vindex gnus-select-method
1010 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
1011 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
1012 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
1013 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
1014 secondary or foreign groups.
1016 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @acronym{NNTP} server is where
1017 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
1020 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
1023 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
1026 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
1029 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
1030 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
1031 server is running Leafnode (which is a simple, standalone private news
1032 server); in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
1034 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
1036 @cindex @acronym{NNTP} server
1037 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
1038 @env{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
1039 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
1040 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter.
1041 If that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs
1042 as an @acronym{NNTP} server. That's a long shot, though.
1044 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1046 However, if you use one @acronym{NNTP} server regularly and are just
1047 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1048 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1049 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1050 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1051 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1053 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1055 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1056 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1057 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1058 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1059 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1060 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1063 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1064 you would typically set this variable to
1067 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1072 @node The Server is Down
1073 @section The Server is Down
1074 @cindex server errors
1076 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1077 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1078 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1080 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1081 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1082 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1083 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1084 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1085 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1086 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1088 @findex gnus-no-server
1089 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1091 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1092 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1093 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1094 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1095 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1096 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1097 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1101 @section Slave Gnusae
1104 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1105 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1106 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1107 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1109 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1110 @file{.newsrc} file.
1112 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1113 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1114 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1115 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1116 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1117 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1118 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1121 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1122 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1123 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1124 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1125 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1126 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1127 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1128 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1130 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1131 information in the normal (i.e., master) @file{.newsrc} file.
1133 If the @file{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1134 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1135 file. If you answer ``yes'', the unsaved changes to the master will be
1136 incorporated into the slave. If you answer ``no'', the slave may see some
1137 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1144 @cindex subscription
1146 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1147 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1148 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1149 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1150 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1151 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1152 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1153 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1154 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1157 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1158 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1159 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1163 @node Checking New Groups
1164 @subsection Checking New Groups
1166 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing
1167 the list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of
1168 subscribed and dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method.
1169 If @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will
1170 ask the server for new groups since the last time. This is both
1171 faster and cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list
1172 of killed groups (@pxref{Group Levels}) altogether, so you may set
1173 @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to @code{nil}, which will save time both
1174 at startup, at exit, and all over. Saves disk space, too. Why isn't
1175 this the default, then? Unfortunately, not all servers support this
1178 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1179 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1180 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1181 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1182 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1183 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1184 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1185 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1186 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1187 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1188 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1190 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1191 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1192 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1193 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1194 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1195 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1198 @node Subscription Methods
1199 @subsection Subscription Methods
1201 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1202 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1203 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1205 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1206 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1208 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1212 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1213 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1214 Make all new groups zombies (@pxref{Group Levels}). This is the
1215 default. You can browse the zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either
1216 kill them all off properly (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them
1219 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1220 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1221 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1222 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1224 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1225 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1226 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1228 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1229 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1230 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1231 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1232 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1233 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1234 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1235 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1236 up. Or something like that.
1238 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1239 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1240 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1241 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1242 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1244 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1245 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1246 Kill all new groups.
1248 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1249 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1250 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1251 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1252 topic parameter that looks like
1258 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1261 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1266 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1267 A closely related variable is
1268 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1269 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1270 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1271 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1274 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1275 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1276 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1277 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1280 @node Filtering New Groups
1281 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1283 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1284 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1285 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1288 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1291 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1292 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1293 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1294 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1295 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1296 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1297 subscribing these groups.
1298 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1299 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1301 The ``options -n'' format is very simplistic. The syntax above is all
1302 that is supports: you can force-subscribe hierarchies, or you can
1303 deny hierarchies, and that's it.
1305 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1306 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1307 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1308 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1309 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1310 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1311 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1312 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1314 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1315 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1316 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1317 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous,
1318 but I thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is
1319 more meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is
1320 used more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new
1321 groups that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1322 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, @code{nnimap}, and
1323 @code{nnmaildir}) subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this
1324 variable to @code{nil}.
1326 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-categories
1327 As if that wasn't enough, @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-categories} also
1328 allows you to specify that new groups should be subscribed based on the
1329 category their select methods belong to. The default is @samp{(mail
1330 post-mail)}, meaning that all new groups from mail-like backends
1331 should be subscribed automatically.
1333 New groups that match these variables are subscribed using
1334 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1337 @node Changing Servers
1338 @section Changing Servers
1339 @cindex changing servers
1341 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @acronym{NNTP} server to another.
1342 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1343 very flaky and you want to use another.
1345 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1346 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1350 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1351 @acronym{NNTP} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1352 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1353 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1356 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1357 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1358 You can use the @kbd{M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups}
1359 command to clear out all data that you have on your native groups.
1362 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1363 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1364 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1365 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1367 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1368 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1369 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1370 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1371 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1372 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1373 cache for all groups).
1377 @section Startup Files
1378 @cindex startup files
1383 Most common Unix news readers use a shared startup file called
1384 @file{.newsrc}. This file contains all the information about what
1385 groups are subscribed, and which articles in these groups have been
1388 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1389 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1390 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1391 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1392 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1393 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1394 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1396 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1397 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1398 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1399 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1400 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1401 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1403 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1404 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1405 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1406 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1407 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1408 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1409 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1410 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1411 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which can be
1412 convenient if you use a different news reader occasionally, and you
1413 want to read a different subset of the available groups with that
1416 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1417 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1418 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1419 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1420 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1421 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1422 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1423 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1424 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1425 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1426 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1427 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1429 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1430 @vindex gnus-backup-startup-file
1431 @vindex version-control
1432 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1433 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1434 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1435 If you want to keep multiple numbered backups of this file, set
1436 @code{gnus-backup-startup-file}. It respects the same values as the
1437 @code{version-control} variable.
1439 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1440 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1441 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1442 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1443 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1444 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1445 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1446 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1447 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1448 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1451 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1452 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1454 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1455 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1458 @vindex gnus-init-file
1459 @vindex gnus-site-init-file
1460 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1461 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus-init} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1462 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1463 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1464 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1465 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1466 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1467 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1468 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order). If Emacs was invoked with
1469 the @option{-q} or @option{--no-init-file} options (@pxref{Initial
1470 Options, ,Initial Options, emacs, The Emacs Manual}), Gnus doesn't read
1471 @code{gnus-init-file}.
1476 @cindex dribble file
1479 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1480 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1481 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1482 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1483 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1486 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1487 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1490 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1491 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1492 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1494 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1495 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1496 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1497 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1498 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1499 file permissions as the @file{.newsrc} file.
1501 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1502 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1503 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1506 @node The Active File
1507 @section The Active File
1509 @cindex ignored groups
1511 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1512 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1513 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1515 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1516 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1517 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1518 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1519 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1520 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1521 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1524 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1525 @c if you set it to anything else.
1527 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1529 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1530 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1531 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1533 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1534 you actually subscribe to.
1536 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1537 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1538 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1539 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1541 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1542 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1543 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1544 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1545 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1546 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1548 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1549 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1550 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1553 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1554 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1555 @acronym{NNTP} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1556 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1557 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1558 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1560 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1561 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1563 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1564 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1566 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1567 secondary select methods.
1570 @node Startup Variables
1571 @section Startup Variables
1575 @item gnus-load-hook
1576 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1577 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1578 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1579 times you start Gnus.
1581 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1582 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1583 A hook called as the first thing when Gnus is started.
1585 @item gnus-before-resume-hook
1586 @vindex gnus-before-resume-hook
1587 A hook called as the first thing when Gnus is resumed after a suspend.
1589 @item gnus-startup-hook
1590 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1591 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1593 @item gnus-started-hook
1594 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1595 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1598 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1599 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1600 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1601 generating the group buffer.
1603 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1604 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1605 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1606 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1607 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1608 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1609 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1610 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1612 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1613 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1614 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1615 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1616 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1617 @file{~/.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @file{.emacs} instead.
1619 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1620 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1621 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1623 @item gnus-use-backend-marks
1624 @vindex gnus-use-backend-marks
1625 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will store article marks both in the
1626 @file{.newsrc.eld} file and in the backends. This will slow down
1627 group operation some.
1633 @chapter Group Buffer
1634 @cindex group buffer
1636 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1638 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1639 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1640 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1641 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1642 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1643 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1644 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1645 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1646 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1647 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1648 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1649 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1650 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1651 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1652 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1653 @c human rights at 9...
1656 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1657 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1658 long as Gnus is active.
1662 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1663 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1664 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1665 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1666 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1667 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1668 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1669 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1675 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1676 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1677 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1678 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1679 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1680 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1681 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1682 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1683 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1684 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1685 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1686 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1687 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1688 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1689 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1690 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1691 * Non-ASCII Group Names:: Accessing groups of non-English names.
1692 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1696 @node Group Buffer Format
1697 @section Group Buffer Format
1700 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1701 * Group Mode Line Specification:: The group buffer mode line.
1702 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1705 You can customize the Group Mode tool bar, see @kbd{M-x
1706 customize-apropos RET gnus-group-tool-bar}. This feature is only
1709 The tool bar icons are now (de)activated correctly depending on the
1710 cursor position. Therefore, moving around in the Group Buffer is
1711 slower. You can disable this via the variable
1712 @code{gnus-group-update-tool-bar}. Its default value depends on your
1715 @node Group Line Specification
1716 @subsection Group Line Specification
1717 @cindex group buffer format
1719 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1720 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1722 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1725 25: news.announce.newusers
1726 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1731 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1732 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1733 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1734 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1736 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1737 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1738 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1739 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1740 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C@.
1741 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1743 @samp{%M%S%5y:%B%(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1745 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1746 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1747 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1748 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1749 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1751 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1752 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1753 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1755 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1760 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1763 Whether the group is subscribed.
1766 Level of subscribedness.
1769 Number of unread articles.
1772 Number of dormant articles.
1775 Number of ticked articles.
1778 Number of read articles.
1781 Number of unseen articles.
1784 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1785 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1787 Gnus uses this estimation because the @acronym{NNTP} protocol provides
1788 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1789 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1790 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1791 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1792 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1793 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job.
1795 The nnml backend (@pxref{Mail Spool}) has a feature called ``group
1796 compaction'' which circumvents this deficiency: the idea is to
1797 renumber all articles from 1, removing all gaps between numbers, hence
1798 getting a correct total count. Other backends may support this in the
1799 future. In order to keep your total article count relatively up to
1800 date, you might want to compact your groups (or even directly your
1801 server) from time to time. @xref{Misc Group Stuff}, @xref{Server Commands}.
1804 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1807 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1816 Group comment (@pxref{Group Parameters}) or group name if there is no
1817 comment element in the group parameters.
1820 Newsgroup description. You need to read the group descriptions
1821 before these will appear, and to do that, you either have to set
1822 @code{gnus-read-active-file} or use the group buffer @kbd{M-d}
1826 @samp{m} if moderated.
1829 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1835 If the summary buffer for the group is open or not.
1841 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1845 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1848 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1849 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1850 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1851 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1852 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1855 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1857 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1861 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1864 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1868 The disk space used by the articles fetched by both the cache and
1869 agent. The value is automatically scaled to bytes(B), kilobytes(K),
1870 megabytes(M), or gigabytes(G) to minimize the column width. A format
1871 of %7F is sufficient for a fixed-width column.
1874 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1875 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1876 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1877 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1878 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1879 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1884 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1885 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1886 group, or a bogus native group.
1889 @node Group Mode Line Specification
1890 @subsection Group Mode Line Specification
1891 @cindex group mode line
1893 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1894 The mode line can be changed by setting
1895 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1896 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1900 The native news server.
1902 The native select method.
1906 @node Group Highlighting
1907 @subsection Group Highlighting
1908 @cindex highlighting
1909 @cindex group highlighting
1911 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1912 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1913 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1914 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1915 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1917 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1921 (cond (window-system
1922 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1923 (defface my-group-face-1
1924 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1925 (defface my-group-face-2
1926 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t)))
1927 "Second group face")
1928 (defface my-group-face-3
1929 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1930 (defface my-group-face-4
1931 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1932 (defface my-group-face-5
1933 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1935 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1936 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1937 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1938 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1939 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1940 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1943 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1945 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1952 The number of unread articles in the group.
1956 Whether the group is a mail group.
1958 The level of the group.
1960 The score of the group.
1962 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1964 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather,
1965 @var{max-number} minus @var{min-number} plus one.
1967 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1968 topic being inserted.
1971 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1972 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1973 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1975 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1976 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1977 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1978 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
1981 @node Group Maneuvering
1982 @section Group Maneuvering
1983 @cindex group movement
1985 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1986 expected, hopefully.
1992 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1993 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1994 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
2000 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
2001 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
2002 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
2006 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2007 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2011 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2012 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2016 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
2017 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
2018 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
2022 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
2023 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
2024 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
2027 Three commands for jumping to groups:
2033 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group