1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle Message Manual
9 This file documents Message, the Emacs message composition mode.
11 Copyright (C) 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004
12 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
16 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
17 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
18 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
19 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
20 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
21 License'' in the Emacs manual.
23 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
24 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
25 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
27 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
28 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
29 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
30 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
36 * Message: (message). Mail and news composition mode that goes with Gnus.
41 @setchapternewpage odd
46 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
49 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
57 All message composition from Gnus (both mail and news) takes place in
61 * Interface:: Setting up message buffers.
62 * Commands:: Commands you can execute in message mode buffers.
63 * Variables:: Customizing the message buffers.
64 * Compatibility:: Making Message backwards compatible.
65 * Appendices:: More technical things.
66 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
67 * Key Index:: List of Message mode keys.
70 This manual corresponds to Message v5.10.6. Message is distributed
71 with the Gnus distribution bearing the same version number as this
78 When a program (or a person) wants to respond to a message---reply,
79 follow up, forward, cancel---the program (or person) should just put
80 point in the buffer where the message is and call the required command.
81 @code{Message} will then pop up a new @code{message} mode buffer with
82 appropriate headers filled out, and the user can edit the message before
86 * New Mail Message:: Editing a brand new mail message.
87 * New News Message:: Editing a brand new news message.
88 * Reply:: Replying via mail.
89 * Wide Reply:: Responding to all people via mail.
90 * Followup:: Following up via news.
91 * Canceling News:: Canceling a news article.
92 * Superseding:: Superseding a message.
93 * Forwarding:: Forwarding a message via news or mail.
94 * Resending:: Resending a mail message.
95 * Bouncing:: Bouncing a mail message.
96 * Mailing Lists:: Send mail to mailing lists.
100 @node New Mail Message
101 @section New Mail Message
104 The @code{message-mail} command pops up a new message buffer.
106 Two optional parameters are accepted: The first will be used as the
107 @code{To} header and the second as the @code{Subject} header. If these
108 are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
111 @node New News Message
112 @section New News Message
115 The @code{message-news} command pops up a new message buffer.
117 This function accepts two optional parameters. The first will be used
118 as the @code{Newsgroups} header and the second as the @code{Subject}
119 header. If these are @code{nil}, those two headers will be empty.
125 @findex message-reply
126 The @code{message-reply} function pops up a message buffer that's a
127 reply to the message in the current buffer.
129 @vindex message-reply-to-function
130 Message uses the normal methods to determine where replies are to go
131 (@pxref{Responses}), but you can change the behavior to suit your needs
132 by fiddling with the @code{message-reply-to-function} variable.
134 If you want the replies to go to the @code{Sender} instead of the
135 @code{From}, you could do something like this:
138 (setq message-reply-to-function
140 (cond ((equal (mail-fetch-field "from") "somebody")
141 (list (cons 'To (mail-fetch-field "sender"))))
146 This function will be called narrowed to the head of the article that is
149 As you can see, this function should return a string if it has an
150 opinion as to what the To header should be. If it does not, it should
151 just return @code{nil}, and the normal methods for determining the To
154 This function can also return a list. In that case, each list element
155 should be a cons, where the @sc{car} should be the name of a header
156 (e.g. @code{Cc}) and the @sc{cdr} should be the header value
157 (e.g. @samp{larsi@@ifi.uio.no}). All these headers will be inserted into
158 the head of the outgoing mail.
164 @findex message-wide-reply
165 The @code{message-wide-reply} pops up a message buffer that's a wide
166 reply to the message in the current buffer. A @dfn{wide reply} is a
167 reply that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From}
168 (or @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
170 @vindex message-wide-reply-to-function
171 Message uses the normal methods to determine where wide replies are to go,
172 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
173 @code{message-wide-reply-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
174 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
176 @vindex message-dont-reply-to-names
177 Addresses that match the @code{message-dont-reply-to-names} regular
178 expression will be removed from the @code{Cc} header.
180 @vindex message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients
181 If @code{message-wide-reply-confirm-recipients} is non-@code{nil} you
182 will be asked to confirm that you want to reply to multiple
183 recipients. The default is @code{nil}.
188 @findex message-followup
189 The @code{message-followup} command pops up a message buffer that's a
190 followup to the message in the current buffer.
192 @vindex message-followup-to-function
193 Message uses the normal methods to determine where followups are to go,
194 but you can change the behavior to suit your needs by fiddling with the
195 @code{message-followup-to-function}. It is used in the same way as
196 @code{message-reply-to-function} (@pxref{Reply}).
198 @vindex message-use-followup-to
199 The @code{message-use-followup-to} variable says what to do about
200 @code{Followup-To} headers. If it is @code{use}, always use the value.
201 If it is @code{ask} (which is the default), ask whether to use the
202 value. If it is @code{t}, use the value unless it is @samp{poster}. If
203 it is @code{nil}, don't use the value.
207 @section Canceling News
209 @findex message-cancel-news
210 The @code{message-cancel-news} command cancels the article in the
213 @vindex message-cancel-message
214 The value of @code{message-cancel-message} is inserted in the body of
215 the cancel message. The default is @samp{I am canceling my own
219 @vindex message-insert-canlock
221 When Message posts news messages, it inserts @code{Cancel-Lock}
222 headers by default. This is a cryptographic header that ensures that
223 only you can cancel your own messages, which is nice. The downside
224 is that if you lose your @file{.emacs} file (which is where Gnus
225 stores the secret cancel lock password (which is generated
226 automatically the first time you use this feature)), you won't be
227 able to cancel your message.
229 Whether to insert the header or not is controlled by the
230 @code{message-insert-canlock} variable.
232 Not many news servers respect the @code{Cancel-Lock} header yet, but
233 this is expected to change in the future.
239 @findex message-supersede
240 The @code{message-supersede} command pops up a message buffer that will
241 supersede the message in the current buffer.
243 @vindex message-ignored-supersedes-headers
244 Headers matching the @code{message-ignored-supersedes-headers} are
245 removed before popping up the new message buffer. The default is@*
246 @samp{^Path:\\|^Date\\|^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^Lines:\\|@*
247 ^Received:\\|^X-From-Line:\\|Return-Path:\\|^Supersedes:}.
254 @findex message-forward
255 The @code{message-forward} command pops up a message buffer to forward
256 the message in the current buffer. If given a prefix, forward using
260 @item message-forward-ignored-headers
261 @vindex message-forward-ignored-headers
262 All headers that match this regexp will be deleted when forwarding a message.
264 @item message-make-forward-subject-function
265 @vindex message-make-forward-subject-function
266 A list of functions that are called to generate a subject header for
267 forwarded messages. The subject generated by the previous function is
268 passed into each successive function.
270 The provided functions are:
273 @item message-forward-subject-author-subject
274 @findex message-forward-subject-author-subject
275 Source of article (author or newsgroup), in brackets followed by the
278 @item message-forward-subject-fwd
279 Subject of article with @samp{Fwd:} prepended to it.
282 @item message-wash-forwarded-subjects
283 @vindex message-wash-forwarded-subjects
284 If this variable is @code{t}, the subjects of forwarded messages have
285 the evidence of previous forwards (such as @samp{Fwd:}, @samp{Re:},
286 @samp{(fwd)}) removed before the new subject is
287 constructed. The default value is @code{nil}.
289 @item message-forward-as-mime
290 @vindex message-forward-as-mime
291 If this variable is @code{t} (the default), forwarded messages are
292 included as inline @acronym{MIME} RFC822 parts. If it's @code{nil}, forwarded
293 messages will just be copied inline to the new message, like previous,
294 non @acronym{MIME}-savvy versions of Gnus would do.
296 @item message-forward-before-signature
297 @vindex message-forward-before-signature
298 If non-@code{nil}, put forwarded message before signature, else after.
306 @findex message-resend
307 The @code{message-resend} command will prompt the user for an address
308 and resend the message in the current buffer to that address.
310 @vindex message-ignored-resent-headers
311 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-resent-headers} regexp will
312 be removed before sending the message. The default is
313 @samp{^Return-receipt}.
319 @findex message-bounce
320 The @code{message-bounce} command will, if the current buffer contains a
321 bounced mail message, pop up a message buffer stripped of the bounce
322 information. A @dfn{bounced message} is typically a mail you've sent
323 out that has been returned by some @code{mailer-daemon} as
326 @vindex message-ignored-bounced-headers
327 Headers that match the @code{message-ignored-bounced-headers} regexp
328 will be removed before popping up the buffer. The default is
329 @samp{^\\(Received\\|Return-Path\\):}.
333 @section Mailing Lists
335 @cindex Mail-Followup-To
336 Sometimes while posting to mailing lists, the poster needs to direct
337 followups to the post to specific places. The Mail-Followup-To (MFT)
338 was created to enable just this. Two example scenarios where this is
343 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
344 sent to just the list, and not the poster as well. This will happen
345 if the poster is already subscribed to the list.
348 A mailing list poster can use MFT to express that responses should be
349 sent to the list and the poster as well. This will happen if the poster
350 is not subscribed to the list.
353 If a message is posted to several mailing lists, MFT may also be used
354 to direct the following discussion to one list only, because
355 discussions that are spread over several lists tend to be fragmented
356 and very difficult to follow.
360 Gnus honors the MFT header in other's messages (i.e. while following
361 up to someone else's post) and also provides support for generating
362 sensible MFT headers for outgoing messages as well.
365 @c * Honoring an MFT post:: What to do when one already exists
366 @c * Composing with a MFT header:: Creating one from scratch.
369 @c @node Composing with a MFT header
370 @subsection Composing a correct MFT header automagically
372 The first step in getting Gnus to automagically generate a MFT header
373 in posts you make is to give Gnus a list of the mailing lists
374 addresses you are subscribed to. You can do this in more than one
375 way. The following variables would come in handy.
379 @vindex message-subscribed-addresses
380 @item message-subscribed-addresses
381 This should be a list of addresses the user is subscribed to. Its
382 default value is @code{nil}. Example:
384 (setq message-subscribed-addresses
385 '("ding@@gnus.org" "bing@@noose.org"))
388 @vindex message-subscribed-regexps
389 @item message-subscribed-regexps
390 This should be a list of regexps denoting the addresses of mailing
391 lists subscribed to. Default value is @code{nil}. Example: If you
392 want to achieve the same result as above:
394 (setq message-subscribed-regexps
395 '("\\(ding@@gnus\\)\\|\\(bing@@noose\\)\\.org")
398 @vindex message-subscribed-address-functions
399 @item message-subscribed-address-functions
400 This can be a list of functions to be called (one at a time!!) to
401 determine the value of MFT headers. It is advisable that these
402 functions not take any arguments. Default value is @code{nil}.
404 There is a pre-defined function in Gnus that is a good candidate for
405 this variable. @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses} is a function
406 that returns a list of addresses corresponding to the groups that have
407 the @code{subscribed} (@pxref{Group Parameters, ,Group Parameters,
408 gnus, The Gnus Manual}) group parameter set to a non-@code{nil} value.
409 This is how you would do it.
412 (setq message-subscribed-address-functions
413 '(gnus-find-subscribed-addresses))
416 @vindex message-subscribed-address-file
417 @item message-subscribed-address-file
418 You might be one organised human freak and have a list of addresses of
419 all subscribed mailing lists in a separate file! Then you can just
420 set this variable to the name of the file and life would be good.
424 You can use one or more of the above variables. All their values are
425 ``added'' in some way that works :-)
427 Now you are all set. Just start composing a message as you normally do.
428 And just send it; as always. Just before the message is sent out, Gnus'
429 MFT generation thingy kicks in and checks if the message already has a
430 MFT field. If there is one, it is left alone. (Except if it's empty -
431 in that case, the field is removed and is not replaced with an
432 automatically generated one. This lets you disable MFT generation on a
433 per-message basis.) If there is none, then the list of recipient
434 addresses (in the To: and Cc: headers) is checked to see if one of them
435 is a list address you are subscribed to. If none of them is a list
436 address, then no MFT is generated; otherwise, a MFT is added to the
437 other headers and set to the value of all addresses in To: and Cc:
440 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
442 @findex message-goto-mail-followup-to
443 Hm. ``So'', you ask, ``what if I send an email to a list I am not
444 subscribed to? I want my MFT to say that I want an extra copy.'' (This
445 is supposed to be interpreted by others the same way as if there were no
446 MFT, but you can use an explicit MFT to override someone else's
447 to-address group parameter.) The function
448 @code{message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to} might come in
449 handy. It is bound to @kbd{C-c C-f C-a} by default. In any case, you
450 can insert a MFT of your own choice; @kbd{C-c C-f C-m}
451 (@code{message-goto-mail-followup-to}) will help you get started.
453 @c @node Honoring an MFT post
454 @subsection Honoring an MFT post
456 @vindex message-use-mail-followup-to
457 When you followup to a post on a mailing list, and the post has a MFT
458 header, Gnus' action will depend on the value of the variable
459 @code{message-use-mail-followup-to}. This variable can be one of:
463 Always honor MFTs. The To: and Cc: headers in your followup will be
464 derived from the MFT header of the original post. This is the default.
467 Always dishonor MFTs (just ignore the darned thing)
470 Gnus will prompt you for an action.
474 It is considered good netiquette to honor MFT, as it is assumed the
475 fellow who posted a message knows where the followups need to go
482 * Buffer Entry:: Commands after entering a Message buffer.
483 * Header Commands:: Commands for moving headers or changing headers.
484 * Movement:: Moving around in message buffers.
485 * Insertion:: Inserting things into message buffers.
486 * MIME:: @acronym{MIME} considerations.
487 * IDNA:: Non-@acronym{ASCII} domain name considerations.
488 * Security:: Signing and encrypting messages.
489 * Various Commands:: Various things.
490 * Sending:: Actually sending the message.
491 * Mail Aliases:: How to use mail aliases.
492 * Spelling:: Having Emacs check your spelling.
497 @section Buffer Entry
501 You most often end up in a Message buffer when responding to some other
502 message of some sort. Message does lots of handling of quoted text, and
503 may remove signatures, reformat the text, or the like---depending on
504 which used settings you're using. Message usually gets things right,
505 but sometimes it stumbles. To help the user unwind these stumblings,
506 Message sets the undo boundary before each major automatic action it
507 takes. If you press the undo key (usually located at @kbd{C-_}) a few
508 times, you will get back the un-edited message you're responding to.
511 @node Header Commands
512 @section Header Commands
514 @subsection Commands for moving to headers
516 These following commands move to the header in question. If it doesn't
517 exist, it will be inserted.
523 @findex describe-mode
524 Describe the message mode.
528 @findex message-goto-to
529 Go to the @code{To} header (@code{message-goto-to}).
533 @findex message-goto-from
534 Go to the @code{From} header (@code{message-goto-from}). (The ``o''
535 in the key binding is for Originator.)
539 @findex message-goto-bcc
540 Go to the @code{Bcc} header (@code{message-goto-bcc}).
544 @findex message-goto-fcc
545 Go to the @code{Fcc} header (@code{message-goto-fcc}).
549 @findex message-goto-cc
550 Go to the @code{Cc} header (@code{message-goto-cc}).
554 @findex message-goto-subject
555 Go to the @code{Subject} header (@code{message-goto-subject}).
559 @findex message-goto-reply-to
560 Go to the @code{Reply-To} header (@code{message-goto-reply-to}).
564 @findex message-goto-newsgroups
565 Go to the @code{Newsgroups} header (@code{message-goto-newsgroups}).
569 @findex message-goto-distribution
570 Go to the @code{Distribution} header (@code{message-goto-distribution}).
574 @findex message-goto-followup-to
575 Go to the @code{Followup-To} header (@code{message-goto-followup-to}).
579 @findex message-goto-keywords
580 Go to the @code{Keywords} header (@code{message-goto-keywords}).
584 @findex message-goto-summary
585 Go to the @code{Summary} header (@code{message-goto-summary}).
589 @findex message-insert-or-toggle-importance
590 This inserts the @samp{Importance:} header with a value of
591 @samp{high}. This header is used to signal the importance of the
592 message to the receiver. If the header is already present in the
593 buffer, it cycles between the three valid values according to RFC
594 1376: @samp{low}, @samp{normal} and @samp{high}.
598 @findex message-generate-unsubscribed-mail-followup-to
599 Insert a reasonable @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
600 (@pxref{Mailing Lists}) in a post to an
601 unsubscribed list. When making original posts to a mailing list you are
602 not subscribed to, you have to type in a @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header
603 by hand. The contents, usually, are the addresses of the list and your
604 own address. This function inserts such a header automatically. It
605 fetches the contents of the @samp{To:} header in the current mail
606 buffer, and appends the current @code{user-mail-address}.
608 If the optional argument @code{include-cc} is non-@code{nil}, the
609 addresses in the @samp{Cc:} header are also put into the
610 @samp{Mail-Followup-To:} header.
614 @subsection Commands to change headers
620 @findex message-sort-headers
621 @vindex message-header-format-alist
622 Sort headers according to @code{message-header-format-alist}
623 (@code{message-sort-headers}).
627 @findex message-insert-to
628 Insert a @code{To} header that contains the @code{Reply-To} or
629 @code{From} header of the message you're following up
630 (@code{message-insert-to}).
634 @findex message-insert-newsgroups
635 Insert a @code{Newsgroups} header that reflects the @code{Followup-To}
636 or @code{Newsgroups} header of the article you're replying to
637 (@code{message-insert-newsgroups}).
641 @findex message-to-list-only
642 Send a message to the list only. Remove all addresses but the list
643 address from @code{To:} and @code{Cc:} headers.
647 @findex message-insert-disposition-notification-to
648 Insert a request for a disposition
649 notification. (@code{message-insert-disposition-notification-to}).
650 This means that if the recipient support RFC 2298 she might send you a
651 notification that she received the message.
653 @item M-x message-insert-importance-high
654 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-high
655 @findex message-insert-importance-high
657 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{high},
658 deleting headers if necessary.
660 @item M-x message-insert-importance-low
661 @kindex M-x message-insert-importance-low
662 @findex message-insert-importance-low
664 Insert an @samp{Importance} header with a value of @samp{low}, deleting
665 headers if necessary.
669 @findex message-change-subject
671 Change the current @samp{Subject} header. Ask for new @samp{Subject}
672 header and append @samp{(was: <Old Subject>)}. The old subject can be
673 stripped on replying, see @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query}
674 (@pxref{Message Headers}).
678 @findex message-cross-post-followup-to
679 @vindex message-cross-post-default
682 Ask for an additional @samp{Newsgroups} and @samp{FollowUp-To} for a
683 cross-post. @code{message-cross-post-followup-to} mangles
684 @samp{FollowUp-To} and @samp{Newsgroups} header to point to group.
685 If @code{message-cross-post-default} is @code{nil} or if called with a
686 prefix-argument @samp{Follow-Up} is set, but the message is not
691 @findex message-reduce-to-to-cc
692 Replace contents of @samp{To} header with contents of @samp{Cc} or
697 @findex message-insert-wide-reply
698 Insert @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers as if you were doing a wide
703 @findex message-add-archive-header
704 @vindex message-archive-header
705 @vindex message-archive-note
707 Insert @samp{X-No-Archive: Yes} in the header and a note in the body.
708 The header and the note can be customized using
709 @code{message-archive-header} and @code{message-archive-note}. When
710 called with a prefix argument, ask for a text to insert. If you don't
711 want the note in the body, set @code{message-archive-note} to
723 @findex message-goto-body
724 Move to the beginning of the body of the message
725 (@code{message-goto-body}).
729 @findex message-goto-signature
730 Move to the signature of the message (@code{message-goto-signature}).
734 @findex message-beginning-of-line
735 @vindex message-beginning-of-line
736 If at beginning of header value, go to beginning of line, else go to
737 beginning of header value. (The header value comes after the header
738 name and the colon.) This behaviour can be disabled by toggling
739 the variable @code{message-beginning-of-line}.
751 @findex message-yank-original
752 Yank the message that's being replied to into the message buffer
753 (@code{message-yank-original}).
757 @findex message-yank-buffer
758 Prompt for a buffer name and yank the contents of that buffer into the
759 message buffer (@code{message-yank-buffer}).
763 @findex message-fill-yanked-message
764 Fill the yanked message (@code{message-fill-yanked-message}). Warning:
765 Can severely mess up the yanked text if its quoting conventions are
766 strange. You'll quickly get a feel for when it's safe, though. Anyway,
767 just remember that @kbd{C-x u} (@code{undo}) is available and you'll be
772 @findex message-insert-signature
773 Insert a signature at the end of the buffer
774 (@code{message-insert-signature}).
778 @findex message-insert-headers
779 Insert the message headers (@code{message-insert-headers}).
783 @findex message-mark-inserted-region
784 Mark some region in the current article with enclosing tags.
785 See @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
789 @findex message-mark-insert-file
790 Insert a file in the current article with enclosing tags.
791 See @code{message-mark-insert-begin} and @code{message-mark-insert-end}.
803 Message is a @acronym{MIME}-compliant posting agent. The user generally
804 doesn't have to do anything to make the @acronym{MIME} happen---Message will
805 automatically add the @code{Content-Type} and
806 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} headers.
808 The most typical thing users want to use the multipart things in
809 @acronym{MIME} for is to add ``attachments'' to mail they send out.
810 This can be done with the @kbd{C-c C-a} command, which will prompt for
811 a file name and a @acronym{MIME} type. If your Emacs supports drag
812 and drop, you can also drop the file in the Message buffer.
814 You can also create arbitrarily complex multiparts using the @acronym{MML}
815 language (@pxref{Composing, , Composing, emacs-mime, The Emacs MIME
821 @cindex internationalized domain names
822 @cindex non-ascii domain names
824 Message is a @acronym{IDNA}-compliant posting agent. The user
825 generally doesn't have to do anything to make the @acronym{IDNA}
826 happen---Message will encode non-@acronym{ASCII} domain names in @code{From},
827 @code{To}, and @code{Cc} headers automatically.
829 Until @acronym{IDNA} becomes more well known, Message queries you
830 whether @acronym{IDNA} encoding of the domain name really should
831 occur. Some users might not be aware that domain names can contain
832 non-@acronym{ASCII} now, so this gives them a safety net if they accidently
833 typed a non-@acronym{ASCII} domain name.
835 @vindex message-use-idna
836 The @code{message-use-idna} variable control whether @acronym{IDNA} is
837 used. If the variable is @code{nil} no @acronym{IDNA} encoding will
838 ever happen, if it is set to the symbol @code{ask} the user will be
839 queried (the default), and if set to @code{t} @acronym{IDNA} encoding
840 happens automatically.
842 @findex message-idna-to-ascii-rhs
843 If you want to experiment with the @acronym{IDNA} encoding, you can
844 invoke @kbd{M-x message-idna-to-ascii-rhs RET} in the message buffer
845 to have the non-@acronym{ASCII} domain names encoded while you edit the message.
847 Note that you must have @uref{http://www.gnu.org/software/libidn/, GNU
848 Libidn} installed in order to use this functionality.
860 Using the @acronym{MML} language, Message is able to create digitally
861 signed and digitally encrypted messages. Message (or rather
862 @acronym{MML}) currently support @acronym{PGP} (RFC 1991),
863 @acronym{PGP/MIME} (RFC 2015/3156) and @acronym{S/MIME}. Instructing
864 @acronym{MML} to perform security operations on a @acronym{MIME} part is
865 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c C-m
866 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
872 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
874 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
878 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
880 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP}.
884 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgpmime
886 Digitally sign current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
890 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
892 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{S/MIME}.
896 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
898 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP}.
902 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
904 Digitally encrypt current message using @acronym{PGP/MIME}.
908 @findex mml-unsecure-message
909 Remove security related @acronym{MML} tags from message.
913 These commands do not immediately sign or encrypt the message, they
914 merely insert the proper @acronym{MML} secure tag to instruct the
915 @acronym{MML} engine to perform that operation when the message is
916 actually sent. They may perform other operations too, such as locating
917 and retrieving a @acronym{S/MIME} certificate of the person you wish to
918 send encrypted mail to. When the mml parsing engine converts your
919 @acronym{MML} into a properly encoded @acronym{MIME} message, the secure
920 tag will be replaced with either a part or a multipart tag. If your
921 message contains other mml parts, a multipart tag will be used; if no
922 other parts are present in your message a single part tag will be used.
923 This way, message mode will do the Right Thing (TM) with
924 signed/encrypted multipart messages.
926 Since signing and especially encryption often is used when sensitive
927 information is sent, you may want to have some way to ensure that your
928 mail is actually signed or encrypted. After invoking the above
929 sign/encrypt commands, it is possible to preview the raw article by
930 using @kbd{C-u C-c RET P} (@code{mml-preview}). Then you can
931 verify that your long rant about what your ex-significant other or
932 whomever actually did with that funny looking person at that strange
933 party the other night, actually will be sent encrypted.
935 @emph{Note!} Neither @acronym{PGP/MIME} nor @acronym{S/MIME} encrypt/signs
936 RFC822 headers. They only operate on the @acronym{MIME} object. Keep this
937 in mind before sending mail with a sensitive Subject line.
939 By default, when encrypting a message, Gnus will use the
940 ``signencrypt'' mode, which means the message is both signed and
941 encrypted. If you would like to disable this for a particular
942 message, give the @code{mml-secure-message-encrypt-*} command a prefix
943 argument, e.g., @kbd{C-u C-c C-m c p}.
945 Actually using the security commands above is not very difficult. At
946 least not compared with making sure all involved programs talk with each
947 other properly. Thus, we now describe what external libraries or
948 programs are required to make things work, and some small general hints.
950 @subsection Using S/MIME
952 @emph{Note!} This section assume you have a basic familiarity with
953 modern cryptography, @acronym{S/MIME}, various PKCS standards, OpenSSL and
956 The @acronym{S/MIME} support in Message (and @acronym{MML}) require
957 OpenSSL. OpenSSL performs the actual @acronym{S/MIME} sign/encrypt
958 operations. OpenSSL can be found at @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}.
959 OpenSSL 0.9.6 and later should work. Version 0.9.5a cannot extract mail
960 addresses from certificates, and it insert a spurious CR character into
961 @acronym{MIME} separators so you may wish to avoid it if you would like
962 to avoid being regarded as someone who send strange mail. (Although by
963 sending @acronym{S/MIME} messages you've probably already lost that
966 To be able to send encrypted mail, a personal certificate is not
967 required. Message (@acronym{MML}) need a certificate for the person to whom you
968 wish to communicate with though. You're asked for this when you type
969 @kbd{C-c C-m c s}. Currently there are two ways to retrieve this
970 certificate, from a local file or from DNS. If you chose a local
971 file, it need to contain a X.509 certificate in @acronym{PEM} format.
972 If you chose DNS, you're asked for the domain name where the
973 certificate is stored, the default is a good guess. To my belief,
974 Message (@acronym{MML}) is the first mail agent in the world to support
975 retrieving @acronym{S/MIME} certificates from DNS, so you're not
976 likely to find very many certificates out there. At least there
977 should be one, stored at the domain @code{simon.josefsson.org}. LDAP
978 is a more popular method of distributing certificates, support for it
979 is planned. (Meanwhile, you can use @code{ldapsearch} from the
980 command line to retrieve a certificate into a file and use it.)
982 As for signing messages, OpenSSL can't perform signing operations
983 without some kind of configuration. Especially, you need to tell it
984 where your private key and your certificate is stored. @acronym{MML}
985 uses an Emacs interface to OpenSSL, aptly named @code{smime.el}, and it
986 contain a @code{custom} group used for this configuration. So, try
987 @kbd{M-x customize-group RET smime RET} and look around.
989 Currently there is no support for talking to a CA (or RA) to create
990 your own certificate. None is planned either. You need to do this
991 manually with OpenSSL or using some other program. I used Netscape
992 and got a free @acronym{S/MIME} certificate from one of the big CA's on the
993 net. Netscape is able to export your private key and certificate in
994 PKCS #12 format. Use OpenSSL to convert this into a plain X.509
995 certificate in PEM format as follows.
998 $ openssl pkcs12 -in ns.p12 -clcerts -nodes > key+cert.pem
1001 The @file{key+cert.pem} file should be pointed to from the
1002 @code{smime-keys} variable. You should now be able to send signed mail.
1004 @emph{Note!} Your private key is now stored unencrypted in the file,
1005 so take care in handling it. Storing encrypted keys on the disk are
1006 supported, and Gnus will ask you for a passphrase before invoking
1007 OpenSSL. Read the OpenSSL documentation for how to achieve this. If
1008 you use unencrypted keys (e.g., if they are on a secure storage, or if
1009 you are on a secure single user machine) simply press @code{RET} at
1010 the passphrase prompt.
1012 @subsection Using PGP/MIME
1014 @acronym{PGP/MIME} requires an external OpenPGP implementation, such
1015 as @uref{http://www.gnupg.org/, GNU Privacy Guard}. Pre-OpenPGP
1016 implementations such as PGP 2.x and PGP 5.x are also supported. One
1017 Emacs interface to the PGP implementations, PGG (@pxref{Top, ,PGG,
1018 pgg, PGG Manual}), is included, but Mailcrypt and Florian Weimer's
1019 @code{gpg.el} are also supported.
1021 @vindex gpg-temp-directory
1022 Note, if you are using the @code{gpg.el} you must make sure that the
1023 directory specified by @code{gpg-temp-directory} have permissions
1026 Creating your own key is described in detail in the documentation of
1027 your PGP implementation, so we refer to it.
1029 If you have imported your old PGP 2.x key into GnuPG, and want to send
1030 signed and encrypted messages to your fellow PGP 2.x users, you'll
1031 discover that the receiver cannot understand what you send. One
1032 solution is to use PGP 2.x instead (i.e., if you use @code{pgg}, set
1033 @code{pgg-default-scheme} to @code{pgp}). If you do want to use
1034 GnuPG, you can use a compatibility script called @code{gpg-2comp}
1036 @uref{http://muppet.faveve.uni-stuttgart.de/~gero/gpg-2comp/}. You
1037 could also convince your fellow PGP 2.x users to convert to GnuPG.
1038 @vindex mml-signencrypt-style-alist
1039 As a final workaround, you can make the sign and encryption work in
1040 two steps; separately sign, then encrypt a message. If you would like
1041 to change this behavior you can customize the
1042 @code{mml-signencrypt-style-alist} variable. For example:
1045 (setq mml-signencrypt-style-alist '(("smime" separate)
1047 ("pgpauto" separate)
1048 ("pgpmime" separate)))
1051 This causes to sign and encrypt in two passes, thus generating a
1052 message that can be understood by PGP version 2.
1054 (Refer to @uref{http://www.gnupg.org/gph/en/pgp2x.html} for more
1055 information about the problem.)
1057 @node Various Commands
1058 @section Various Commands
1064 @findex message-caesar-buffer-body
1065 Caesar rotate (aka. rot13) the current message
1066 (@code{message-caesar-buffer-body}). If narrowing is in effect, just
1067 rotate the visible portion of the buffer. A numerical prefix says how
1068 many places to rotate the text. The default is 13.
1072 @findex message-elide-region
1073 @vindex message-elide-ellipsis
1074 Elide the text between point and mark (@code{message-elide-region}).
1075 The text is killed and replaced with the contents of the variable
1076 @code{message-elide-ellipsis}. The default value is to use an ellipsis
1081 @findex message-kill-address
1082 Kill the address under point.
1086 @findex message-kill-to-signature
1087 Kill all the text up to the signature, or if that's missing, up to the
1088 end of the message (@code{message-kill-to-signature}).
1092 @findex message-delete-not-region
1093 Delete all text in the body of the message that is outside the region
1094 (@code{message-delete-not-region}).
1098 @findex message-newline-and-reformat
1099 Insert four newlines, and then reformat if inside quoted text.
1104 > This is some quoted text. And here's more quoted text.
1107 If point is before @samp{And} and you press @kbd{M-RET}, you'll get:
1110 > This is some quoted text.
1114 > And here's more quoted text.
1117 @samp{*} says where point will be placed.
1121 @findex message-rename-buffer
1122 Rename the buffer (@code{message-rename-buffer}). If given a prefix,
1123 prompt for a new buffer name.
1128 @vindex message-tab-body-function
1129 If non-@code{nil} execute the function specified in
1130 @code{message-tab-body-function}. Otherwise use the function bound to
1131 @kbd{TAB} in @code{text-mode-map} or @code{global-map}.
1142 @findex message-send-and-exit
1143 Send the message and bury the current buffer
1144 (@code{message-send-and-exit}).
1148 @findex message-send
1149 Send the message (@code{message-send}).
1153 @findex message-dont-send
1154 Bury the message buffer and exit (@code{message-dont-send}).
1158 @findex message-kill-buffer
1159 Kill the message buffer and exit (@code{message-kill-buffer}).
1166 @section Mail Aliases
1167 @cindex mail aliases
1170 @vindex message-mail-alias-type
1171 The @code{message-mail-alias-type} variable controls what type of mail
1172 alias expansion to use. Currently only one form is supported---Message
1173 uses @code{mailabbrev} to handle mail aliases. If this variable is
1174 @code{nil}, no mail alias expansion will be performed.
1176 @code{mailabbrev} works by parsing the @file{/etc/mailrc} and
1177 @file{~/.mailrc} files. These files look like:
1180 alias lmi "Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@ifi.uio.no>"
1181 alias ding "ding@@ifi.uio.no (ding mailing list)"
1184 After adding lines like this to your @file{~/.mailrc} file, you should
1185 be able to just write @samp{lmi} in the @code{To} or @code{Cc} (and so
1186 on) headers and press @kbd{SPC} to expand the alias.
1188 No expansion will be performed upon sending of the message---all
1189 expansions have to be done explicitly.
1195 @findex ispell-message
1197 There are two popular ways to have Emacs spell-check your messages:
1198 @code{ispell} and @code{flyspell}. @code{ispell} is the older and
1199 probably more popular package. You typically first write the message,
1200 and then run the entire thing through @code{ispell} and fix all the
1201 typos. To have this happen automatically when you send a message, put
1202 something like the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
1205 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
1208 @vindex ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1209 If you're in the habit of writing in different languages, this can be
1210 controlled by the @code{ispell-message-dictionary-alist} variable:
1213 (setq ispell-message-dictionary-alist
1214 '(("^Newsgroups:.*\\bde\\." . "deutsch8")
1215 (".*" . "default")))
1218 @code{ispell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1221 The other popular method is using @code{flyspell}. This package checks
1222 your spelling while you're writing, and marks any mis-spelled words in
1225 To use @code{flyspell}, put something like the following in your
1229 (defun my-message-setup-routine ()
1231 (add-hook 'message-setup-hook 'my-message-setup-routine)
1234 @code{flyspell} depends on having the external @samp{ispell} command
1242 * Message Headers:: General message header stuff.
1243 * Mail Headers:: Customizing mail headers.
1244 * Mail Variables:: Other mail variables.
1245 * News Headers:: Customizing news headers.
1246 * News Variables:: Other news variables.
1247 * Insertion Variables:: Customizing how things are inserted.
1248 * Various Message Variables:: Other message variables.
1249 * Sending Variables:: Variables for sending.
1250 * Message Buffers:: How Message names its buffers.
1251 * Message Actions:: Actions to be performed when exiting.
1255 @node Message Headers
1256 @section Message Headers
1258 Message is quite aggressive on the message generation front. It has to
1259 be---it's a combined news and mail agent. To be able to send combined
1260 messages, it has to generate all headers itself (instead of letting the
1261 mail/news system do it) to ensure that mail and news copies of messages
1262 look sufficiently similar.
1266 @item message-generate-headers-first
1267 @vindex message-generate-headers-first
1268 If @code{t}, generate all required headers before starting to
1269 compose the message. This can also be a list of headers to generate:
1272 (setq message-generate-headers-first
1276 @vindex message-required-headers
1277 The variables @code{message-required-headers},
1278 @code{message-required-mail-headers} and
1279 @code{message-required-news-headers} specify which headers are
1282 Note that some headers will be removed and re-generated before posting,
1283 because of the variable @code{message-deletable-headers} (see below).
1285 @item message-draft-headers
1286 @vindex message-draft-headers
1287 When running Message from Gnus, the message buffers are associated
1288 with a draft group. @code{message-draft-headers} says which headers
1289 should be generated when a draft is written to the draft group.
1291 @item message-from-style
1292 @vindex message-from-style
1293 Specifies how @code{From} headers should look. There are four valid
1298 Just the address---@samp{king@@grassland.com}.
1301 @samp{king@@grassland.com (Elvis Parsley)}.
1304 @samp{Elvis Parsley <king@@grassland.com>}.
1307 Look like @code{angles} if that doesn't require quoting, and
1308 @code{parens} if it does. If even @code{parens} requires quoting, use
1309 @code{angles} anyway.
1313 @item message-deletable-headers
1314 @vindex message-deletable-headers
1315 Headers in this list that were previously generated by Message will be
1316 deleted before posting. Let's say you post an article. Then you decide
1317 to post it again to some other group, you naughty boy, so you jump back
1318 to the @code{*post-buf*} buffer, edit the @code{Newsgroups} line, and
1319 ship it off again. By default, this variable makes sure that the old
1320 generated @code{Message-ID} is deleted, and a new one generated. If
1321 this isn't done, the entire empire would probably crumble, anarchy would
1322 prevail, and cats would start walking on two legs and rule the world.
1325 @item message-default-headers
1326 @vindex message-default-headers
1327 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1330 @item message-subject-re-regexp
1331 @vindex message-subject-re-regexp
1335 Responses to messages have subjects that start with @samp{Re: }. This
1336 is @emph{not} an abbreviation of the English word ``response'', but is
1337 Latin, and means ``in response to''. Some illiterate nincompoops have
1338 failed to grasp this fact, and have ``internationalized'' their software
1339 to use abominations like @samp{Aw: } (``antwort'') or @samp{Sv: }
1340 (``svar'') instead, which is meaningless and evil. However, you may
1341 have to deal with users that use these evil tools, in which case you may
1342 set this variable to a regexp that matches these prefixes. Myself, I
1343 just throw away non-compliant mail.
1345 Here's an example of a value to deal with these headers when
1346 responding to a message:
1349 (setq message-subject-re-regexp
1354 "[Aa][Nn][Tt][Ww]\\.?\\|" ; antw
1356 "[Ff][Ww][Dd]?\\|" ; fwd
1357 "[Oo][Dd][Pp]\\|" ; odp
1359 "[Rr][\311\351][Ff]\\.?\\|" ; ref
1362 "\\(\\[[0-9]*\\]\\)"
1369 @item message-subject-trailing-was-query
1370 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-query
1371 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp
1372 @vindex message-subject-trailing-was-regexp
1373 Controls what to do with trailing @samp{(was: <old subject>)} in subject
1374 lines. If @code{nil}, leave the subject unchanged. If it is the symbol
1375 @code{ask}, query the user what do do. In this case, the subject is
1376 matched against @code{message-subject-trailing-was-ask-regexp}. If
1377 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-query} is t, always strip the
1378 trailing old subject. In this case,
1379 @code{message-subject-trailing-was-regexp} is used.
1381 @item message-alternative-emails
1382 @vindex message-alternative-emails
1383 A regexp to match the alternative email addresses. The first matched
1384 address (not primary one) is used in the @code{From} field.
1386 @item message-allow-no-recipients
1387 @vindex message-allow-no-recipients
1388 Specifies what to do when there are no recipients other than
1389 @code{Gcc} or @code{Fcc}. If it is @code{always}, the posting is
1390 allowed. If it is @code{never}, the posting is not allowed. If it is
1391 @code{ask} (the default), you are prompted.
1393 @item message-hidden-headers
1394 @vindex message-hidden-headers
1395 A regexp, a list of regexps, or a list where the first element is
1396 @code{not} and the rest are regexps. It says which headers to keep
1397 hidden when composing a message.
1400 (setq message-hidden-headers
1401 '(not "From" "Subject" "To" "Cc" "Newsgroups"))
1404 @item message-header-synonyms
1405 @vindex message-header-synonyms
1406 A list of lists of header synonyms. E.g., if this list contains a
1407 member list with elements @code{Cc} and @code{To}, then
1408 @code{message-carefully-insert-headers} will not insert a @code{To}
1409 header when the message is already @code{Cc}ed to the recipient.
1415 @section Mail Headers
1418 @item message-required-mail-headers
1419 @vindex message-required-mail-headers
1420 @xref{News Headers}, for the syntax of this variable. It is
1421 @code{(From Date Subject (optional . In-Reply-To) Message-ID Lines
1422 (optional . User-Agent))} by default.
1424 @item message-ignored-mail-headers
1425 @vindex message-ignored-mail-headers
1426 Regexp of headers to be removed before mailing. The default is
1427 @samp{^[GF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^Xref:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
1429 @item message-default-mail-headers
1430 @vindex message-default-mail-headers
1431 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1432 buffers that are initialized as mail.
1434 @item message-generate-hashcash
1435 @vindex message-generate-hashcash
1436 Boolean variable that indicate whether @samp{X-Hashcash} headers
1437 should be computed for the message. @xref{Hashcash, ,Hashcash,gnus,
1443 @node Mail Variables
1444 @section Mail Variables
1447 @item message-send-mail-function
1448 @vindex message-send-mail-function
1449 @findex message-send-mail-with-sendmail
1450 @findex message-send-mail-with-mh
1451 @findex message-send-mail-with-qmail
1452 @findex message-smtpmail-send-it
1453 @findex smtpmail-send-it
1454 @findex feedmail-send-it
1455 Function used to send the current buffer as mail. The default is
1456 @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}. Other valid values include
1457 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
1458 @code{message-smtpmail-send-it}, @code{smtpmail-send-it} and
1459 @code{feedmail-send-it}.
1461 @item message-mh-deletable-headers
1462 @vindex message-mh-deletable-headers
1463 Most versions of MH doesn't like being fed messages that contain the
1464 headers in this variable. If this variable is non-@code{nil} (which is
1465 the default), these headers will be removed before mailing when sending
1466 messages via MH. Set it to @code{nil} if your MH can handle these
1469 @item message-qmail-inject-program
1470 @vindex message-qmail-inject-program
1472 Location of the qmail-inject program.
1474 @item message-qmail-inject-args
1475 @vindex message-qmail-inject-args
1476 Arguments passed to qmail-inject programs.
1477 This should be a list of strings, one string for each argument. It
1478 may also be a function.
1480 For e.g., if you wish to set the envelope sender address so that bounces
1481 go to the right place or to deal with listserv's usage of that address, you
1482 might set this variable to @code{'("-f" "you@@some.where")}.
1484 @item message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1485 @vindex message-sendmail-f-is-evil
1487 Non-@code{nil} means don't add @samp{-f username} to the sendmail
1488 command line. Doing so would be even more evil than leaving it out.
1490 @item message-sendmail-envelope-from
1491 @vindex message-sendmail-envelope-from
1492 When @code{message-sendmail-f-is-evil} is @code{nil}, this specifies
1493 the address to use in the @acronym{SMTP} envelope. If it is
1494 @code{nil}, use @code{user-mail-address}. If it is the symbol
1495 @code{header}, use the @samp{From} header of the message.
1497 @item message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1498 @vindex message-mailer-swallows-blank-line
1499 Set this to non-@code{nil} if the system's mailer runs the header and
1500 body together. (This problem exists on SunOS 4 when sendmail is run
1501 in remote mode.) The value should be an expression to test whether
1502 the problem will actually occur.
1504 @item message-send-mail-partially-limit
1505 @vindex message-send-mail-partially-limit
1506 @cindex split large message
1507 The limitation of messages sent as message/partial. The lower bound
1508 of message size in characters, beyond which the message should be sent
1509 in several parts. If it is @code{nil}, the size is unlimited.
1515 @section News Headers
1517 @vindex message-required-news-headers
1518 @code{message-required-news-headers} a list of header symbols. These
1519 headers will either be automatically generated, or, if that's
1520 impossible, they will be prompted for. The following symbols are valid:
1526 @findex user-full-name
1527 @findex user-mail-address
1528 This required header will be filled out with the result of the
1529 @code{message-make-from} function, which depends on the
1530 @code{message-from-style}, @code{user-full-name},
1531 @code{user-mail-address} variables.
1535 This required header will be prompted for if not present already.
1539 This required header says which newsgroups the article is to be posted
1540 to. If it isn't present already, it will be prompted for.
1543 @cindex organization
1544 @vindex message-user-organization
1545 @vindex message-user-organization-file
1546 This optional header will be filled out depending on the
1547 @code{message-user-organization} variable.
1548 @code{message-user-organization-file} will be used if this variable is
1549 @code{t}. This variable can also be a string (in which case this string
1550 will be used), or it can be a function (which will be called with no
1551 parameters and should return a string to be used).
1555 This optional header will be computed by Message.
1559 @vindex message-user-fqdn
1560 @vindex mail-host-address
1561 @vindex user-mail-address
1564 @cindex i-did-not-set--mail-host-address--so-tickle-me
1565 This required header will be generated by Message. A unique ID will be
1566 created based on the date, time, user name (for the local part) and the
1567 domain part. For the domain part, message will look (in this order) at
1568 @code{message-user-fqdn}, @code{system-name}, @code{mail-host-address}
1569 and @code{message-user-mail-address} (i.e. @code{user-mail-address})
1570 until a probably valid fully qualified domain name (FQDN) was found.
1574 This optional header will be filled out according to the
1575 @code{message-newsreader} local variable.
1578 This optional header is filled out using the @code{Date} and @code{From}
1579 header of the article being replied to.
1583 @vindex message-expires
1584 This extremely optional header will be inserted according to the
1585 @code{message-expires} variable. It is highly deprecated and shouldn't
1586 be used unless you know what you're doing.
1589 @cindex Distribution
1590 @vindex message-distribution-function
1591 This optional header is filled out according to the
1592 @code{message-distribution-function} variable. It is a deprecated and
1593 much misunderstood header.
1597 @vindex message-user-path
1598 This extremely optional header should probably never be used.
1599 However, some @emph{very} old servers require that this header is
1600 present. @code{message-user-path} further controls how this
1601 @code{Path} header is to look. If it is @code{nil}, use the server name
1602 as the leaf node. If it is a string, use the string. If it is neither
1603 a string nor @code{nil}, use the user name only. However, it is highly
1604 unlikely that you should need to fiddle with this variable at all.
1608 @cindex Mime-Version
1609 In addition, you can enter conses into this list. The @sc{car} of this cons
1610 should be a symbol. This symbol's name is the name of the header, and
1611 the @sc{cdr} can either be a string to be entered verbatim as the value of
1612 this header, or it can be a function to be called. This function should
1613 return a string to be inserted. For instance, if you want to insert
1614 @code{Mime-Version: 1.0}, you should enter @code{(Mime-Version . "1.0")}
1615 into the list. If you want to insert a funny quote, you could enter
1616 something like @code{(X-Yow . yow)} into the list. The function
1617 @code{yow} will then be called without any arguments.
1619 If the list contains a cons where the @sc{car} of the cons is
1620 @code{optional}, the @sc{cdr} of this cons will only be inserted if it is
1623 If you want to delete an entry from this list, the following Lisp
1624 snippet might be useful. Adjust accordingly if you want to remove
1628 (setq message-required-news-headers
1629 (delq 'Message-ID message-required-news-headers))
1632 Other variables for customizing outgoing news articles:
1636 @item message-syntax-checks
1637 @vindex message-syntax-checks
1638 Controls what syntax checks should not be performed on outgoing posts.
1639 To disable checking of long signatures, for instance, add
1642 (signature . disabled)
1651 Check the subject for commands.
1654 Insert a new @code{Sender} header if the @code{From} header looks odd.
1655 @item multiple-headers
1656 Check for the existence of multiple equal headers.
1659 Check for the existence of version and sendsys commands.
1661 Check whether the @code{Message-ID} looks ok.
1663 Check whether the @code{From} header seems nice.
1666 Check for too long lines.
1668 Check for invalid characters.
1670 Check for excessive size.
1672 Check whether there is any new text in the messages.
1674 Check the length of the signature.
1677 Check whether the article has an @code{Approved} header, which is
1678 something only moderators should include.
1680 Check whether the article is empty.
1681 @item invisible-text
1682 Check whether there is any invisible text in the buffer.
1684 Check whether any of the headers are empty.
1685 @item existing-newsgroups
1686 Check whether the newsgroups mentioned in the @code{Newsgroups} and
1687 @code{Followup-To} headers exist.
1688 @item valid-newsgroups
1689 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1690 are valid syntactically.
1691 @item repeated-newsgroups
1692 Check whether the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-to} headers
1693 contains repeated group names.
1694 @item shorten-followup-to
1695 Check whether to add a @code{Followup-to} header to shorten the number
1696 of groups to post to.
1699 All these conditions are checked by default.
1701 @item message-ignored-news-headers
1702 @vindex message-ignored-news-headers
1703 Regexp of headers to be removed before posting. The default is@*
1704 @samp{^NNTP-Posting-Host:\\|^Xref:\\|^[BGF]cc:\\|^Resent-Fcc:\\|^X-Draft-From:}.
1706 @item message-default-news-headers
1707 @vindex message-default-news-headers
1708 This string is inserted at the end of the headers in all message
1709 buffers that are initialized as news.
1714 @node News Variables
1715 @section News Variables
1718 @item message-send-news-function
1719 @vindex message-send-news-function
1720 Function used to send the current buffer as news. The default is
1721 @code{message-send-news}.
1723 @item message-post-method
1724 @vindex message-post-method
1725 Gnusish @dfn{select method} (see the Gnus manual for details) used for
1726 posting a prepared news message.
1731 @node Insertion Variables
1732 @section Insertion Variables
1735 @item message-ignored-cited-headers
1736 @vindex message-ignored-cited-headers
1737 All headers that match this regexp will be removed from yanked
1738 messages. The default is @samp{.}, which means that all headers will be
1741 @item message-cite-prefix-regexp
1742 @vindex message-cite-prefix-regexp
1743 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
1745 @item message-citation-line-function
1746 @vindex message-citation-line-function
1747 @cindex attribution line
1748 Function called to insert the citation line. The default is
1749 @code{message-insert-citation-line}, which will lead to citation lines
1753 Hallvard B Furuseth <h.b.furuseth@@usit.uio.no> writes:
1756 Point will be at the beginning of the body of the message when this
1759 Note that Gnus provides a feature where clicking on `writes:' hides the
1760 cited text. If you change the citation line too much, readers of your
1761 messages will have to adjust their Gnus, too. See the variable
1762 @code{gnus-cite-attribution-suffix}. @xref{Article Highlighting, ,
1763 Article Highlighting, gnus, The Gnus Manual}, for details.
1765 @item message-yank-prefix
1766 @vindex message-yank-prefix
1769 When you are replying to or following up an article, you normally want
1770 to quote the person you are answering. Inserting quoted text is done
1771 by @dfn{yanking}, and each line you yank will have
1772 @code{message-yank-prefix} prepended to it (except for quoted and
1773 empty lines which uses @code{message-yank-cited-prefix}). The default
1776 @item message-yank-cited-prefix
1777 @vindex message-yank-cited-prefix
1781 When yanking text from an article which contains no text or already
1782 cited text, each line will be prefixed with the contents of this
1783 variable. The default is @samp{>}. See also
1784 @code{message-yank-prefix}.
1786 @item message-indentation-spaces
1787 @vindex message-indentation-spaces
1788 Number of spaces to indent yanked messages.
1790 @item message-cite-function
1791 @vindex message-cite-function
1792 @findex message-cite-original
1793 @findex sc-cite-original
1794 @findex message-cite-original-without-signature
1796 Function for citing an original message. The default is
1797 @code{message-cite-original}, which simply inserts the original message
1798 and prepends @samp{> } to each line.
1799 @code{message-cite-original-without-signature} does the same, but elides
1800 the signature. You can also set it to @code{sc-cite-original} to use
1803 @item message-indent-citation-function
1804 @vindex message-indent-citation-function
1805 Function for modifying a citation just inserted in the mail buffer.
1806 This can also be a list of functions. Each function can find the
1807 citation between @code{(point)} and @code{(mark t)}. And each function
1808 should leave point and mark around the citation text as modified.
1810 @item message-mark-insert-begin
1811 @vindex message-mark-insert-begin
1812 String to mark the beginning of some inserted text.
1814 @item message-mark-insert-end
1815 @vindex message-mark-insert-end
1816 String to mark the end of some inserted text.
1818 @item message-signature
1819 @vindex message-signature
1820 String to be inserted at the end of the message buffer. If @code{t}
1821 (which is the default), the @code{message-signature-file} file will be
1822 inserted instead. If a function, the result from the function will be
1823 used instead. If a form, the result from the form will be used instead.
1824 If this variable is @code{nil}, no signature will be inserted at all.
1826 @item message-signature-file
1827 @vindex message-signature-file
1828 File containing the signature to be inserted at the end of the buffer.
1829 The default is @file{~/.signature}.
1831 @item message-signature-insert-empty-line
1832 @vindex message-signature-insert-empty-line
1833 If @code{t} (the default value) an empty line is inserted before the
1834 signature separator.
1838 Note that RFC1036bis says that a signature should be preceded by the three
1839 characters @samp{-- } on a line by themselves. This is to make it
1840 easier for the recipient to automatically recognize and process the
1841 signature. So don't remove those characters, even though you might feel
1842 that they ruin your beautiful design, like, totally.
1844 Also note that no signature should be more than four lines long.
1845 Including @acronym{ASCII} graphics is an efficient way to get
1846 everybody to believe that you are silly and have nothing important to
1850 @node Various Message Variables
1851 @section Various Message Variables
1854 @item message-default-charset
1855 @vindex message-default-charset
1857 Symbol naming a @acronym{MIME} charset. Non-@acronym{ASCII}
1858 characters in messages are assumed to be encoded using this charset.
1859 The default is @code{nil}, which means ask the user. (This variable
1860 is used only on non-@sc{mule} Emacsen. @xref{Charset Translation, ,
1861 Charset Translation, emacs-mime, Emacs MIME Manual}, for details on
1862 the @sc{mule}-to-@acronym{MIME} translation process.
1864 @item message-signature-separator
1865 @vindex message-signature-separator
1866 Regexp matching the signature separator. It is @samp{^-- *$} by
1869 @item mail-header-separator
1870 @vindex mail-header-separator
1871 String used to separate the headers from the body. It is @samp{--text
1872 follows this line--} by default.
1874 @item message-directory
1875 @vindex message-directory
1876 Directory used by many mailey things. The default is @file{~/Mail/}.
1878 @item message-auto-save-directory
1879 @vindex message-auto-save-directory
1880 Directory where Message auto-saves buffers if Gnus isn't running. If
1881 @code{nil}, Message won't auto-save. The default is @file{~/Mail/drafts/}.
1883 @item message-signature-setup-hook
1884 @vindex message-signature-setup-hook
1885 Hook run when initializing the message buffer. It is run after the
1886 headers have been inserted but before the signature has been inserted.
1888 @item message-setup-hook
1889 @vindex message-setup-hook
1890 Hook run as the last thing when the message buffer has been initialized,
1891 but before yanked text is inserted.
1893 @item message-header-setup-hook
1894 @vindex message-header-setup-hook
1895 Hook called narrowed to the headers after initializing the headers.
1897 For instance, if you're running Gnus and wish to insert a
1898 @samp{Mail-Copies-To} header in all your news articles and all messages
1899 you send to mailing lists, you could do something like the following:
1902 (defun my-message-header-setup-hook ()
1903 (let ((group (or gnus-newsgroup-name "")))
1904 (when (or (message-fetch-field "newsgroups")
1905 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-address)
1906 (gnus-group-find-parameter group 'to-list))
1907 (insert "Mail-Copies-To: never\n"))))
1909 (add-hook 'message-header-setup-hook
1910 'my-message-header-setup-hook)
1913 @item message-send-hook
1914 @vindex message-send-hook
1915 Hook run before sending messages.
1917 If you want to add certain headers before sending, you can use the
1918 @code{message-add-header} function in this hook. For instance:
1919 @findex message-add-header
1922 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'my-message-add-content)
1923 (defun my-message-add-content ()
1924 (message-add-header "X-In-No-Sense: Nonsense")
1925 (message-add-header "X-Whatever: no"))
1928 This function won't add the header if the header is already present.
1930 @item message-send-mail-hook
1931 @vindex message-send-mail-hook
1932 Hook run before sending mail messages. This hook is run very late --
1933 just before the message is actually sent as mail.
1935 @item message-send-news-hook
1936 @vindex message-send-news-hook
1937 Hook run before sending news messages. This hook is run very late --
1938 just before the message is actually sent as news.
1940 @item message-sent-hook
1941 @vindex message-sent-hook
1942 Hook run after sending messages.
1944 @item message-cancel-hook
1945 @vindex message-cancel-hook
1946 Hook run when canceling news articles.
1948 @item message-mode-syntax-table
1949 @vindex message-mode-syntax-table
1950 Syntax table used in message mode buffers.
1952 @item message-cite-articles-with-x-no-archive
1953 @vindex message-cite-articles-with-x-no-archive
1954 If non-@code{nil}, don't strip quoted text from articles that have
1955 @samp{X-No-Archive} set. Even if this variable isn't set, you can
1956 undo the stripping by hitting the @code{undo} keystroke.
1958 @item message-strip-special-text-properties
1959 @vindex message-strip-special-text-properties
1960 Emacs has a number of special text properties which can break message
1961 composing in various ways. If this option is set, message will strip
1962 these properties from the message composition buffer. However, some
1963 packages requires these properties to be present in order to work. If
1964 you use one of these packages, turn this option off, and hope the
1965 message composition doesn't break too bad.
1967 @item message-send-method-alist
1968 @vindex message-send-method-alist
1970 Alist of ways to send outgoing messages. Each element has the form
1973 (@var{type} @var{predicate} @var{function})
1978 A symbol that names the method.
1981 A function called without any parameters to determine whether the
1982 message is a message of type @var{type}.
1985 A function to be called if @var{predicate} returns non-@code{nil}.
1986 @var{function} is called with one parameter---the prefix.
1990 ((news message-news-p message-send-via-news)
1991 (mail message-mail-p message-send-via-mail))
1999 @node Sending Variables
2000 @section Sending Variables
2004 @item message-fcc-handler-function
2005 @vindex message-fcc-handler-function
2006 A function called to save outgoing articles. This function will be
2007 called with the name of the file to store the article in. The default
2008 function is @code{message-output} which saves in Unix mailbox format.
2010 @item message-courtesy-message
2011 @vindex message-courtesy-message
2012 When sending combined messages, this string is inserted at the start of
2013 the mailed copy. If the string contains the format spec @samp{%s}, the
2014 newsgroups the article has been posted to will be inserted there. If
2015 this variable is @code{nil}, no such courtesy message will be added.
2016 The default value is @samp{"The following message is a courtesy copy of
2017 an article\\nthat has been posted to %s as well.\\n\\n"}.
2019 @item message-fcc-externalize-attachments
2020 @vindex message-fcc-externalize-attachments
2021 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Fcc copies; if it is
2022 non-@code{nil}, attach local files as external parts.
2024 @item message-interactive
2025 @vindex message-interactive
2026 If non-@code{nil} wait for and display errors when sending a message;
2027 if @code{nil} let the mailer mail back a message to report errors.
2032 @node Message Buffers
2033 @section Message Buffers
2035 Message will generate new buffers with unique buffer names when you
2036 request a message buffer. When you send the message, the buffer isn't
2037 normally killed off. Its name is changed and a certain number of old
2038 message buffers are kept alive.
2041 @item message-generate-new-buffers
2042 @vindex message-generate-new-buffers
2043 If non-@code{nil}, generate new buffers. The default is @code{t}. If
2044 this is a function, call that function with three parameters: The type,
2045 the to address and the group name. (Any of these may be @code{nil}.)
2046 The function should return the new buffer name.
2048 @item message-max-buffers
2049 @vindex message-max-buffers
2050 This variable says how many old message buffers to keep. If there are
2051 more message buffers than this, the oldest buffer will be killed. The
2052 default is 10. If this variable is @code{nil}, no old message buffers
2053 will ever be killed.
2055 @item message-send-rename-function
2056 @vindex message-send-rename-function
2057 After sending a message, the buffer is renamed from, for instance,
2058 @samp{*reply to Lars*} to @samp{*sent reply to Lars*}. If you don't
2059 like this, set this variable to a function that renames the buffer in a
2060 manner you like. If you don't want to rename the buffer at all, you can
2064 (setq message-send-rename-function 'ignore)
2067 @item message-kill-buffer-on-exit
2068 @findex message-kill-buffer-on-exit
2069 If non-@code{nil}, kill the buffer immediately on exit.
2074 @node Message Actions
2075 @section Message Actions
2077 When Message is being used from a news/mail reader, the reader is likely
2078 to want to perform some task after the message has been sent. Perhaps
2079 return to the previous window configuration or mark an article as
2082 @vindex message-kill-actions
2083 @vindex message-postpone-actions
2084 @vindex message-exit-actions
2085 @vindex message-send-actions
2086 The user may exit from the message buffer in various ways. The most
2087 common is @kbd{C-c C-c}, which sends the message and exits. Other
2088 possibilities are @kbd{C-c C-s} which just sends the message, @kbd{C-c
2089 C-d} which postpones the message editing and buries the message buffer,
2090 and @kbd{C-c C-k} which kills the message buffer. Each of these actions
2091 have lists associated with them that contains actions to be executed:
2092 @code{message-send-actions}, @code{message-exit-actions},
2093 @code{message-postpone-actions}, and @code{message-kill-actions}.
2095 Message provides a function to interface with these lists:
2096 @code{message-add-action}. The first parameter is the action to be
2097 added, and the rest of the arguments are which lists to add this action
2098 to. Here's an example from Gnus:
2102 `(set-window-configuration ,(current-window-configuration))
2103 'exit 'postpone 'kill)
2106 This restores the Gnus window configuration when the message buffer is
2107 killed, postponed or exited.
2109 An @dfn{action} can be either: a normal function, or a list where the
2110 @sc{car} is a function and the @sc{cdr} is the list of arguments, or
2111 a form to be @code{eval}ed.
2115 @chapter Compatibility
2116 @cindex compatibility
2118 Message uses virtually only its own variables---older @code{mail-}
2119 variables aren't consulted. To force Message to take those variables
2120 into account, you can put the following in your @file{.emacs} file:
2123 (require 'messcompat)
2126 This will initialize many Message variables from the values in the
2127 corresponding mail variables.
2134 * Responses:: Standard rules for determining where responses go.
2141 To determine where a message is to go, the following algorithm is used
2146 A @dfn{reply} is when you want to respond @emph{just} to the person who
2147 sent the message via mail. There will only be one recipient. To
2148 determine who the recipient will be, the following headers are
2159 A @dfn{wide reply} is a mail response that includes @emph{all} entities
2160 mentioned in the message you are responded to. All mailboxes from the
2161 following headers will be concatenated to form the outgoing
2162 @code{To}/@code{Cc} headers:
2166 (unless there's a @code{Reply-To}, in which case that is used instead).
2173 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will also be included
2174 in the list of mailboxes. If this header is @samp{never}, that means
2175 that the @code{From} (or @code{Reply-To}) mailbox will be suppressed.
2179 A @dfn{followup} is a response sent via news. The following headers
2180 (listed in order of precedence) determine where the response is to be
2191 If a @code{Mail-Copies-To} header is present, it will be used as the
2192 basis of the new @code{Cc} header, except if this header is
2214 arch-tag: 16ab76af-a281-4e34-aed6-5624569f7601