10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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290 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
291 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
294 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
295 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
296 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
297 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
298 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
299 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
300 License'' in the Emacs manual.
302 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
303 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
304 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
306 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
307 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
308 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
309 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
317 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
319 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
320 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
322 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
323 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
324 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
325 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
326 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
327 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
328 License'' in the Emacs manual.
330 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
331 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
332 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
334 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
335 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
336 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
337 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
345 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
348 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
349 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
350 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
352 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
353 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
354 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
355 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
356 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
357 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
358 License'' in the Emacs manual.
360 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
361 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
362 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
364 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
365 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
366 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
367 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
376 @top The Gnus Newsreader
380 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
381 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
382 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
385 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.06.
396 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
397 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
399 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
400 being accused of plagiarism:
402 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
403 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
404 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
405 can even read news with it!
407 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
408 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
409 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
410 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
411 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
417 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
418 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
419 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
420 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
421 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
422 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
423 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
424 * Various:: General purpose settings.
425 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
426 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
427 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
428 * Key Index:: Key Index.
431 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
435 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
436 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
437 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
438 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
439 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
440 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
441 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
442 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
443 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
444 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
445 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
449 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
450 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
451 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
455 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
456 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
457 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
458 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
459 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
460 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
461 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
462 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
463 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
464 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
465 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
466 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
467 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
468 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
469 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
470 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
471 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
475 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
476 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
477 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
481 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
482 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
483 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
484 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
485 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
489 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
490 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
491 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
492 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
493 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
497 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
498 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
499 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
500 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
501 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
503 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
504 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
505 * Threading:: How threads are made.
506 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
507 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
508 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
509 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
510 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
511 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
512 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
513 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
514 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
515 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
516 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
517 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
518 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
519 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
520 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
521 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
522 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
523 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
524 or reselecting the current group.
525 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
526 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
527 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
528 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
530 Summary Buffer Format
532 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
533 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
534 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
535 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
539 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
540 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
542 Reply, Followup and Post
544 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
545 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
546 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
547 * Canceling and Superseding::
551 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
552 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
553 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
555 * Generic Marking Commands::
556 * Setting Process Marks::
560 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
561 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
562 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
566 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
567 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
569 Customizing Threading
571 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
572 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
573 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
574 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
578 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
579 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
580 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
581 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
582 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
583 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
587 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
588 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
589 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
593 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
594 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
595 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
596 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
597 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
598 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
599 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
600 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
601 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
602 * Article Miscellania:: 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 @sc{mime} before reading them.
620 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
621 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
622 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
626 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
627 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
628 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
629 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
630 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
631 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
632 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
633 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
637 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
638 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
639 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
640 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
641 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
642 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
643 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
644 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
648 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
649 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
650 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
651 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
652 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
653 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
654 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
658 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
659 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
663 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
664 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
665 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
669 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
670 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
671 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
672 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
673 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
674 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
675 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
676 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
677 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
678 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
679 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
680 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
681 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
685 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
686 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
687 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
689 Choosing a Mail Back End
691 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
692 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
693 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
694 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
695 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
696 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
701 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
702 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
703 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
704 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
705 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
706 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
710 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
711 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
712 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
716 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
717 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
718 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
719 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
720 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
724 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
728 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
729 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
730 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
734 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
735 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
739 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
740 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
741 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
742 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
743 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
744 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
745 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
746 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
747 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
748 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
752 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
753 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
754 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
758 * Group Agent Commands::
759 * Summary Agent Commands::
760 * Server Agent Commands::
764 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
765 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
766 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
767 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
768 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
769 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
770 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
771 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
772 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
773 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
774 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
775 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
776 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
777 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
778 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
779 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
780 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
784 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
785 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
786 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
787 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
791 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
792 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
793 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
797 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
798 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
799 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
800 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
801 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
802 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
803 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
804 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
805 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
806 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
807 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
808 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
809 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
810 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
811 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
812 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
813 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
814 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
815 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
819 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
820 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
821 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
822 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
823 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
824 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
825 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
826 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
830 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
831 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
832 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
833 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
834 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
838 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
839 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
840 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
841 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
842 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
846 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
847 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
848 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
849 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
850 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
851 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
852 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
853 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
854 * Frequently Asked Questions::
858 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
859 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
860 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
861 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
862 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
863 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
864 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
865 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
866 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
870 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
871 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
872 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
873 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
874 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
878 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
879 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
880 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
881 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
885 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
886 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
887 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
888 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
889 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
890 * Group Info:: The group info format.
891 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
892 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
893 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
897 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
898 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
899 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
900 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
901 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
902 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
906 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
907 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
911 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
912 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
918 @chapter Starting Gnus
923 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
924 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
927 @findex gnus-other-frame
928 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
929 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
930 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
932 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
933 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
934 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
936 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
937 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
940 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
941 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
942 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
943 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
944 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
945 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
946 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
947 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
948 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
949 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
950 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
954 @node Finding the News
955 @section Finding the News
958 @vindex gnus-select-method
960 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
961 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
962 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
963 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
966 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
967 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
970 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
973 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
976 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
979 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
980 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
981 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
983 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
985 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
986 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
987 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
988 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
989 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
990 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
992 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
993 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
994 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
995 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
997 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
998 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
999 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1000 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1001 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1002 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1003 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1004 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1005 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1008 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1010 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1011 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1012 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1013 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1014 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1015 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1017 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1019 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1020 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1021 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1022 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1023 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1024 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1027 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1028 you would typically set this variable to
1031 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1035 @node The First Time
1036 @section The First Time
1037 @cindex first time usage
1039 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1040 be subscribed by default.
1042 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1043 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1044 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1045 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1048 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1049 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1050 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1052 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1053 help you with most common problems.
1055 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1056 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1060 @node The Server is Down
1061 @section The Server is Down
1062 @cindex server errors
1064 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1065 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1066 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1068 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1069 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1070 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1071 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1072 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1073 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1074 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1076 @findex gnus-no-server
1077 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1079 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1080 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1081 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1082 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1083 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1084 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1085 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1089 @section Slave Gnusae
1092 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1093 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1094 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1095 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1097 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1098 @code{.newsrc} file.
1100 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1101 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1102 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1103 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1104 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1105 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1106 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1108 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1109 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1110 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1111 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1112 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1113 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1114 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1115 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1117 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1118 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1121 @node Fetching a Group
1122 @section Fetching a Group
1123 @cindex fetching a group
1125 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1126 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1127 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1128 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1129 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1130 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1136 @cindex subscription
1138 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1139 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1140 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1141 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1142 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1143 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1144 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1145 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1146 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1149 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1150 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1151 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1155 @node Checking New Groups
1156 @subsection Checking New Groups
1158 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1159 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1160 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1161 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1162 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1163 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1164 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1165 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1166 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1167 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1169 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1170 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1171 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1172 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1173 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1174 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1175 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1176 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1177 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1178 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1179 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1181 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1182 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1183 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1184 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1185 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1186 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1189 @node Subscription Methods
1190 @subsection Subscription Methods
1192 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1193 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1194 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1196 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1197 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1199 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1203 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1204 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1205 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1206 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1207 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1209 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1210 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1211 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1212 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1214 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1215 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1216 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1218 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1219 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1220 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1221 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1222 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1223 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1224 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1225 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1226 up. Or something like that.
1228 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1229 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1230 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1231 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1232 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1234 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1235 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1236 Kill all new groups.
1238 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1239 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1240 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1241 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1242 topic parameter that looks like
1248 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1251 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1256 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1257 A closely related variable is
1258 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1259 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1260 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1261 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1264 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1265 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1266 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1267 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1270 @node Filtering New Groups
1271 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1273 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1274 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1275 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1278 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1281 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1282 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1283 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1284 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1285 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1286 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1287 subscribing these groups.
1288 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1289 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1291 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1292 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1293 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1294 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1295 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1296 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1297 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1298 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1300 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1301 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1302 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1303 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1304 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1305 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1306 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1307 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1308 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1309 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1311 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1312 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1315 @node Changing Servers
1316 @section Changing Servers
1317 @cindex changing servers
1319 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1320 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1321 very flaky and you want to use another.
1323 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1324 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1328 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1329 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1330 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1331 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1334 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1335 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1336 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1337 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1339 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1340 @findex gnus-change-server
1341 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1342 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1343 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1344 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1345 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1347 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1348 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1349 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1350 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1351 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1353 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1354 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1355 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1356 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1357 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1358 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1360 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1361 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1362 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1363 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1365 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1366 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1367 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1368 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1369 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1370 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1371 cache for all groups).
1375 @section Startup Files
1376 @cindex startup files
1381 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1382 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1384 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1385 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1386 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1387 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1388 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1389 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1390 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1392 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1393 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1394 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1395 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1396 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1397 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1399 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1400 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1401 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1402 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1403 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1404 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1405 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1406 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1407 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1408 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1410 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1411 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1412 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1413 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1414 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1415 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1416 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1417 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1418 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1419 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1420 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1421 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1423 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1424 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1425 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1426 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1428 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1429 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1430 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1431 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1432 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1433 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1434 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1435 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1436 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1437 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1440 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1441 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1443 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1444 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1447 @vindex gnus-init-file
1448 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1449 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1450 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1451 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1452 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1453 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1454 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1455 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1456 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1462 @cindex dribble file
1465 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1466 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1467 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1468 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1469 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1472 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1473 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1476 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1477 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1478 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1480 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1481 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1482 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1483 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1484 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1485 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1487 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1488 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1489 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1492 @node The Active File
1493 @section The Active File
1495 @cindex ignored groups
1497 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1498 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1499 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1501 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1502 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1503 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1504 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1505 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1506 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1507 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1510 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1511 @c if you set it to anything else.
1513 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1515 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1516 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1517 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1519 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1520 you actually subscribe to.
1522 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1523 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1524 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1525 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1527 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1528 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1529 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1530 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1531 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1532 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1534 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1535 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1536 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1539 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1540 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1541 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1542 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1543 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1544 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1546 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1547 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1549 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1550 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1552 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1553 secondary select methods.
1556 @node Startup Variables
1557 @section Startup Variables
1561 @item gnus-load-hook
1562 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1563 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1564 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1565 times you start Gnus.
1567 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1568 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1569 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1571 @item gnus-startup-hook
1572 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1573 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1575 @item gnus-started-hook
1576 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1577 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1580 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1581 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1582 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1583 generating the group buffer.
1585 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1586 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1587 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1588 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1589 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1590 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1591 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1592 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1594 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1595 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1596 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1597 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1598 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1599 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1601 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1602 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1603 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1605 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1606 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1607 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1609 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1610 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1611 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1612 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1618 @chapter Group Buffer
1619 @cindex group buffer
1621 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1623 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1624 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1625 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1626 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1627 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1628 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1629 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1630 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1631 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1632 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1633 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1634 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1635 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1636 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1637 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1638 @c human rights at 9...
1641 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1642 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1643 long as Gnus is active.
1647 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1648 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1649 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1650 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1651 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1652 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1653 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1654 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1660 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1661 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1662 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1663 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1664 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1665 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1666 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1667 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1668 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1669 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1670 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1671 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1672 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1673 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1674 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1675 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1676 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1680 @node Group Buffer Format
1681 @section Group Buffer Format
1684 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1685 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1686 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1690 @node Group Line Specification
1691 @subsection Group Line Specification
1692 @cindex group buffer format
1694 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1695 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1697 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1700 25: news.announce.newusers
1701 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1706 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1707 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1708 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1709 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1711 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1712 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1713 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1714 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1715 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1716 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1718 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1720 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1721 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1722 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1723 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1724 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1726 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1727 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1728 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1730 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1735 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1738 Whether the group is subscribed.
1741 Level of subscribedness.
1744 Number of unread articles.
1747 Number of dormant articles.
1750 Number of ticked articles.
1753 Number of read articles.
1756 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1757 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1759 Gnus uses this estimation because the NNTP protocol provides efficient
1760 access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting the true
1761 unread message count is not possible efficiently. For hysterical
1762 raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of unread
1763 messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1764 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the
1765 back end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1766 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1769 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1772 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1781 Newsgroup description.
1784 @samp{m} if moderated.
1787 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1796 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1800 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1803 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1804 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1805 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1806 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1807 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1810 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1812 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1816 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1819 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1823 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1824 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1825 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1826 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1827 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1828 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1833 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1834 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1835 group, or a bogus native group.
1838 @node Group Modeline Specification
1839 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1840 @cindex group modeline
1842 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1843 The mode line can be changed by setting
1844 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1845 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1849 The native news server.
1851 The native select method.
1855 @node Group Highlighting
1856 @subsection Group Highlighting
1857 @cindex highlighting
1858 @cindex group highlighting
1860 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1861 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1862 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1863 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1864 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1866 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1870 (cond (window-system
1871 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1872 (defface my-group-face-1
1873 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1874 (defface my-group-face-2
1875 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1876 (defface my-group-face-3
1877 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1878 (defface my-group-face-4
1879 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1880 (defface my-group-face-5
1881 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1883 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1884 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1885 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1886 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1887 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1888 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1891 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1893 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1900 The number of unread articles in the group.
1904 Whether the group is a mail group.
1906 The level of the group.
1908 The score of the group.
1910 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1912 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1913 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1915 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1916 topic being inserted.
1919 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1920 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1921 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1923 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1924 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1925 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1926 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1927 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1930 @node Group Maneuvering
1931 @section Group Maneuvering
1932 @cindex group movement
1934 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1935 expected, hopefully.
1941 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1942 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1943 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1949 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1950 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1951 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1955 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1956 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1960 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1961 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1965 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1966 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1967 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1971 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1972 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1973 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1976 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1982 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1983 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1984 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1989 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1990 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1991 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1995 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1996 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1997 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2000 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2001 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2002 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2003 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2007 @node Selecting a Group
2008 @section Selecting a Group
2009 @cindex group selection
2014 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2015 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2016 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2017 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2018 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2019 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2020 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
2021 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
2022 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
2023 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
2025 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2026 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2027 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2029 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2030 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2035 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2036 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2037 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2038 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2039 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2043 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2044 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2045 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2046 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2047 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2048 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2049 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2050 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2051 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2052 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2055 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2056 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2057 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2058 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2059 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2062 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2063 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2064 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2065 doing any processing of its contents
2066 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2067 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2068 manner will have no permanent effects.
2072 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2073 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2074 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2075 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2076 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2077 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2078 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2079 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2082 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2083 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2084 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2085 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2086 Which article this is is controlled by the
2087 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2093 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2096 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2099 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2101 @item unseen-or-unread
2102 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2103 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2107 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2111 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2112 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2114 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2115 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2116 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2117 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2121 @node Subscription Commands
2122 @section Subscription Commands
2123 @cindex subscription
2131 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2132 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2133 Toggle subscription to the current group
2134 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2140 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2141 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2142 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2143 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2149 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2150 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2151 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2157 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2158 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2161 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2162 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2163 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2164 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2165 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2171 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2172 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2176 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2177 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2180 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2181 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2182 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2183 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2184 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2185 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2186 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2187 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2188 @file{.newsrc} file.
2192 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2202 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2203 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2204 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2205 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2206 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2207 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2212 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2213 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2214 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2218 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2219 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2220 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2222 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2223 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2224 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2225 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2226 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2227 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2234 @section Group Levels
2238 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2239 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2240 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2241 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2242 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2244 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2250 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2251 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2252 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2253 prompted for a level.
2256 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2257 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2258 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2259 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2260 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2261 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2262 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2263 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2264 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2265 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2266 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2267 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2268 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2269 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2270 reasons of efficiency.
2272 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2273 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2275 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2276 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2277 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2278 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2279 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2280 groups are hidden, in a way.
2282 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2283 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2284 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2285 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2286 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2287 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2289 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2290 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2291 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2292 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2293 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2294 list of killed groups.)
2296 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2297 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2298 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2300 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2301 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2302 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2303 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2304 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2305 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2306 relevant valid ranges.
2308 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2309 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2310 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2311 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2312 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2313 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2316 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2317 one with the best level.
2319 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2320 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2321 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2324 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2325 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2326 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2327 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2330 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2331 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2332 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2333 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2335 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2336 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2337 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2338 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2339 to 5. The default is 6.
2343 @section Group Score
2348 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2349 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2350 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2353 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2354 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2355 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2356 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2357 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2358 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2359 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2360 least significant part.))
2362 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2363 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2364 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2365 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2366 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2367 action after each summary exit, you can add
2368 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2369 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2370 slow things down somewhat.
2373 @node Marking Groups
2374 @section Marking Groups
2375 @cindex marking groups
2377 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2378 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2379 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2380 bidding on those groups.
2382 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2383 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2384 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2392 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2393 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2399 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2400 Remove the mark from the current group
2401 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2405 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2406 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2410 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2411 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2415 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2416 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2420 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2421 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2422 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2425 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2427 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2428 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2429 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2430 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2431 the command to be executed.
2434 @node Foreign Groups
2435 @section Foreign Groups
2436 @cindex foreign groups
2438 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2439 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2440 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2441 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2448 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2449 @cindex making groups
2450 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2451 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2452 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2456 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2457 @cindex renaming groups
2458 Rename the current group to something else
2459 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2460 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2466 @findex gnus-group-customize
2467 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2471 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2472 @cindex renaming groups
2473 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2474 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2478 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2479 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2480 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2484 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2485 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2486 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2490 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2492 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2493 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2498 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2499 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2503 @cindex (ding) archive
2504 @cindex archive group
2505 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2506 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2507 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2508 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2509 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2510 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2511 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2515 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2517 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2518 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2519 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2520 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2524 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2526 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2527 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2528 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2532 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2533 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2535 Make a group based on some file or other
2536 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2537 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2538 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2539 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2540 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2541 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2542 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2543 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2544 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2548 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2549 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2550 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2551 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2555 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2560 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2561 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2562 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2563 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2564 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2565 @xref{Web Searches}.
2567 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2568 to a particular group by using a match string like
2569 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2572 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2573 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2574 This function will delete the current group
2575 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2576 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2577 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2578 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2579 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2583 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2584 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2585 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2589 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2590 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2591 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2594 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2597 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2598 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2599 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2600 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2601 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2602 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2606 @node Group Parameters
2607 @section Group Parameters
2608 @cindex group parameters
2610 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2611 Here's an example group parameter list:
2614 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2618 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2619 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2620 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2621 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2623 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2624 is an alist of regexps and values.
2626 The following group parameters can be used:
2631 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2634 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2637 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2638 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2639 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2640 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2641 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2643 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2644 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2645 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2646 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2647 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2648 list address instead.
2650 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2654 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2657 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2660 It is totally ignored
2661 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2662 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2664 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2665 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2666 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2667 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2668 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2670 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2671 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2672 sending the message.
2674 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2675 @cindex Mail List Groups
2676 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2677 entering summary buffer.
2679 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2684 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2685 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2686 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information
2687 will help it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To headers for your
2688 posts to these lists.
2690 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2691 directly uses this group parameter.
2695 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2696 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2697 of whether it has any unread articles.
2699 @item broken-reply-to
2700 @cindex broken-reply-to
2701 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2702 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2703 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2704 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2705 broken behavior. So there!
2709 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2710 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2714 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2715 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2716 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2721 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2722 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group If
2723 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2724 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2725 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2726 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2727 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2728 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2729 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept artciles.
2733 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2734 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2735 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2737 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2740 @cindex total-expire
2741 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2742 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2743 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2744 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2747 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2751 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2752 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2753 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2754 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2755 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2756 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2759 @cindex score file group parameter
2760 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2761 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2762 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2765 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2766 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2767 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2768 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2771 @cindex admin-address
2772 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2773 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2774 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2775 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2779 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2780 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2784 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2787 Display the last INTEGER articles in the group. This is the same as
2788 entering the group with C-u INTEGER.
2791 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2795 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2797 Here are some examples:
2801 Display only unread articles.
2804 Display everything except expirable articles.
2806 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2807 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2811 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2812 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2813 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2814 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2815 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2819 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2820 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2821 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2825 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2826 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2827 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2832 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2833 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2834 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2836 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2838 @item ignored-charsets
2839 @cindex ignored-charset
2840 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2841 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2842 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2844 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2847 @cindex posting-style
2848 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2849 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2850 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2851 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2852 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2854 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2855 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2856 like this in the group parameters:
2861 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2866 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2867 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2871 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2872 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2873 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2874 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2875 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2879 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2880 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2881 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2882 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2884 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2885 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2886 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2887 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2890 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2891 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2895 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2898 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2899 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2900 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2901 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2902 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2903 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2904 @code{eval}ed there.
2906 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2907 A use for this feature, is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2908 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2909 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2910 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2911 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2912 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2913 parameters for the group.
2916 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2917 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2918 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2919 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2920 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2924 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2925 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2926 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2927 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2928 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2930 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2931 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2935 (setq gnus-parameters
2937 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2938 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2939 (gnus-summary-line-format
2940 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2944 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2948 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2952 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2955 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2956 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2959 @node Listing Groups
2960 @section Listing Groups
2961 @cindex group listing
2963 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2971 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2972 List all groups that have unread articles
2973 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2974 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2975 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2976 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2983 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2984 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2985 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2986 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2987 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2988 unsubscribed groups).
2992 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2993 List all unread groups on a specific level
2994 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2995 with no unread articles.
2999 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3000 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3001 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3002 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3007 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3008 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3012 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3013 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3014 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3018 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3019 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3023 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3024 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3025 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3026 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3027 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3028 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3029 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3030 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3034 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3035 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3036 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3040 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3041 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3042 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3046 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3047 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3051 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3052 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3056 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3057 List groups limited within the current selection
3058 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3062 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3063 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3067 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3068 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3072 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3073 @cindex visible group parameter
3074 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3075 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3076 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3077 get the same effect.
3079 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3080 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3081 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3082 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3083 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3086 @node Sorting Groups
3087 @section Sorting Groups
3088 @cindex sorting groups
3090 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3091 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3092 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3093 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3094 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3095 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3100 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3101 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3102 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3104 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3105 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3106 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3108 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3109 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3110 Sort by group level.
3112 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3113 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3114 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3116 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3117 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3118 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3119 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3121 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3122 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3123 Sort by number of unread articles.
3125 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3126 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3127 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3129 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3130 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3131 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3136 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3137 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3141 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3142 some sorting criteria:
3146 @kindex G S a (Group)
3147 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3148 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3149 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3152 @kindex G S u (Group)
3153 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3154 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3155 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3158 @kindex G S l (Group)
3159 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3160 Sort the group buffer by group level
3161 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3164 @kindex G S v (Group)
3165 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3166 Sort the group buffer by group score
3167 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3170 @kindex G S r (Group)
3171 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3172 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3173 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3176 @kindex G S m (Group)
3177 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3178 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3179 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3183 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3184 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3186 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3187 commands will sort in reverse order.
3189 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3193 @kindex G P a (Group)
3194 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3195 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3196 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3199 @kindex G P u (Group)
3200 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3201 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3202 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3205 @kindex G P l (Group)
3206 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3207 Sort the groups by group level
3208 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3211 @kindex G P v (Group)
3212 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3213 Sort the groups by group score
3214 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3217 @kindex G P r (Group)
3218 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3219 Sort the groups by group rank
3220 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3223 @kindex G P m (Group)
3224 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3225 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3226 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3230 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3234 @node Group Maintenance
3235 @section Group Maintenance
3236 @cindex bogus groups
3241 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3242 Find bogus groups and delete them
3243 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3247 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3248 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3249 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3250 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3251 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3255 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3256 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3257 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3258 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3259 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3260 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3263 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3264 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3265 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3266 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3271 @node Browse Foreign Server
3272 @section Browse Foreign Server
3273 @cindex foreign servers
3274 @cindex browsing servers
3279 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3280 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3281 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3282 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3285 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3286 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3287 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3288 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3290 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3295 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3296 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3300 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3301 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3304 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3305 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3306 Enter the current group and display the first article
3307 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3310 @kindex RET (Browse)
3311 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3312 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3316 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3317 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3318 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3324 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3325 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3329 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3330 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3331 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3336 @section Exiting Gnus
3337 @cindex exiting Gnus
3339 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3344 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3345 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3346 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3347 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3351 @findex gnus-group-exit
3352 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3353 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3357 @findex gnus-group-quit
3358 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3359 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3362 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3363 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3364 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3365 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3366 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3371 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3372 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3373 trying to customize meta-variables.
3378 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3379 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3380 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3386 @section Group Topics
3389 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3390 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3391 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3392 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3393 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3394 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3398 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3399 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3410 2: alt.religion.emacs
3413 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3415 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3416 13: comp.sources.unix
3419 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3421 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3422 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3423 is a toggling command.)
3425 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3426 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and
3427 now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3428 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3431 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3432 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3433 @file{~/.gnus} file:
3436 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3440 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3441 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3442 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3443 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3444 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3448 @node Topic Commands
3449 @subsection Topic Commands
3450 @cindex topic commands
3452 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3453 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3454 definitions slightly.
3456 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3457 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3458 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3459 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3460 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3461 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3463 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3470 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3471 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3472 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3476 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3478 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3479 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3480 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3481 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3484 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3485 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3486 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3487 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3491 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3492 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3493 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3494 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3500 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3501 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3502 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3506 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3507 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3508 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3511 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3512 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3513 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3514 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3515 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3517 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3518 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3522 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3523 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3530 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3532 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3533 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3534 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3535 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3536 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3537 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3541 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3547 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3548 Move the current group to some other topic
3549 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3550 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3554 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3555 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3559 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3560 Copy the current group to some other topic
3561 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3562 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3566 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3567 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3568 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3572 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3573 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3574 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3578 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3579 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3580 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3581 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3582 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3583 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3584 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3587 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3588 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3592 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3593 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3594 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3598 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3599 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3600 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3604 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3605 Toggle hiding empty topics
3606 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3610 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3611 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3612 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3615 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3616 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3617 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3618 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3621 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3622 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3623 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3624 expiry process (if any)
3625 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3629 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3630 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3633 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3634 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3635 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3639 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3640 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3641 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3644 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3645 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3646 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3649 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3650 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3651 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3655 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3656 @cindex group parameters
3657 @cindex topic parameters
3659 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3660 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3665 @node Topic Variables
3666 @subsection Topic Variables
3667 @cindex topic variables
3669 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3670 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3672 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3673 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3674 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3687 Number of groups in the topic.
3689 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3691 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3694 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3695 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3696 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3699 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3700 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3702 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3703 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3704 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3708 @subsection Topic Sorting
3709 @cindex topic sorting
3711 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3717 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3718 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3719 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3720 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3723 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3724 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3725 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3726 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3729 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3730 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3731 Sort the current topic by group level
3732 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3735 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3736 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3737 Sort the current topic by group score
3738 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3741 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3742 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3743 Sort the current topic by group rank
3744 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3747 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3748 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3749 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3750 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3753 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3754 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3755 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3756 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3760 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3763 @node Topic Topology
3764 @subsection Topic Topology
3765 @cindex topic topology
3768 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3774 2: alt.religion.emacs
3777 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3779 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3780 13: comp.sources.unix
3783 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3784 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3785 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3790 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3791 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3795 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3796 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3797 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3798 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3799 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3800 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3802 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3803 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3804 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3807 @node Topic Parameters
3808 @subsection Topic Parameters
3809 @cindex topic parameters
3811 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3812 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3813 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3815 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3820 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3821 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3822 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3825 @item subscribe-level
3826 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3827 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3828 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3832 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3833 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3834 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3835 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3841 2: alt.religion.emacs
3845 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3847 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3848 13: comp.sources.unix
3852 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3853 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3854 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3855 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3856 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3857 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3859 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3860 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3861 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3862 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3863 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3865 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3866 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3867 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3868 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3869 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3870 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3871 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3872 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3875 @node Misc Group Stuff
3876 @section Misc Group Stuff
3879 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3880 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3881 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3882 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3883 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3890 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3891 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3892 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3896 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3897 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3898 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3899 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3900 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3901 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3902 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3906 @findex gnus-group-mail
3907 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3908 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3909 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3910 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3914 @findex gnus-group-news
3915 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3916 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3917 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3919 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3920 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
3921 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3922 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
3923 for this to work though.
3927 Variables for the group buffer:
3931 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3932 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3933 is called after the group buffer has been
3936 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3937 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3938 is called after the group buffer is
3939 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3942 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3943 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3944 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3945 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3947 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3948 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3949 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3950 whether they are empty or not.
3952 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3953 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3954 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3955 non-ASCII group names.
3959 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3960 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3963 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3964 @cindex UTF-8 group names
3965 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3966 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
3967 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
3968 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is nil.
3972 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3973 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3978 @node Scanning New Messages
3979 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3980 @cindex new messages
3981 @cindex scanning new news
3987 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3988 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3989 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3990 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3991 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3992 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3997 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3998 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3999 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4000 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4001 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4002 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4003 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4005 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4006 @cindex activating groups
4008 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4009 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4014 @findex gnus-group-restart
4015 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4016 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4017 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
4021 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4022 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4024 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4025 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4029 @node Group Information
4030 @subsection Group Information
4031 @cindex group information
4032 @cindex information on groups
4039 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4040 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4043 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4044 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4045 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4046 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4047 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4048 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4049 for fetching the file.
4051 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4052 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4056 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4058 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4059 @cindex describing groups
4060 @cindex group description
4061 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4062 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4063 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4067 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4068 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4069 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4076 @findex gnus-version
4077 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4081 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4082 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4085 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4088 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4089 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4093 @node Group Timestamp
4094 @subsection Group Timestamp
4096 @cindex group timestamps
4098 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4099 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4100 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4103 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4106 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4108 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4109 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4112 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4113 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4116 This will result in lines looking like:
4119 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4120 0: custom 19961002T012713
4123 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4124 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4128 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4129 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4132 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4133 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4137 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4138 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4139 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4140 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4142 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4148 @subsection File Commands
4149 @cindex file commands
4155 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4156 @vindex gnus-init-file
4157 @cindex reading init file
4158 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4159 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4163 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4164 @cindex saving .newsrc
4165 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4166 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4167 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4170 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4171 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4172 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4177 @node Sieve Commands
4178 @subsection Sieve Commands
4179 @cindex group sieve commands
4181 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4182 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4183 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4184 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4185 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4187 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4188 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4189 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4190 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4191 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4192 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4193 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4194 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4195 regenerate the Sieve script.
4197 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4198 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4199 is generated. If it is non-nil (the default) articles is placed in
4200 all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article is only
4201 placed in the group with the first matching rule. For example, the
4202 group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4203 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4204 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is nil. (When
4205 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-nil, it looks the same except that
4206 the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4209 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4210 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4215 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4221 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4222 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4223 @cindex generating sieve script
4224 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4225 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4229 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4230 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4231 @cindex updating sieve script
4232 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4233 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4234 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4239 @node Summary Buffer
4240 @chapter Summary Buffer
4241 @cindex summary buffer
4243 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4244 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4246 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4247 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4249 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4252 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4253 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4254 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4255 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4256 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4257 * Delayed Articles::
4258 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4259 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4260 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4261 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4262 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4263 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4264 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4265 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4266 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4267 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4268 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4269 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4270 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4271 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4272 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4273 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4274 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4275 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4276 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4277 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4278 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4279 or reselecting the current group.
4280 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4281 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4282 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4283 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4287 @node Summary Buffer Format
4288 @section Summary Buffer Format
4289 @cindex summary buffer format
4293 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4294 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4295 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4301 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4302 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4303 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4304 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4307 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4308 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4309 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4310 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4311 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4312 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4313 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4314 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4315 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4316 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4317 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4320 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4321 'mail-extract-address-components)
4324 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4325 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4326 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4327 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4330 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4331 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4333 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4334 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4335 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4336 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4337 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4339 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4340 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4341 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4342 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4343 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4344 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4346 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%) %s\n}.
4348 The following format specification characters and extended format
4349 specification(s) are understood:
4355 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4356 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4358 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4359 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4360 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4362 Full @code{From} header.
4364 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4366 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
4367 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
4369 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4370 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4371 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4372 may be more thorough.
4374 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4377 Number of lines in the article.
4379 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4380 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4382 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4384 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4387 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4388 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4390 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4391 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4393 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4394 for adopted articles.
4396 One space for each thread level.
4398 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4400 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4403 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4404 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4405 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4408 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4410 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4411 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4412 default level. If the difference between
4413 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4414 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4422 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4424 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4430 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4431 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4433 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4434 article has any children.
4440 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4441 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4443 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4444 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4445 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4446 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4447 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4448 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4451 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4452 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4453 There can only be one such area.
4455 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4456 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4457 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4458 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4459 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4460 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4462 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4463 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4465 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4468 @node To From Newsgroups
4469 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4473 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4474 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4475 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4476 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4477 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4481 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4482 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4483 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4487 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4488 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4491 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4492 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4495 @findex gnus-extra-header
4496 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4497 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4498 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4501 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4505 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4506 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4507 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4508 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4509 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4510 headers are used instead.
4514 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4515 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4516 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4517 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4520 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4521 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4522 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4523 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4525 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4529 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4531 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4532 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4533 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4534 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4538 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4541 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4542 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4549 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4550 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4553 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4554 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4556 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4557 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4558 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4559 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4561 Here are the elements you can play with:
4567 Unprefixed group name.
4569 Current article number.
4571 Current article score.
4575 Number of unread articles in this group.
4577 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4580 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4581 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4582 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4583 and no unselected ones.
4585 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4586 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4588 Subject of the current article.
4590 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4592 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4594 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4596 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4598 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4600 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4604 @node Summary Highlighting
4605 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4609 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4610 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4611 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4612 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4613 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4615 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4616 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4617 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4618 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4620 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4621 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4622 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4623 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4625 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4626 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4627 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4628 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4629 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4630 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4633 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4634 ((> score default) . bold))
4636 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4637 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4641 @node Summary Maneuvering
4642 @section Summary Maneuvering
4643 @cindex summary movement
4645 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4646 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4648 None of these commands select articles.
4653 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4654 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4655 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4656 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4657 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4661 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4662 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4663 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4664 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4665 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4668 @kindex G g (Summary)
4669 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4670 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4671 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4674 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4675 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4676 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4677 to the group buffer.
4679 Variables related to summary movement:
4683 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4684 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4685 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4686 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4687 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4688 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4689 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4690 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4691 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4692 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4693 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4694 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4695 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4696 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4698 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4699 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4700 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4701 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4702 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4703 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4704 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4706 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4708 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4709 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4710 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4711 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4712 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4714 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4715 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4716 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4717 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4718 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4719 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4720 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4721 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4724 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4725 the given number of lines from the top.
4730 @node Choosing Articles
4731 @section Choosing Articles
4732 @cindex selecting articles
4735 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4736 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4740 @node Choosing Commands
4741 @subsection Choosing Commands
4743 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4744 and they all select and display an article.
4746 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4747 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4751 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4752 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4753 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4754 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4759 @kindex G n (Summary)
4760 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4761 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4762 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4767 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4768 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4769 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4774 @kindex G N (Summary)
4775 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4776 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4781 @kindex G P (Summary)
4782 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4783 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4786 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4787 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4788 Go to the next article with the same subject
4789 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4792 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4793 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4794 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4795 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4799 @kindex G f (Summary)
4801 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4802 Go to the first unread article
4803 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4807 @kindex G b (Summary)
4809 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4810 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4811 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4812 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4817 @kindex G l (Summary)
4818 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4819 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4822 @kindex G o (Summary)
4823 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4825 @cindex article history
4826 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4827 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4828 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4829 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4830 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4831 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4836 @kindex G j (Summary)
4837 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4838 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4839 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4844 @node Choosing Variables
4845 @subsection Choosing Variables
4847 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4850 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4851 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4852 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4853 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4854 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4855 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4857 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4858 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4859 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4860 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4862 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4863 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4864 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4865 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4866 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4867 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4868 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4869 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4870 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4871 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4872 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4873 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4874 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4875 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4880 @node Paging the Article
4881 @section Scrolling the Article
4882 @cindex article scrolling
4887 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4888 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4889 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4890 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4891 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4894 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4895 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4896 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4899 @kindex RET (Summary)
4900 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4901 Scroll the current article one line forward
4902 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4905 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4906 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4907 Scroll the current article one line backward
4908 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4912 @kindex A g (Summary)
4914 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4915 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4916 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4917 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4918 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4919 the way it came from the server.
4921 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4922 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4923 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4926 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4931 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4936 @kindex A < (Summary)
4937 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4938 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4939 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4944 @kindex A > (Summary)
4945 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4946 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4950 @kindex A s (Summary)
4952 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4953 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4954 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4958 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4959 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4964 @node Reply Followup and Post
4965 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4968 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4969 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4970 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4971 * Canceling and Superseding::
4975 @node Summary Mail Commands
4976 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4978 @cindex composing mail
4980 Commands for composing a mail message:
4986 @kindex S r (Summary)
4988 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4989 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4990 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4991 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4992 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4997 @kindex S R (Summary)
4998 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4999 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5000 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5001 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5002 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5005 @kindex S w (Summary)
5006 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5007 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5008 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5009 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5010 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5013 @kindex S V (Summary)
5014 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5015 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5016 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5017 the process/prefix convention.
5020 @kindex S v (Summary)
5021 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5022 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5023 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5024 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5025 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5026 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5030 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5031 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5032 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5033 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5034 Forward the current article to some other person
5035 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
5036 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
5037 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5038 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5039 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5040 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5041 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5042 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5043 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5048 @kindex S m (Summary)
5049 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5050 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5051 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5052 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5053 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5058 @kindex S i (Summary)
5059 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5060 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5061 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5062 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5064 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5065 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
5066 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5067 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5068 for this to work though.
5071 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5072 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5073 @cindex bouncing mail
5074 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5075 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5076 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5077 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5078 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5079 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5080 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5081 very well fail, though.
5084 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5085 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5086 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5087 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5088 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5089 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5090 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5091 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5092 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5093 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5095 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5096 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5097 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5098 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5099 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
5101 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5102 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5105 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5106 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5107 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5108 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5109 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5112 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5113 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5114 @cindex crossposting
5115 @cindex excessive crossposting
5116 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5117 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5119 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5120 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5121 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5122 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5123 command understands the process/prefix convention
5124 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5128 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5129 Manual}, for more information.
5132 @node Summary Post Commands
5133 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5135 @cindex composing news
5137 Commands for posting a news article:
5143 @kindex S p (Summary)
5144 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5145 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5146 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5147 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5148 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5153 @kindex S f (Summary)
5154 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5155 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5156 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5160 @kindex S F (Summary)
5162 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5163 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5164 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5165 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5166 process/prefix convention.
5169 @kindex S n (Summary)
5170 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5171 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5172 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5175 @kindex S N (Summary)
5176 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5177 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5178 message through mail and include the original message
5179 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5180 the process/prefix convention.
5183 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5184 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5185 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5186 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5187 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5188 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5189 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5190 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5191 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5192 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5193 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5194 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5195 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
5198 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5201 @cindex making digests
5202 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5203 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5204 process/prefix convention.
5207 @kindex S u (Summary)
5208 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5209 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5210 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5211 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5214 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5215 Manual}, for more information.
5218 @node Summary Message Commands
5219 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5223 @kindex S y (Summary)
5224 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5225 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5226 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5227 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5228 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5233 @node Canceling and Superseding
5234 @subsection Canceling Articles
5235 @cindex canceling articles
5236 @cindex superseding articles
5238 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5239 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5241 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5243 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5245 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5246 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5247 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5248 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5249 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5250 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5252 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5253 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5256 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5257 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5258 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5260 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5261 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5262 your original article.
5264 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5266 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5267 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5268 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5271 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5272 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5273 have posted almost the same article twice.
5275 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5276 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5277 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5278 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5279 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5280 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5281 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5282 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5283 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5284 canceled/superseded.
5286 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5288 @node Delayed Articles
5289 @section Delayed Articles
5290 @cindex delayed sending
5291 @cindex send delayed
5293 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5294 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5295 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5296 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5299 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5302 @findex gnus-delay-article
5303 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5304 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5305 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5306 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5310 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5311 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5312 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5313 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5316 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5317 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5318 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5321 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5322 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5323 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5324 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5325 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5326 that means a time tomorrow.
5329 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5330 couple of variables:
5333 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5334 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5335 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5336 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5338 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5339 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5340 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5341 formats described above.
5343 @item gnus-delay-group
5344 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5345 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5346 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5347 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5349 @item gnus-delay-header
5350 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5351 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5352 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5353 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5356 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5357 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5358 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5359 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5360 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5362 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5363 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5364 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5365 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5366 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5367 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5370 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5371 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5372 By default, this function installs the @kbd{C-c C-j} key binding in
5373 Message mode and @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5374 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts two optional arguments,
5375 @code{no-keymap} and @code{no-check}. If @code{no-keymap} is non-nil,
5376 the @kbd{C-c C-j} binding is not intalled. If @code{no-check} is
5377 non-nil, @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed.
5379 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to change the
5380 keymap but not to change @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. Presumably, you
5381 want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles. Just don't
5382 forget to set that up :-)
5386 @node Marking Articles
5387 @section Marking Articles
5388 @cindex article marking
5389 @cindex article ticking
5392 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5394 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5395 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5396 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5398 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5401 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5402 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5403 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5407 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5411 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5412 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5413 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5417 @node Unread Articles
5418 @subsection Unread Articles
5420 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5425 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5426 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5428 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5429 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5430 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5431 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5432 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5433 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5434 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5437 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5438 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5440 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5441 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5442 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5443 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5447 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5448 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5450 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5455 @subsection Read Articles
5456 @cindex expirable mark
5458 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5463 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5464 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5465 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5468 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5469 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5472 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5473 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5474 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5477 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5478 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5481 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5482 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5485 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5486 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5489 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5490 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5493 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5494 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5497 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5498 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5501 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5502 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5506 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5507 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5508 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5512 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5513 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5515 One more special mark, though:
5519 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5520 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5522 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5523 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5524 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5525 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5531 @subsection Other Marks
5532 @cindex process mark
5535 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5541 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5542 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5543 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5544 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5545 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5548 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5549 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5550 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5551 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5553 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5554 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5555 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5557 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5558 Articles that are ``recently'' arrived in the group will be marked
5559 with an @samp{N} in the second column (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Most
5560 back end doesn't support the mark, in which case it's not shown.
5563 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5564 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5565 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5568 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5569 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5570 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5571 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5574 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5575 Articles that according to the back end haven't been seen by the user
5576 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5577 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all back ends support this
5578 mark, in which case it simply never appear.
5581 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5582 Articles that haven't been seen by the user before are marked with a
5583 @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5586 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5587 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5588 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5589 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5590 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5593 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5594 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5595 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5596 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5597 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5598 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5602 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5603 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5604 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5606 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5607 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5608 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5612 @subsection Setting Marks
5613 @cindex setting marks
5615 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5620 @kindex M c (Summary)
5621 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5622 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5623 @cindex mark as unread
5624 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5625 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5631 @kindex M t (Summary)
5632 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5633 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5634 @xref{Article Caching}.
5639 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5640 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5641 Mark the current article as dormant
5642 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5646 @kindex M d (Summary)
5648 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5649 Mark the current article as read
5650 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5654 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5655 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5656 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5661 @kindex M k (Summary)
5662 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5663 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5664 and then select the next unread article
5665 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5669 @kindex M K (Summary)
5670 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5671 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5672 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5673 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5676 @kindex M C (Summary)
5677 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5678 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5679 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5682 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5683 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5684 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5685 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5688 @kindex M H (Summary)
5689 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5690 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5691 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5694 @kindex M h (Summary)
5695 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5696 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5697 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5700 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5701 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5702 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5703 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5706 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5707 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5708 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5709 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5713 @kindex M e (Summary)
5715 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5716 Mark the current article as expirable
5717 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5720 @kindex M b (Summary)
5721 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5722 Set a bookmark in the current article
5723 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5726 @kindex M B (Summary)
5727 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5728 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5729 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5732 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5733 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5734 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5735 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5738 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5739 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5740 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5741 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5744 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5745 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5746 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5747 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5748 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5751 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5752 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5753 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5754 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5755 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5756 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5757 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5758 The default is @code{t}.
5761 @node Generic Marking Commands
5762 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5764 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5765 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5766 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5767 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5768 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5771 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5772 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5775 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5776 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5777 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5778 to list in this manual.
5780 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5781 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5782 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5783 article, you could say something like:
5786 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5787 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5788 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5794 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5795 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5799 @node Setting Process Marks
5800 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5801 @cindex setting process marks
5808 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5809 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5810 Mark the current article with the process mark
5811 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5812 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5816 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5817 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5818 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5819 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5822 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5823 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5824 Remove the process mark from all articles
5825 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5828 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5829 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5830 Invert the list of process marked articles
5831 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5834 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5835 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5836 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5837 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5840 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5841 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5842 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5843 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5846 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5847 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5848 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5851 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5852 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5853 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5854 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5857 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5858 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5859 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5860 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5863 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5864 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5865 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5866 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5869 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5870 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5871 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5874 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5875 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5876 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5877 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5880 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5881 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5882 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5885 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5886 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5887 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5888 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5891 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5892 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5893 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5894 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5897 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5898 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5899 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5900 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5903 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5904 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5905 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5906 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5910 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5911 set process marks based on article body contents.
5918 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5919 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5920 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5923 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5924 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5925 additional articles.
5931 @kindex / / (Summary)
5932 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5933 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5934 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
5938 @kindex / a (Summary)
5939 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5940 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5941 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
5945 @kindex / x (Summary)
5946 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5947 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5948 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5949 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
5954 @kindex / u (Summary)
5956 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5957 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5958 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5959 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5960 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5963 @kindex / m (Summary)
5964 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5965 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5966 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5969 @kindex / t (Summary)
5970 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5971 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5972 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5973 articles younger than that number of days.
5976 @kindex / n (Summary)
5977 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5978 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5979 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5980 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5983 @kindex / w (Summary)
5984 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5985 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5986 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5990 @kindex / v (Summary)
5991 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5992 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5993 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5996 @kindex / p (Summary)
5997 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter
5998 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
5999 group parameter predicate
6000 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-parameter}). See @pxref{Group
6001 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6005 @kindex M S (Summary)
6006 @kindex / E (Summary)
6007 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6008 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6009 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6012 @kindex / D (Summary)
6013 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6014 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6015 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6018 @kindex / * (Summary)
6019 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6020 Include all cached articles in the limit
6021 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6024 @kindex / d (Summary)
6025 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6026 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6027 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6030 @kindex / M (Summary)
6031 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6032 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6035 @kindex / T (Summary)
6036 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6037 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6040 @kindex / c (Summary)
6041 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6042 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6043 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6046 @kindex / C (Summary)
6047 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6048 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6049 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6050 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6053 @kindex / N (Summary)
6054 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6055 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6056 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6059 @kindex / o (Summary)
6060 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6061 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6062 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6070 @cindex article threading
6072 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6073 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6074 hierarchical fashion.
6076 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6077 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6078 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6079 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6080 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6081 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6082 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6084 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6088 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6091 A tree-like article structure.
6094 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6097 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6098 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6099 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6100 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6101 called loose threads.
6103 @item thread gathering
6104 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6106 @item sparse threads
6107 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6108 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6114 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6115 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6119 @node Customizing Threading
6120 @subsection Customizing Threading
6121 @cindex customizing threading
6124 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6125 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6126 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6127 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
6132 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6135 @cindex loose threads
6138 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6139 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6140 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6141 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6142 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6143 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6145 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6146 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6147 There are four possible values:
6151 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6152 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6153 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6154 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6155 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6160 @cindex adopting articles
6165 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6166 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6167 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6168 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6171 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6172 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6173 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6174 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6175 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6176 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6177 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6180 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6181 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6182 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6186 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6187 display them after one another.
6190 Don't gather loose threads.
6193 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6194 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6195 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6196 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6197 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6198 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6199 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6200 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6201 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6202 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6203 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6205 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6206 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6207 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6210 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6211 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6212 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6213 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6214 simplification is used.
6216 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6217 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6218 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6219 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6221 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6223 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6229 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6230 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6231 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6232 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6237 (mapconcat 'identity
6238 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6240 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6243 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6246 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6247 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6248 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6249 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6250 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6251 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6253 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6256 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6257 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6258 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6260 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6261 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6264 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6265 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6266 Remove excessive whitespace.
6269 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6272 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6273 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6274 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6275 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6276 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6277 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6278 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6279 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6281 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6282 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6283 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6284 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6285 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6286 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6287 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6288 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6289 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6293 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6294 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6295 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6296 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6298 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6299 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6300 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6303 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6307 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6308 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6314 @node Filling In Threads
6315 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6318 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6319 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6320 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6321 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6322 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6323 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6324 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6325 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6326 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6327 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
6328 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
6329 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
6331 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6332 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6333 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6335 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6336 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6337 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6338 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6339 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6340 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6341 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6342 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6343 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6344 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6345 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6346 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6347 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6348 @code{nil} by default.
6350 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6351 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6352 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6353 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6354 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6355 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6356 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6358 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6359 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6360 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6365 @node More Threading
6366 @subsubsection More Threading
6369 @item gnus-show-threads
6370 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6371 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6372 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6373 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6374 slower and more awkward.
6376 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6377 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6378 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6381 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6382 Avaliable predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6383 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6388 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6389 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6390 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6393 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6394 unread, but you get my drift.)
6397 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6398 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6399 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6400 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6401 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6402 threads are expunged.
6404 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6405 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6406 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6409 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6410 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6411 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6412 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6413 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6414 result in a new thread.
6416 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6417 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6418 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6421 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6422 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6423 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6424 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6425 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6426 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6427 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6428 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6429 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6430 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6431 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6436 @node Low-Level Threading
6437 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6441 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6442 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6443 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6445 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6446 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6447 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6448 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6449 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6450 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6451 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6452 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6453 meaningful. Here's one example:
6456 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6458 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6459 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6461 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6463 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6470 @node Thread Commands
6471 @subsection Thread Commands
6472 @cindex thread commands
6478 @kindex T k (Summary)
6479 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6480 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6481 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6482 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6483 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6488 @kindex T l (Summary)
6489 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6490 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6491 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6492 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6495 @kindex T i (Summary)
6496 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6497 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6498 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6501 @kindex T # (Summary)
6502 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6503 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6504 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6507 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6508 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6509 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6510 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6513 @kindex T T (Summary)
6514 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6515 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6518 @kindex T s (Summary)
6519 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6520 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6521 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6524 @kindex T h (Summary)
6525 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6526 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6529 @kindex T S (Summary)
6530 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6531 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6534 @kindex T H (Summary)
6535 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6536 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6539 @kindex T t (Summary)
6540 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6541 Re-thread the current article's thread
6542 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6543 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6546 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6547 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6548 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6549 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6553 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6554 understand the numeric prefix.
6559 @kindex T n (Summary)
6561 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6563 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6564 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6565 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6568 @kindex T p (Summary)
6570 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6572 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6573 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6574 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6577 @kindex T d (Summary)
6578 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6579 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6582 @kindex T u (Summary)
6583 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6584 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6587 @kindex T o (Summary)
6588 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6589 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6592 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6593 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6594 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6595 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6596 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6597 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6598 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6599 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6600 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6601 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6602 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6603 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6607 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6608 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6610 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6611 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6612 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6613 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6614 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6615 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6616 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6617 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6618 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6619 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6620 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6621 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6623 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6624 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6625 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6626 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6627 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6628 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date} and
6629 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6631 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6632 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6633 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6635 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6636 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6637 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6638 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6639 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6640 ascending article order.
6642 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6643 by number, you could do something like:
6646 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6647 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6648 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6649 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6652 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6653 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6654 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6655 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6656 which the articles arrived.
6658 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6662 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6664 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6665 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6668 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6669 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6670 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6671 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6674 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6675 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6676 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6677 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6678 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6679 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6680 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6681 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6682 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6683 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6684 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6685 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6686 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6688 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6692 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6693 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6694 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6699 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6700 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6701 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6702 @cindex article pre-fetch
6705 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6706 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6707 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6708 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6709 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6711 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6712 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6714 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6715 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6716 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6717 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6718 connection is blocked.
6720 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6721 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6722 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6723 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6725 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6726 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6727 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6728 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6731 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6734 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6735 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6736 happen automatically.
6738 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6739 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6740 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6741 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6742 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
6743 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6744 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6746 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6747 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6748 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6749 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6750 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6751 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6752 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6753 data structure as the only parameter.
6755 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6758 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6759 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6760 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6761 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6764 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6767 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6768 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6769 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6771 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6772 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6773 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6774 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6778 Remove articles when they are read.
6781 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6784 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6786 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6787 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6788 @c from the next group.
6791 @node Article Caching
6792 @section Article Caching
6793 @cindex article caching
6796 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6797 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6798 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6799 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6800 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6802 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6804 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6805 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6806 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6807 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6808 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6809 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6810 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6811 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6813 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6814 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6815 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6816 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6817 as dormant, and don't worry.
6819 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6821 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6822 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6823 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6824 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6825 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6826 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6827 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6828 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6829 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6830 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6832 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6833 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6834 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6835 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6836 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6837 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6838 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6839 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6840 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6841 not then be downloaded by this command.
6843 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6844 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6845 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6846 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6847 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6848 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6850 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6851 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6852 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6853 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6854 variables, the group is not cached.
6856 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6857 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6858 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6859 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6860 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6861 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6862 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6863 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6864 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6867 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
6868 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
6869 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
6870 where, isn't that cool?
6872 @node Persistent Articles
6873 @section Persistent Articles
6874 @cindex persistent articles
6876 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6877 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6878 useful in my opinion.
6880 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6881 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6882 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6883 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6884 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6885 the expiry going on at the news server.
6887 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6888 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6889 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6895 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6896 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6899 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6900 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6901 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6902 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6906 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6908 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6909 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6910 interested in persistent articles:
6913 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6917 @node Article Backlog
6918 @section Article Backlog
6920 @cindex article backlog
6922 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6923 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6924 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6925 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6926 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6927 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6928 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6929 increase memory usage some.
6931 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6932 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6933 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6934 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6935 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6936 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6937 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6939 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6942 @node Saving Articles
6943 @section Saving Articles
6944 @cindex saving articles
6946 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6947 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6948 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6949 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6950 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6952 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6953 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6954 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6956 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6957 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6958 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6959 deleted before saving.
6965 @kindex O o (Summary)
6967 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6968 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6969 Save the current article using the default article saver
6970 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6973 @kindex O m (Summary)
6974 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6975 Save the current article in mail format
6976 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6979 @kindex O r (Summary)
6980 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6981 Save the current article in rmail format
6982 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6985 @kindex O f (Summary)
6986 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6987 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6988 Save the current article in plain file format
6989 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6992 @kindex O F (Summary)
6993 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6994 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6995 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6998 @kindex O b (Summary)
6999 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7000 Save the current article body in plain file format
7001 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7004 @kindex O h (Summary)
7005 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7006 Save the current article in mh folder format
7007 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7010 @kindex O v (Summary)
7011 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7012 Save the current article in a VM folder
7013 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7017 @kindex O p (Summary)
7019 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7020 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7021 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7024 @kindex O P (Summary)
7025 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7026 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7027 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7028 external program Muttprint (see
7029 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7030 options to use is controlled by the variable
7031 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7035 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7036 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7037 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7038 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7039 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7040 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7041 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7042 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7043 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7044 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7045 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7046 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7050 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7051 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7052 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7053 functions below, or you can create your own.
7057 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7058 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7059 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7060 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7061 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
7062 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7063 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7065 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7066 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7067 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7068 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7069 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7070 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7072 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7073 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7074 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7075 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7076 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7077 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7078 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7080 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7081 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7082 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7083 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7084 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7085 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7087 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7088 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7089 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7090 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7091 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7093 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7094 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7095 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7096 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7097 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7100 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7101 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7102 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7103 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7104 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7106 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7107 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7108 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7109 reader to use this setting.
7112 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7113 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7114 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7115 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7118 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7119 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7120 available functions that generate names:
7124 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7125 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7126 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7128 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7129 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7130 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7132 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7133 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7134 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7136 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7137 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7138 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7140 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7141 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7142 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7145 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7146 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7147 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7148 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7149 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7153 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7154 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7155 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7156 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7159 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7160 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7161 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7162 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7163 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7164 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7165 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7166 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7167 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7169 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7170 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7171 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7172 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7174 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7175 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7176 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7179 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7180 lots of mail groups called things like
7181 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7182 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7183 following will do just that:
7186 (defun my-save-name (group)
7187 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7188 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7190 (setq gnus-split-methods
7191 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7196 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7197 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7198 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7199 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7200 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7201 all the files in the top level directory
7202 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7203 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7204 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7205 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7207 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7208 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7209 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7210 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7211 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7214 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7218 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7219 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7220 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7223 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7224 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7225 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7226 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7229 @node Decoding Articles
7230 @section Decoding Articles
7231 @cindex decoding articles
7233 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7234 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7237 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7238 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7239 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7240 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7241 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7242 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7246 @cindex article series
7247 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7248 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7249 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7250 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7251 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7253 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7254 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7255 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7257 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7258 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7259 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7261 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7262 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7263 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7266 @node Uuencoded Articles
7267 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7269 @cindex uuencoded articles
7274 @kindex X u (Summary)
7275 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7276 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7277 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7280 @kindex X U (Summary)
7281 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7282 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7283 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7286 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7287 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7288 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7291 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7292 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7293 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7294 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7298 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7299 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7300 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7301 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7302 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7304 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7305 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7306 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7307 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7310 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7311 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7312 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7313 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7314 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7315 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7319 @node Shell Archives
7320 @subsection Shell Archives
7322 @cindex shell archives
7323 @cindex shared articles
7325 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7326 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7327 some commands to deal with these:
7332 @kindex X s (Summary)
7333 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7334 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7337 @kindex X S (Summary)
7338 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7339 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7342 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7343 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7344 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7347 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7348 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7349 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7350 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7354 @node PostScript Files
7355 @subsection PostScript Files
7361 @kindex X p (Summary)
7362 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7363 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7366 @kindex X P (Summary)
7367 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7368 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7369 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7372 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7373 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7374 View the current PostScript series
7375 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7378 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7379 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7380 View and save the current PostScript series
7381 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7386 @subsection Other Files
7390 @kindex X o (Summary)
7391 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7392 Save the current series
7393 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7396 @kindex X b (Summary)
7397 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7398 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7399 doesn't really work yet.
7403 @node Decoding Variables
7404 @subsection Decoding Variables
7406 Adjective, not verb.
7409 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7410 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7411 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7415 @node Rule Variables
7416 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7417 @cindex rule variables
7419 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7420 variables are of the form
7423 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7430 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7431 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7433 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7434 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7437 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7438 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7441 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7442 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7443 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7444 user and default view rules.
7446 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7447 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7448 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7453 @node Other Decode Variables
7454 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7457 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7459 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7460 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7461 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7462 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7463 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7467 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7468 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7471 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7472 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7473 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7476 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7477 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7478 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7479 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7480 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7483 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7484 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7485 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7487 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7488 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7489 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7490 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7491 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7494 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7495 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7496 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7498 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7499 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7500 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7501 looking for files to display.
7503 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7504 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7505 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7508 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7509 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7510 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7513 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7514 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7515 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7518 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7519 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7520 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7523 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7524 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7525 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7526 decoded articles as unread.
7528 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7529 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7530 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7531 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7533 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7534 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7535 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7537 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7538 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7540 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7541 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7542 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7543 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7545 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7546 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7547 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7548 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7549 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7550 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7551 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7552 simply dropped them.
7557 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7558 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7562 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7563 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7564 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7565 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7566 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7567 for you when you post the article.
7569 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7570 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7571 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7572 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7574 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7575 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7576 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7577 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7578 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7579 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7580 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7582 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7583 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7584 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7585 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7586 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7587 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7588 Default is @code{t}.
7594 @subsection Viewing Files
7595 @cindex viewing files
7596 @cindex pseudo-articles
7598 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7599 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7600 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7601 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7602 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7603 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7604 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7606 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7607 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7608 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7609 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7611 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7612 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7613 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7615 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7616 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7617 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7618 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7619 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7621 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7622 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7623 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7624 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7625 a list of parameters to that command.
7627 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7628 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7629 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7631 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7632 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7633 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7636 @node Article Treatment
7637 @section Article Treatment
7639 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7640 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7641 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7642 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7643 these articles easier.
7646 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7647 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7648 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7649 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7650 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7651 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7652 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7653 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7654 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7655 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7659 @node Article Highlighting
7660 @subsection Article Highlighting
7661 @cindex highlighting
7663 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7664 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7669 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7670 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7671 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7672 Do much highlighting of the current article
7673 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7674 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7677 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7678 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7679 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7680 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7681 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7682 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7683 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7684 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7685 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7686 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7687 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7688 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7691 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7692 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7693 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7695 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7698 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7700 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7701 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7702 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7704 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7705 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7706 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7708 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7709 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7710 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7711 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7712 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7713 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7715 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7716 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7717 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7719 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7720 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7721 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7723 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7724 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7725 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7726 that it's a citation.
7728 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7729 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7730 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7732 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7733 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7734 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7736 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7737 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7738 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7739 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7745 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7746 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7747 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7748 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7749 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7750 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7751 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7752 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7757 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7760 @node Article Fontisizing
7761 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7763 @cindex article emphasis
7765 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7766 @kindex W e (Summary)
7767 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7768 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7769 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7770 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7772 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7773 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7774 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7775 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7776 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7777 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7778 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7779 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7783 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7784 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7785 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7794 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7795 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7796 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7797 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7798 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7799 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7800 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7801 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7802 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7803 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7804 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7805 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7806 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7808 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7809 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7810 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7814 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7817 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7819 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7820 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7821 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7822 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7824 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7827 @node Article Hiding
7828 @subsection Article Hiding
7829 @cindex article hiding
7831 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7832 too much cruft in most articles.
7837 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7838 @findex gnus-article-hide
7839 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7840 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7841 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7844 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7845 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7846 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7850 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7851 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7852 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7853 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7856 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7857 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7858 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7862 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7863 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7864 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7865 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7866 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7867 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7868 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7869 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7873 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7874 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7875 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7876 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7881 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7882 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7883 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7884 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7885 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7886 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7887 articles that have signatures in them do:
7889 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7891 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7893 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7894 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7896 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7899 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7904 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7905 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7906 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7907 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7910 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7911 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7914 @cindex stripping advertisements
7915 @cindex advertisements
7916 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7917 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7918 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7919 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7920 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7921 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7922 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7923 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7924 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7925 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7929 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7930 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7931 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7932 customizing the hiding:
7936 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7937 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7938 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7939 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7940 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7941 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7942 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7947 Starting point of the hidden text.
7949 Ending point of the hidden text.
7951 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7953 Number of lines of hidden text.
7956 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7957 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7958 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7959 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7960 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7965 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7966 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7968 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7969 following two variables:
7972 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7973 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7974 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7975 50), hide the cited text.
7977 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7978 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7979 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7984 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7985 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7986 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7987 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7988 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7989 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7993 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7994 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7995 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7997 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7998 citation customization.
8000 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8004 @node Article Washing
8005 @subsection Article Washing
8007 @cindex article washing
8009 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8010 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8012 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8013 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8016 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8017 articles by default.
8022 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8023 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8027 @kindex W l (Summary)
8028 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8029 Remove page breaks from the current article
8030 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8034 @kindex W r (Summary)
8035 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8036 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8037 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8038 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8039 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8040 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8042 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8043 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8044 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8045 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8049 @kindex W t (Summary)
8051 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8052 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8053 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8056 @kindex W v (Summary)
8057 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
8058 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8059 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
8062 @kindex W o (Summary)
8063 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8064 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8067 @kindex W d (Summary)
8068 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8069 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8071 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8073 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8074 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8075 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8076 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8079 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8080 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8081 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8082 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8085 @kindex W w (Summary)
8086 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8087 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8089 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8093 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8094 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8095 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8098 @kindex W C (Summary)
8099 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8100 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8101 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8104 @kindex W c (Summary)
8105 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8106 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8107 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8108 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8109 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8112 @kindex W q (Summary)
8113 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8114 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8115 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
8116 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
8117 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
8118 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
8119 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
8120 header that says that this encoding has been done.
8121 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8124 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8125 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8126 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8127 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8128 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
8129 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8130 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8132 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8135 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8136 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8137 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8138 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8139 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8142 @kindex W u (Summary)
8143 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8144 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8145 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8146 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8147 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8150 @kindex W h (Summary)
8151 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8152 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that the this is
8153 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8154 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is HTML.
8156 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8158 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8159 The default is to use w3 to convert the HTML, but this is controlled
8160 by the @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined
8161 functions you can use include:
8164 @item gnus-article-wash-html-with-w3
8165 @findex gnus-article-wash-html-with-w3
8166 Use w3 (this is the default).
8168 @item gnus-article-wash-html-with-w3m
8169 @findex gnus-article-wash-html-with-w3m
8170 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8175 @kindex W b (Summary)
8176 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8177 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8178 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8181 @kindex W B (Summary)
8182 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8183 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8184 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8187 @kindex W p (Summary)
8188 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8189 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8190 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8191 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8192 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8193 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8194 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8197 @kindex W s (Summary)
8198 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8199 Verify a signed (PGP, PGP/MIME or S/MIME) message
8200 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8203 @kindex W W H (Summary)
8204 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
8205 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8206 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
8209 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8210 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8211 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8212 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8215 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8216 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8217 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8218 lines with a single empty line.
8219 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8222 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8223 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8224 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8225 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8228 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8229 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8230 Do all the three commands above
8231 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8234 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8235 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8236 Remove all blank lines
8237 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8240 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8241 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8242 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8243 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8246 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8247 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8248 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8249 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8253 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8256 @node Article Header
8257 @subsection Article Header
8259 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8264 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8265 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8266 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8269 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8270 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8271 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8272 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8275 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8276 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-header
8277 Fold all the message headers
8278 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8283 @node Article Buttons
8284 @subsection Article Buttons
8287 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8288 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8289 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8290 button on these references.
8292 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8293 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
8294 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
8299 @item gnus-button-alist
8300 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8301 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8304 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8310 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
8311 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
8312 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
8315 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8316 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8317 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8320 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8321 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8322 avoid false matches.
8325 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8328 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8329 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8333 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8336 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8339 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8340 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8341 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8342 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8343 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8346 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8349 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8351 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8352 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8353 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8354 default values of the variables above.
8356 @item gnus-article-button-face
8357 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8358 Face used on buttons.
8360 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8361 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8362 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8366 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8370 @subsection Article Date
8372 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8373 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8374 when the article was sent.
8379 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8380 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8381 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8382 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8385 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8386 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8388 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8389 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8392 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8393 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8394 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8397 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8398 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8399 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8400 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8403 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8404 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8405 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8406 @findex format-time-string
8407 Display the date using a user-defined format
8408 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8409 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8410 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8411 for a list of possible format specs.
8414 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8415 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8416 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8417 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8418 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8419 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8422 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8425 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8426 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8429 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8430 into wonderful absurdities.
8432 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8435 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8438 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8439 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8443 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8444 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8445 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8446 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8447 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8448 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8449 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8453 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8454 preferred format automatically.
8457 @node Article Display
8458 @subsection Article Display
8463 These commands add various frivolous display gimmics to the article
8464 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8466 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8467 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8469 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8470 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8472 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8473 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8475 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8480 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8481 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8482 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8483 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8486 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8487 @findex gnus-smiley-smiley
8488 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8491 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8492 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8493 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8496 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8497 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8498 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8499 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8502 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8503 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8504 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8505 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8508 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8509 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8510 Remove all images from the article buffer
8511 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8517 @node Article Signature
8518 @subsection Article Signature
8520 @cindex article signature
8522 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8523 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8524 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8525 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8526 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8527 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8528 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8529 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8530 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8533 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8534 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8535 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8536 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8537 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8538 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8539 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8540 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8543 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8546 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8547 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8548 signature when displaying articles.
8552 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8555 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8558 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8559 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8561 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8562 in question is not a signature.
8565 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8566 listed above. Here's an example:
8569 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8570 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8573 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8574 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8575 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8576 signature after all.
8579 @node Article Miscellania
8580 @subsection Article Miscellania
8584 @kindex A t (Summary)
8585 @findex gnus-article-babel
8586 Translate the article from one language to another
8587 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8593 @section @sc{mime} Commands
8594 @cindex MIME decoding
8596 @cindex viewing attachments
8598 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8599 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8605 @kindex K v (Summary)
8606 View the @sc{mime} part.
8609 @kindex K o (Summary)
8610 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8613 @kindex K c (Summary)
8614 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8617 @kindex K e (Summary)
8618 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8621 @kindex K i (Summary)
8622 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8625 @kindex K | (Summary)
8626 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8629 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8634 @kindex K b (Summary)
8635 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8636 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8640 @kindex K m (Summary)
8641 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8642 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8643 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8644 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8645 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8648 @kindex X m (Summary)
8649 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8650 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8651 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8652 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8655 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8656 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8657 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8658 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8661 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8662 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8663 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8666 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8667 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8668 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8670 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8671 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8672 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8673 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
8674 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
8675 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8678 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8679 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8680 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8687 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8688 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8689 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8690 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8693 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8696 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8700 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8701 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8702 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8703 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8704 displayed or this variable is overriden by
8705 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
8708 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8709 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8710 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8711 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8712 displayed. This variable overrides
8713 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
8715 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
8716 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
8717 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} to the default value.
8719 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8720 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8721 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8722 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8723 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8724 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8725 save all jpegs into some directory).
8727 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8730 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8731 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8733 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8734 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8735 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8736 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8737 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8740 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8741 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8742 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8744 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8745 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8746 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8747 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8749 Ready-made functions include@*
8750 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8751 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8752 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8753 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8754 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8755 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8756 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8757 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8758 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8759 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8760 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8761 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8763 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8764 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8766 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8767 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8768 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8771 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8772 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8773 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8774 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8778 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8787 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8788 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8789 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8790 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8791 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8792 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8793 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8795 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8796 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8797 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8798 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8800 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8801 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
8802 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8803 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8804 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
8805 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8806 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
8807 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
8809 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8810 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8811 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8812 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8813 quoted-printable header encoding.
8815 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8816 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8817 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8821 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8824 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8825 means encode all charsets),
8827 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8828 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8829 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8836 @cindex coding system aliases
8837 @cindex preferred charset
8839 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8841 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8842 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8845 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8846 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8849 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8850 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8852 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8855 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8858 This will almost do the right thing.
8860 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8864 (codepage-setup 1251)
8865 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8869 @node Article Commands
8870 @section Article Commands
8877 @kindex A P (Summary)
8878 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8879 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8880 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8881 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
8882 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
8883 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
8888 @node Summary Sorting
8889 @section Summary Sorting
8890 @cindex summary sorting
8892 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8893 can't really see why you'd want that.
8898 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8899 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8900 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8903 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8904 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8905 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8908 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8909 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8910 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8913 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8914 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8915 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8918 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8919 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8920 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8923 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8924 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8925 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8928 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8929 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8930 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8933 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8934 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8935 Sort using the default sorting method
8936 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8939 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8940 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8941 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8942 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8943 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8947 @node Finding the Parent
8948 @section Finding the Parent
8949 @cindex parent articles
8950 @cindex referring articles
8955 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8956 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8957 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8958 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8959 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8960 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8961 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8962 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8963 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8965 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8966 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8967 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8968 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8969 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8973 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8974 @kindex A R (Summary)
8975 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8976 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8979 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8980 @kindex A T (Summary)
8981 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8982 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8983 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8984 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8985 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8986 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8987 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8989 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8990 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8991 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8992 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8993 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8994 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8997 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8998 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9000 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9001 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
9002 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9003 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9004 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9005 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9006 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9009 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9010 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9011 by giving this command a prefix.
9013 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9014 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9015 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9016 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
9017 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
9018 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9021 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9022 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9023 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9026 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9027 then ask Deja if that fails:
9030 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9032 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
9035 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9036 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox}
9037 and @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
9038 @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder} and @code{nnimap}1 are only able to locate
9039 articles that have been posted to the current group. (Anything else
9040 would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at
9044 @node Alternative Approaches
9045 @section Alternative Approaches
9047 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9048 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9051 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9052 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9057 @subsection Pick and Read
9058 @cindex pick and read
9060 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9061 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9062 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9063 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9065 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9066 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9067 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9068 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9069 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9070 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9072 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9077 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9078 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9079 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9080 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9081 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9082 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9083 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9084 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9087 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9088 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9089 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9090 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9094 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9095 Unpick the thread or article
9096 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9097 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9098 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9099 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9100 the thread or article at that line.
9104 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9105 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9106 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9107 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9108 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9109 will still be visible when you are reading.
9113 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9114 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9115 which is mapped to the same function
9116 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9118 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9121 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9124 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9125 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9127 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9128 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9129 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9131 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9132 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9133 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9134 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9135 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9136 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9137 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9141 @subsection Binary Groups
9142 @cindex binary groups
9144 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9145 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9146 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9147 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9148 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9149 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9150 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9153 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9154 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9155 command, when you have turned on this mode
9156 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9158 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9159 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9163 @section Tree Display
9166 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9167 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9168 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9169 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9172 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9175 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9176 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9177 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9179 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9180 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9181 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9182 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9183 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9185 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9186 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9187 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9188 default is @code{modeline}.
9190 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9191 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9192 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9193 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9194 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9195 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9196 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9202 The name of the poster.
9204 The @code{From} header.
9206 The number of the article.
9208 The opening bracket.
9210 The closing bracket.
9215 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9217 Variables related to the display are:
9220 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9221 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9222 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9223 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9224 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9225 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9227 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9228 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9229 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9230 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9234 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9235 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9236 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9237 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9238 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9239 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9240 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9241 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9242 other windows displayed next to it.
9244 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9248 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9249 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9252 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9253 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9254 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9255 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9256 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9257 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9258 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9262 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9265 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9275 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9279 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9280 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9282 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9284 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9289 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9290 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9291 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
9294 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9295 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9296 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9297 (gnus-add-configuration
9301 (summary 0.75 point)
9306 @xref{Window Layout}.
9309 @node Mail Group Commands
9310 @section Mail Group Commands
9311 @cindex mail group commands
9313 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9314 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9316 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9317 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9322 @kindex B e (Summary)
9323 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9324 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9325 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9326 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9327 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9330 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9331 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9332 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9333 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9334 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9335 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9338 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9339 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9340 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9341 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9342 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9343 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9346 @kindex B m (Summary)
9348 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9349 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9350 Move the article from one mail group to another
9351 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9352 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9355 @kindex B c (Summary)
9357 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9358 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9359 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9360 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9361 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9364 @kindex B B (Summary)
9365 @cindex crosspost mail
9366 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9367 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9368 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9369 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9370 be properly updated.
9373 @kindex B i (Summary)
9374 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9375 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9376 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9377 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9380 @kindex B r (Summary)
9381 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9382 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9383 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9384 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9385 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9386 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9387 (which is the default).
9391 @kindex B w (Summary)
9393 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9394 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9395 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9396 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9397 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9398 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9401 @kindex B q (Summary)
9402 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9403 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9404 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9405 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9408 @kindex B t (Summary)
9409 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9410 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9411 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9414 @kindex B p (Summary)
9415 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9416 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
9417 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9418 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9419 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9420 article from your news server (or rather, from
9421 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9422 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9423 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9424 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9425 just not have arrived yet.
9429 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9430 @cindex moving articles
9431 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9432 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9433 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9434 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9435 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9436 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9437 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9440 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9441 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9442 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9443 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9447 @node Various Summary Stuff
9448 @section Various Summary Stuff
9451 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9452 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9453 * Summary Generation Commands::
9454 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9458 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9459 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9460 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9462 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9463 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9464 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9465 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9466 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9467 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9470 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9471 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9472 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9473 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9474 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9476 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9477 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9478 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9481 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9482 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9483 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9484 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9485 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9486 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9487 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
9488 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9489 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9490 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9492 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9493 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9494 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9495 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9496 list of articles to be selected.
9498 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9499 the list in one particular group:
9502 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9503 (if (string= group "some.group")
9504 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9508 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
9509 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
9510 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
9511 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
9512 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
9513 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
9514 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
9515 buffers. For example:
9518 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
9519 '(message-use-followup-to
9520 (gnus-visible-headers .
9521 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
9527 @node Summary Group Information
9528 @subsection Summary Group Information
9533 @kindex H f (Summary)
9534 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9535 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9536 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9537 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9538 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9539 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9540 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9541 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9542 be used for fetching the file.
9545 @kindex H d (Summary)
9546 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9547 Give a brief description of the current group
9548 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9549 rereading the description from the server.
9552 @kindex H h (Summary)
9553 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9554 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9555 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9558 @kindex H i (Summary)
9559 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9560 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9564 @node Searching for Articles
9565 @subsection Searching for Articles
9570 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9571 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9572 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9573 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9576 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9577 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9578 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9579 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9583 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9584 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9585 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9586 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9587 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9588 search backward instead.
9590 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9591 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9594 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9595 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9596 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9597 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9600 @node Summary Generation Commands
9601 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9606 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9607 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9608 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9611 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9612 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9613 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9614 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9619 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9620 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9626 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9627 @kindex A D (Summary)
9628 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9629 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9630 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9631 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9632 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9633 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9634 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9635 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9639 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
9640 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9641 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9642 several documents into one biiig group
9643 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9644 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9645 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9646 command understands the process/prefix convention
9647 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9650 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9651 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9652 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9653 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9654 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9655 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9659 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9660 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9661 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9664 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
9665 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9666 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9667 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9670 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
9671 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9672 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9673 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9678 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9679 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9680 @cindex summary exit
9681 @cindex exiting groups
9683 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9684 group and return you to the group buffer.
9690 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9692 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9693 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9694 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9695 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9696 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9697 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9698 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9699 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9700 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9701 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9702 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9706 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9708 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9709 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9710 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9714 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9716 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9717 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9718 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9719 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9722 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9723 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9724 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9725 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9728 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9729 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9730 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9731 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9734 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9735 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9736 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9737 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9738 all articles, both read and unread.
9742 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9743 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9744 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9745 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9746 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9747 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9748 articles, both read and unread.
9751 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9752 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9753 Exit the group and go to the next group
9754 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9757 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9758 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9759 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9760 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9763 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9764 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9765 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9766 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9767 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9768 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9771 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9772 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9773 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9774 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9776 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9777 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9778 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9779 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9780 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9781 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9782 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9783 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9784 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9785 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9786 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9787 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9789 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9791 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9792 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9793 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9794 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9795 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9796 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9797 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9798 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9799 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9802 @node Crosspost Handling
9803 @section Crosspost Handling
9807 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9808 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9809 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9810 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9811 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9812 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9815 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9816 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9817 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9818 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9819 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9821 @cindex cross-posting
9824 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9825 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9826 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9827 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9828 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9829 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9830 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9831 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9832 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9833 the cross reference mechanism.
9835 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9836 @cindex overview.fmt
9837 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9838 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9839 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9840 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9841 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9842 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9845 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9846 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9847 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9852 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9855 @node Duplicate Suppression
9856 @section Duplicate Suppression
9858 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9859 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9860 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9861 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9866 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9867 is evil and not very common.
9870 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9871 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9874 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9875 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9878 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9881 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9882 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9884 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9885 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9886 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9887 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9888 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9889 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9890 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9893 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9894 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9895 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9896 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9897 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9901 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9902 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9903 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9905 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9906 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9907 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9908 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9909 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9910 session are suppressed.
9912 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9913 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9914 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9915 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9917 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9918 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9919 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9920 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9923 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9924 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9925 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9926 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9927 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9928 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9929 to you to figure out, I think.
9934 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
9935 The formats that are supported are PGP, PGP/MIME and S/MIME, however
9936 you need some external programs to get things to work:
9940 To handle PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or gpg.el as
9941 well as a OpenPGP implementation (such as GnuPG).
9944 To handle S/MIME message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
9945 or newer is recommended.
9949 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
9950 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
9953 @item mm-verify-option
9954 @vindex mm-verify-option
9955 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9956 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9957 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9959 @item mm-decrypt-option
9960 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9961 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9962 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
9963 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9968 @section Mailing List
9970 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
9971 either add a `to-list' group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
9972 possibly using @kbd{A M} in the summary buffer, or say:
9975 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'turn-on-gnus-mailing-list-mode)
9978 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
9983 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
9984 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
9985 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
9988 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
9989 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
9990 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
9993 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
9994 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
9995 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
9999 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10000 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10001 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10004 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10005 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10006 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10009 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10010 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10011 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10015 @node Article Buffer
10016 @chapter Article Buffer
10017 @cindex article buffer
10019 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10020 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10021 tell Gnus otherwise.
10024 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10025 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
10026 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10027 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10028 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10032 @node Hiding Headers
10033 @section Hiding Headers
10034 @cindex hiding headers
10035 @cindex deleting headers
10037 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10038 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10040 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10041 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10042 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10043 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10044 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10045 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10046 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10047 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10048 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10050 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10054 @item gnus-visible-headers
10055 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10056 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10057 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10058 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10060 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10061 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10064 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10067 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10070 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10071 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10072 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10073 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10074 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10075 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10077 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
10078 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
10081 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10084 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10087 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10088 variable will have no effect.
10092 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10093 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10094 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10095 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10096 the headers are to be displayed.
10098 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10099 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10102 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10105 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10106 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10108 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10109 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10110 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10111 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10112 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10113 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10114 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10117 These conditions are:
10120 Remove all empty headers.
10122 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10123 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10125 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10126 @code{From} header.
10128 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10131 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10132 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10134 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10137 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10139 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10142 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
10145 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10146 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10149 This is also the default value for this variable.
10153 @section Using MIME
10156 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10157 while people stand around yawning.
10159 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10160 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10162 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10163 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10164 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10166 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10167 @findex gnus-display-mime
10168 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10169 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10170 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10171 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
10173 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10177 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10178 @item RET (Article)
10179 @kindex RET (Article)
10180 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10181 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
10182 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
10184 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10185 @item M-RET (Article)
10186 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10188 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10189 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10191 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10193 @kindex t (Article)
10194 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
10195 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10197 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10199 @kindex C (Article)
10200 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10201 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10203 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10205 @kindex o (Article)
10206 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
10207 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10209 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10210 @item C-o (Article)
10211 @kindex C-o (Article)
10212 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
10213 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10214 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10215 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
10216 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
10217 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10219 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10221 @kindex c (Article)
10222 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10223 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
10225 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10227 @kindex p (Article)
10228 Print the @sc{mime} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10229 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10230 @file{.mailcap} file.
10232 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10234 @kindex i (Article)
10235 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
10236 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10237 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10238 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10239 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10242 @findex gnus-mime-internalize-part
10244 @kindex E (Article)
10245 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10246 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10247 (@code{gnus-mime-internalize-part}).
10249 @findex gnus-mime-externalize-part
10251 @kindex e (Article)
10252 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
10253 (@code{gnus-mime-externalize-part}).
10255 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10257 @kindex | (Article)
10258 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10260 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10262 @kindex . (Article)
10263 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
10264 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10268 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10269 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
10272 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10273 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10274 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
10275 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10276 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10277 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10278 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10279 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10280 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10282 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10284 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10287 @node Customizing Articles
10288 @section Customizing Articles
10289 @cindex article customization
10291 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10292 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
10293 called automatically when you select the articles.
10295 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10296 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10297 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10298 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10300 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10301 for sensible values.
10305 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10308 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10311 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10314 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10317 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10321 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10322 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10323 regexps in the list.
10326 A list where the first element is not a string:
10328 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10329 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10330 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10334 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10339 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10340 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10341 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10342 considered to contain just a single part.
10344 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10345 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10346 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10347 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10348 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10349 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10350 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10352 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10353 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10354 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10355 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10358 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10359 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10361 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10363 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10364 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10365 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10366 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10367 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10368 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10369 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10370 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
10371 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10372 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10374 @xref{Article Washing}.
10376 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10377 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10378 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10379 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10380 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10381 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10382 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10384 @xref{Article Date}.
10386 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10387 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10388 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10392 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10394 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10396 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10397 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10398 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10402 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10406 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10407 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10408 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10409 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10410 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10411 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10412 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10413 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10415 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10417 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10418 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10419 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10421 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10423 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10424 @item gnus-treat-translate
10425 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10427 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10428 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10429 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10435 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10436 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10437 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10438 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10439 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10443 @node Article Keymap
10444 @section Article Keymap
10446 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10447 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10448 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10449 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10452 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10457 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10458 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10459 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10462 @kindex DEL (Article)
10463 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10464 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10467 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10468 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10469 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10470 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10471 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10474 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10475 @findex gnus-article-mail
10476 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10477 given a prefix, include the mail.
10480 @kindex s (Article)
10481 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10482 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
10483 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
10486 @kindex ? (Article)
10487 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
10488 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
10489 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
10492 @kindex TAB (Article)
10493 @findex gnus-article-next-button
10494 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
10495 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
10498 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
10499 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
10500 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
10503 @kindex R (Article)
10504 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
10505 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
10506 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
10507 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10511 @kindex F (Article)
10512 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
10513 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
10514 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
10515 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10523 @section Misc Article
10527 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
10528 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
10529 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
10530 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
10533 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
10534 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
10536 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
10537 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
10539 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
10540 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
10541 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
10542 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
10543 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
10544 the contents of the article buffer.
10546 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
10547 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
10548 Hook called in article mode buffers.
10550 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10551 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10552 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
10553 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
10555 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
10556 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
10557 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
10558 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
10559 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
10565 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
10566 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
10567 performed. The characters and their meaning:
10572 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
10575 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
10578 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
10579 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
10580 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
10583 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
10586 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
10589 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
10594 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
10598 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10600 @item gnus-break-pages
10601 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10602 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10603 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10604 paging will not be done.
10606 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10607 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10608 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10613 @node Composing Messages
10614 @chapter Composing Messages
10615 @cindex composing messages
10618 @cindex sending mail
10623 @cindex using s/mime
10624 @cindex using smime
10626 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10627 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10628 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10629 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
10630 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10631 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10634 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10635 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
10636 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10637 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10638 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10639 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10640 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10641 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
10644 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10645 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10651 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10654 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10655 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10656 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10657 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
10659 @item gnus-add-to-list
10660 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10661 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10662 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10667 @node Posting Server
10668 @section Posting Server
10670 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10671 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10673 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10675 @vindex gnus-post-method
10677 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
10678 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
10679 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
10680 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
10681 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
10682 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
10683 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10686 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10689 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10690 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10691 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10692 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10694 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10695 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10697 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10698 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10701 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10702 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
10705 @node Mail and Post
10706 @section Mail and Post
10708 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10712 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10713 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10714 @cindex mailing lists
10716 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10717 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10718 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10719 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10720 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10721 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10722 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10723 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10724 still a pain, though.
10728 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10729 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10730 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10733 @findex ispell-message
10735 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10738 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10739 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10742 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10746 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10747 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10749 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10752 Modify to suit your needs.
10755 @node Archived Messages
10756 @section Archived Messages
10757 @cindex archived messages
10758 @cindex sent messages
10760 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10761 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10762 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10763 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10766 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10767 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10768 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10771 (nnfolder "archive"
10772 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10773 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10774 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10775 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10778 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10779 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10780 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10781 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10784 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10785 '(nnfolder "archive"
10786 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10787 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10788 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10791 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10793 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10794 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10795 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10797 This variable can be used to do the following:
10802 Messages will be saved in that group.
10804 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10805 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10806 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10807 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10808 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10809 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10810 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10811 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10815 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10817 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10818 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10821 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10826 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10828 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10831 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10833 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10836 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10838 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10839 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10840 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10841 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10844 More complex stuff:
10846 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10847 '((if (message-news-p)
10852 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10853 messages in one file per month:
10856 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10857 '((if (message-news-p)
10859 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10862 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10863 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10865 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10866 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
10867 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
10868 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
10869 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
10870 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
10871 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
10872 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
10873 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
10874 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
10876 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
10877 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
10878 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
10879 this will disable archiving.
10882 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
10883 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
10884 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
10885 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
10886 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
10889 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
10890 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
10891 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
10894 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
10895 but the latter is the preferred method.
10897 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
10898 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
10899 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
10901 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
10902 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
10903 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
10904 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
10905 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
10906 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
10907 changed in the future.
10912 @node Posting Styles
10913 @section Posting Styles
10914 @cindex posting styles
10917 All them variables, they make my head swim.
10919 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
10920 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
10921 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
10924 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
10925 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
10926 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
10927 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
10928 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
10933 (signature "Peace and happiness")
10934 (organization "What me?"))
10936 (signature "Death to everybody"))
10937 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
10938 (organization "Emacs is it")))
10941 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
10942 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
10943 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
10944 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
10945 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
10946 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
10947 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
10948 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
10950 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
10951 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
10952 If it is the form @code{(header MATCH REGEXP)}, then Gnus will look in
10953 the original article for a header whose name is MATCH and compare that
10954 REGEXP. MATCH and REGEXP are strings. If it's a function symbol, that
10955 function will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol,
10956 then the variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list
10957 will be @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil}
10958 value, then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
10960 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
10961 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
10962 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10963 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
10964 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
10965 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
10966 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
10967 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
10968 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
10969 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
10972 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10973 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10974 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10975 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10976 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10977 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
10978 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
10979 references chars lines xref extra.
10981 @vindex message-reply-headers
10983 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10984 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10985 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10987 @findex message-mail-p
10988 @findex message-news-p
10990 So here's a new example:
10993 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10995 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10997 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10998 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11000 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11001 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; A form
11002 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11003 (message-news-p ;; A function symbol
11004 (signature my-news-signature))
11005 (window-system ;; A value symbol
11006 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11007 ;; If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.
11008 ((header "to" "larsi.*org")
11009 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11010 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; A user defined function
11011 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11012 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11013 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11014 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11016 (From (save-excursion
11017 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11018 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11020 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11023 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11024 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11025 if you fill many roles.
11032 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11033 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11034 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11035 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11036 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11038 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11039 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11040 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11041 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11042 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11046 @vindex nndraft-directory
11047 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11048 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11049 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11050 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11051 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11052 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11054 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11055 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11058 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11059 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11060 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11061 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11062 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11063 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11064 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11065 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11066 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11067 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11068 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11069 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11070 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11071 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11073 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11074 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11075 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11077 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11078 @kindex D e (Draft)
11079 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11080 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11081 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11083 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11086 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11087 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11088 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11089 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11090 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11091 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11092 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11095 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11096 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11097 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11100 @node Rejected Articles
11101 @section Rejected Articles
11102 @cindex rejected articles
11104 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11105 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11106 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11107 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11109 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
11110 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11111 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11112 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
11113 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11115 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11116 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11117 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11119 @node Signing and encrypting
11120 @section Signing and encrypting
11122 @cindex using s/mime
11123 @cindex using smime
11125 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11126 format or PGP/MIME or S/MIME. For decoding such messages, see the
11127 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11128 (@pxref{Security}).
11130 For PGP, Gnus supports two external libraries, @sc{gpg.el} and
11131 @sc{Mailcrypt}, you need to install at least one of them. The S/MIME
11132 support in Gnus requires the external program OpenSSL.
11134 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a MIME part is done
11135 using the @code{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @code{C-c C-m
11136 c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11141 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11142 @findex mml-secure-sign-smime
11144 Digitally sign current MIME part using S/MIME.
11147 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11148 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11150 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP.
11153 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11154 @findex mml-secure-sign-pgp
11156 Digitally sign current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11159 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11160 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-smime
11162 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using S/MIME.
11165 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11166 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgp
11168 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP.
11171 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11172 @findex mml-secure-encrypt-pgpmime
11174 Digitally encrypt current MIME part using PGP/MIME.
11178 Also @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}.
11180 @node Select Methods
11181 @chapter Select Methods
11182 @cindex foreign groups
11183 @cindex select methods
11185 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11186 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11187 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11188 personal mail group.
11190 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11191 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11192 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11193 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11194 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11195 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11197 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11198 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11200 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11203 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11204 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11205 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11206 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11207 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11209 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11212 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11213 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11214 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11215 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11216 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11217 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11218 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11219 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11223 @node Server Buffer
11224 @section Server Buffer
11226 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11227 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11228 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11229 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11230 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11231 back end represents a virtual server.
11233 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11234 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11235 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11236 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11238 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11239 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11240 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11241 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11242 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11243 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11244 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11246 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11247 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11250 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11251 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11252 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11253 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11254 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11255 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11256 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11259 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11260 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11263 @node Server Buffer Format
11264 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11265 @cindex server buffer format
11267 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11268 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11269 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11270 variable, with some simple extensions:
11275 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11278 The name of this server.
11281 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11284 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11287 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11288 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11289 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11290 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11300 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11303 @node Server Commands
11304 @subsection Server Commands
11305 @cindex server commands
11311 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11312 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11316 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11317 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11320 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11321 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11322 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11326 @findex gnus-server-exit
11327 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11331 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11332 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11336 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11337 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11341 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11342 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11346 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11347 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11351 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11352 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11353 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
11358 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
11359 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
11360 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
11361 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
11366 @node Example Methods
11367 @subsection Example Methods
11369 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
11372 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
11375 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
11381 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
11382 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
11385 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
11386 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
11388 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
11389 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
11393 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
11396 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
11397 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
11399 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
11400 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
11401 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
11405 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
11408 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
11411 Here's the method for a public spool:
11415 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
11416 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
11422 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
11423 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
11424 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
11425 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
11426 should probably look something like this:
11430 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
11431 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
11432 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
11433 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11436 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
11437 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
11438 configuration to the example above:
11441 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
11444 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
11445 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
11446 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
11450 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11451 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
11452 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
11453 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11456 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
11457 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
11458 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
11459 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
11462 @node Creating a Virtual Server
11463 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
11465 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
11466 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
11468 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
11469 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
11470 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
11472 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
11474 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
11475 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
11476 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
11477 will contain the following:
11487 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
11488 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
11489 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
11492 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
11493 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
11494 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
11497 @node Server Variables
11498 @subsection Server Variables
11500 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
11501 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
11502 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
11503 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
11504 won't change the "derived" variables.
11506 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
11507 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
11508 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
11509 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
11510 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
11511 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
11512 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
11513 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
11514 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
11518 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
11519 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
11520 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
11524 @node Servers and Methods
11525 @subsection Servers and Methods
11527 Wherever you would normally use a select method
11528 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
11529 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
11530 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
11534 @node Unavailable Servers
11535 @subsection Unavailable Servers
11537 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
11538 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
11539 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
11540 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
11541 actually the case or not.
11543 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
11544 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
11545 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
11546 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
11547 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
11548 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
11549 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
11550 it will regard that server as ``down''.
11552 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
11553 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
11555 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
11556 with the following commands:
11562 @findex gnus-server-open-server
11563 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
11564 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
11568 @findex gnus-server-close-server
11569 Close the connection (if any) to the server
11570 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
11574 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
11575 Mark the current server as unreachable
11576 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
11579 @kindex M-o (Server)
11580 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
11581 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
11582 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
11585 @kindex M-c (Server)
11586 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
11587 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
11588 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
11592 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
11593 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
11594 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
11600 @section Getting News
11601 @cindex reading news
11602 @cindex news back ends
11604 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
11605 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
11606 or it can read from a local spool.
11609 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
11610 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
11615 @subsection @sc{nntp}
11618 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
11619 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
11620 server as the, uhm, address.
11622 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
11623 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
11624 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
11625 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11627 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
11628 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
11629 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
11631 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
11636 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
11637 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
11638 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11640 @cindex authentification
11641 @cindex nntp authentification
11642 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11643 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11644 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11645 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11646 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11647 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11648 present in this hook.
11650 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11651 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11652 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11653 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11654 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11655 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11656 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11657 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11658 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11659 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11660 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11661 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11665 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11668 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11670 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11671 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11672 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11673 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11674 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11675 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11676 @samp{force} is explained below.
11680 Here's an example file:
11683 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11684 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11687 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11688 have to be first, for instance.
11690 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11691 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11692 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11693 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11694 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11695 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11696 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11698 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11699 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11705 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11706 previously mentioned.
11708 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11710 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11711 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11712 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11713 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11714 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11717 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11718 '(("innd" (ding))))
11721 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11723 The default value is
11726 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11727 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11728 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
11731 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
11732 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
11734 @item nntp-maximum-request
11735 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
11736 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
11737 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
11738 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
11739 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
11740 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
11741 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
11743 @item nntp-connection-timeout
11744 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
11745 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
11746 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
11747 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
11748 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
11749 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
11750 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
11751 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
11752 no timeouts are done.
11754 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
11755 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
11756 @c @cindex PPP connections
11757 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
11758 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
11759 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
11760 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
11761 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
11762 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
11763 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
11764 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
11765 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
11766 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
11768 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
11769 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
11770 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
11771 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
11772 @c described above.
11774 @item nntp-server-hook
11775 @vindex nntp-server-hook
11776 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11779 @item nntp-buggy-select
11780 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11781 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11783 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11784 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11785 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11786 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11789 @item nntp-xover-commands
11790 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11793 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11794 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11798 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11799 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11800 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11801 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11802 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11803 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11804 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11805 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11806 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11807 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11808 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11810 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11811 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11812 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11814 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11815 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11816 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11817 server closes connection.
11819 @item nntp-record-commands
11820 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11821 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11822 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11823 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11824 that doesn't seem to work.
11826 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11827 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11828 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11829 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11830 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11831 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11832 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11833 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11835 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
11836 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
11837 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
11838 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
11839 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
11840 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
11841 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
11844 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
11847 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
11848 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
11852 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
11853 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
11854 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
11858 @node Direct Functions
11859 @subsubsection Direct Functions
11860 @cindex direct connection functions
11862 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
11863 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
11864 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
11865 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11868 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
11869 @item nntp-open-network-stream
11870 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
11873 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
11874 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
11875 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
11876 this you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
11877 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also
11878 need @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
11879 define a server as follows:
11882 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
11884 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
11886 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
11887 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
11888 (nntp-port-number "snews")
11889 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
11892 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
11893 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
11894 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
11895 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
11896 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
11897 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
11898 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
11899 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
11903 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11904 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
11905 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
11908 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
11909 session, which is not a good idea.
11913 @node Indirect Functions
11914 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
11915 @cindex indirect connection functions
11917 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
11918 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
11919 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
11920 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
11921 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
11922 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11925 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11926 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11927 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
11928 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
11929 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
11931 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11934 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
11935 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
11936 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
11937 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
11940 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11941 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11942 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
11943 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
11945 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11948 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
11949 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
11950 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
11953 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
11954 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
11955 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
11956 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
11958 @item nntp-via-user-password
11959 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
11960 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
11962 @item nntp-via-envuser
11963 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
11964 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
11965 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
11966 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
11968 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
11969 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
11970 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
11971 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
11978 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
11983 @item nntp-via-user-name
11984 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
11985 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
11987 @item nntp-via-address
11988 @vindex nntp-via-address
11989 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
11994 @node Common Variables
11995 @subsubsection Common Variables
11997 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
11998 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12003 @item nntp-pre-command
12004 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12005 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
12006 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
12007 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
12008 wrapper for instance.
12011 @vindex nntp-address
12012 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
12014 @item nntp-port-number
12015 @vindex nntp-port-number
12016 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
12018 @item nntp-end-of-line
12019 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12020 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
12021 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12022 using a non native connection function.
12024 @item nntp-telnet-command
12025 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12026 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
12027 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
12028 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
12030 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12031 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12032 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12039 @subsection News Spool
12043 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12044 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12045 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12048 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12049 anything else) as the address.
12051 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12052 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12053 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12054 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12058 @item nnspool-inews-program
12059 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12060 Program used to post an article.
12062 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12063 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12064 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12066 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12067 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12068 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12069 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12071 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12072 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12073 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
12074 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12076 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12077 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12078 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12080 @item nnspool-active-file
12081 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12082 The path to the active file.
12084 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12085 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12086 The path to the group descriptions file.
12088 @item nnspool-history-file
12089 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12090 The path to the news history file.
12092 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12093 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12094 The path to the active date file.
12096 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12097 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12098 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
12101 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12102 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12104 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12105 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
12106 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
12112 @section Getting Mail
12113 @cindex reading mail
12116 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12120 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12121 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12122 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12123 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12124 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12125 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12126 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12127 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12128 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12129 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12130 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12131 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12132 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12136 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12137 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12139 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12140 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12141 of a culture shock.
12143 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12144 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12146 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12147 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12148 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12149 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12151 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12153 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12154 deleted? How awful!
12156 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12157 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12158 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12159 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12162 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12163 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12164 they want to treat a message.
12166 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12167 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12168 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12169 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12170 archived somewhere else.
12172 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12173 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12174 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12175 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12176 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12178 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12179 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12180 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12182 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12183 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12186 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12187 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12188 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12189 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12190 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12192 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12193 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12194 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12195 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12196 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12197 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12201 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12202 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12204 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12205 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12206 and things will happen automatically.
12208 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
12209 mail" back end), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
12212 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12215 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12216 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12217 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12218 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12219 like any other group.
12221 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12224 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12225 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12226 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12230 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12231 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12232 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12235 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12236 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12237 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12240 @node Splitting Mail
12241 @subsection Splitting Mail
12242 @cindex splitting mail
12243 @cindex mail splitting
12245 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12246 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12247 to be split into groups.
12250 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12251 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12252 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12253 ("mail.other" "")))
12256 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12257 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12258 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12259 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12260 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12261 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12262 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
12265 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
12268 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
12269 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
12270 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
12271 mail belongs in that group.
12273 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
12274 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
12275 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
12276 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
12277 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
12278 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
12280 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
12281 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
12282 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
12283 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
12284 thinks should carry this mail message.
12286 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
12287 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
12288 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
12289 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
12291 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
12292 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
12293 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
12294 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
12295 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
12297 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
12300 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
12301 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
12302 links. If that's the case for you, set
12303 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
12304 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
12306 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
12307 @kindex nnmail-split-history
12308 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
12309 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
12310 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
12311 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
12314 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
12315 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
12316 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
12317 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
12318 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
12319 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
12320 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
12321 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
12322 month's rent money.
12326 @subsection Mail Sources
12328 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
12329 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
12333 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
12334 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
12335 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
12339 @node Mail Source Specifiers
12340 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
12342 @cindex mail server
12345 @cindex mail source
12347 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
12348 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
12353 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
12356 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
12357 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
12358 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
12361 The following mail source types are available:
12365 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
12371 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
12372 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
12375 An example file mail source:
12378 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
12381 Or using the default path:
12387 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
12388 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
12389 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
12392 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
12396 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
12399 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
12403 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
12406 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
12408 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
12411 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
12415 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
12416 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
12417 That is, mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in the
12418 group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
12419 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
12420 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus
12421 to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you
12422 want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
12428 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
12432 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
12436 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
12437 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
12438 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
12439 predicate are considered.
12443 Script run before/after fetching mail.
12447 An example directory mail source:
12450 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
12455 Get mail from a POP server.
12461 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
12462 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12465 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
12466 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
12467 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
12468 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
12469 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
12472 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
12476 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
12480 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
12481 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
12484 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
12487 The valid format specifier characters are:
12491 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
12492 included in this string.
12495 The name of the server.
12498 The port number of the server.
12501 The user name to use.
12504 The password to use.
12507 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12508 corresponding keywords.
12511 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12512 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12515 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12516 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12519 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
12520 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
12523 @item :authentication
12524 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
12525 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
12530 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
12531 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
12533 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
12534 default user name, and default fetcher:
12540 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
12543 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
12544 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
12547 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
12550 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
12554 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
12555 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
12556 contains exactly one mail.
12562 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
12563 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
12566 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
12567 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
12569 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
12570 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
12571 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
12574 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
12575 from locking problems).
12579 Two example maildir mail sources:
12582 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
12583 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
12587 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
12592 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
12593 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
12594 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
12595 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
12598 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, SSL/TLS and STARTTLS support you
12599 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
12605 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
12606 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12609 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
12610 @samp{993} for SSL/TLS connections.
12613 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
12617 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
12621 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
12622 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
12623 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{ssl},
12624 @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
12626 @item :authentication
12627 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
12628 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
12629 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
12630 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
12633 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
12634 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
12635 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
12641 The valid format specifier characters are:
12645 The name of the server.
12648 User name from `imap-default-user'.
12651 The port number of the server.
12654 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12655 corresponding keywords.
12658 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
12659 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
12662 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
12663 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
12664 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
12665 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
12666 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
12667 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
12670 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
12671 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
12672 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
12673 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
12676 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
12677 after finishing the fetch.
12681 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
12684 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
12686 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
12690 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
12691 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
12693 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
12696 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
12697 required for url "4.0pre.46".
12699 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
12705 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
12706 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
12709 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
12713 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
12717 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
12718 folder after finishing the fetch.
12722 An example webmail source:
12725 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
12727 :password "secret")
12732 @item Common Keywords
12733 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
12739 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
12740 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
12744 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
12749 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
12750 useful when you use local mail and news.
12755 @subsubsection Function Interface
12757 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
12758 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
12759 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
12760 consider the following mail-source setting:
12763 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
12764 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
12767 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
12768 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
12769 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
12770 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
12771 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
12773 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
12776 @node Mail Source Customization
12777 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
12779 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
12780 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
12784 @item mail-source-crash-box
12785 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
12786 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
12787 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
12789 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
12790 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
12791 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
12793 @item mail-source-directory
12794 @vindex mail-source-directory
12795 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
12796 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
12797 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
12800 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12801 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12802 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12803 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12804 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12805 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12807 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12808 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12809 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12811 @item mail-source-movemail-program
12812 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
12813 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
12814 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
12819 @node Fetching Mail
12820 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12822 @vindex mail-sources
12823 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12824 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12825 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
12826 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
12828 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
12829 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
12832 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
12833 mail server, you'd say something like:
12838 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12839 :password "secret")))
12842 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
12846 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
12847 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12850 :password "secret")))
12854 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
12855 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
12856 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
12857 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
12858 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
12859 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
12863 @node Mail Back End Variables
12864 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
12866 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
12870 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12871 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12872 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
12873 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
12875 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
12876 @item nnmail-split-hook
12877 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
12878 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
12879 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
12880 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
12881 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
12882 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
12883 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
12884 in the buffer will show up in any files.
12885 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
12888 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12889 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12890 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12891 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12892 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
12893 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
12894 starting to handle the new mail) and
12895 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
12896 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
12897 default file modes the new mail files get:
12900 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12901 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
12903 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12904 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
12907 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
12908 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
12909 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
12910 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
12911 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
12912 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
12913 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
12915 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
12916 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
12917 @findex delete-file
12918 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
12920 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12921 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12922 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
12923 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
12924 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
12929 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
12930 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
12931 @cindex mail splitting
12932 @cindex fancy mail splitting
12934 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
12935 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
12936 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
12937 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
12938 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
12939 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
12941 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
12944 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
12945 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
12946 ;; from real errors.
12947 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
12949 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
12950 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
12951 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
12952 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
12953 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
12954 ;; Other mailing lists...
12955 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
12956 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
12957 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
12958 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
12959 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
12960 ;; message was really cross-posted.
12961 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
12962 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
12964 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
12965 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
12969 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
12970 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
12971 the five possible split syntaxes:
12976 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
12977 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
12981 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
12982 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
12983 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
12984 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
12985 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
12986 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
12987 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
12988 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
12991 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12992 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
12993 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
12994 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
12997 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12998 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13001 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13002 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13005 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13006 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13007 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13008 function should return a @var{split}.
13011 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13012 body of the messages:
13015 (defun split-on-body ()
13017 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13018 (goto-char (point-min))
13019 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13023 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13024 when the @code{:} function is run.
13027 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13028 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
13029 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
13033 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13037 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13038 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13039 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13040 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13041 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13043 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13044 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13045 are expanded as specified by the variable
13046 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13047 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13050 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13051 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13052 when all this splitting is performed.
13054 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13055 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13056 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13059 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13062 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13063 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13065 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13066 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13067 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13068 groupings 1 through 9.
13070 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13071 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13072 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13073 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13074 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13075 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13076 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13077 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13078 it once per thread.
13080 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
13081 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
13082 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
13085 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
13086 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13087 ;; other splits go here
13091 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13092 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
13093 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
13094 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
13095 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
13096 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
13097 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
13098 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
13099 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
13100 unless the group name matches the regexp
13101 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
13102 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
13103 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
13104 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
13105 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13106 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13107 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13108 messages goes into the new group.
13111 @node Group Mail Splitting
13112 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13113 @cindex mail splitting
13114 @cindex group mail splitting
13116 @findex gnus-group-split
13117 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13118 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13119 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13120 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13121 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13122 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13123 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13124 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13126 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13127 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13128 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13129 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13131 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13132 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13133 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13134 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13135 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13136 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13137 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13139 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13140 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13141 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13142 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13143 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13144 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13145 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13147 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13148 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13149 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13150 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13151 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13152 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13153 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13154 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13155 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13156 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13157 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13158 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13159 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13161 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13166 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13167 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13169 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13170 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13171 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13172 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13174 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13177 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13178 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13179 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13182 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13183 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13184 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13188 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13189 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13190 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13194 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
13197 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
13198 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
13199 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
13200 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
13201 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
13202 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
13203 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
13204 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
13205 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
13207 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
13208 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
13209 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
13210 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
13211 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
13212 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
13213 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
13214 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
13215 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
13217 @findex gnus-group-split-update
13218 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
13219 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
13220 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
13221 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
13222 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
13225 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
13228 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
13229 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
13230 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
13231 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
13232 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
13235 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
13236 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
13237 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
13238 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
13240 @node Incorporating Old Mail
13241 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
13242 @cindex incorporating old mail
13243 @cindex import old mail
13245 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
13246 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
13247 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
13250 Doing so can be quite easy.
13252 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
13253 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
13254 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
13255 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
13256 your @code{nnml} groups.
13262 Go to the group buffer.
13265 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
13266 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13269 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
13272 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
13273 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13276 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
13277 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
13280 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
13281 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
13282 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
13283 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
13284 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
13286 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
13287 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
13288 using the new mail back end.
13291 @node Expiring Mail
13292 @subsection Expiring Mail
13293 @cindex article expiry
13295 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
13296 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
13297 different approach to mail reading.
13299 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
13300 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
13301 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
13302 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
13303 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
13304 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
13307 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
13308 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
13309 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
13310 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
13311 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
13312 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
13313 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
13314 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
13316 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13317 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
13318 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
13319 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
13320 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
13321 column in the summary buffer.
13323 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
13324 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
13325 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
13326 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
13329 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
13331 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
13332 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
13333 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
13336 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
13337 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
13338 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
13339 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
13340 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
13342 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
13343 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
13346 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13347 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
13350 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
13351 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
13353 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
13354 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
13355 don't really mix very well.
13357 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
13358 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
13359 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
13360 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
13363 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
13364 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
13365 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
13366 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
13369 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13371 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13373 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
13375 ((string= group "mail.junk")
13377 ((string= group "important")
13383 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
13384 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
13386 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
13387 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
13388 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
13391 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
13392 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13394 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
13395 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
13396 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
13397 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
13398 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
13399 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
13400 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
13401 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
13402 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
13403 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
13404 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
13405 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
13406 name or @code{delete}.
13408 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
13410 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
13413 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13414 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13415 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
13416 expire mail to groups according to the variable
13417 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
13420 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13421 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13422 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
13423 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
13424 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
13427 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
13428 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
13429 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
13430 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
13431 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
13432 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
13434 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
13435 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
13436 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
13437 easier for procmail users.
13439 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
13440 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
13441 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
13442 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
13443 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
13444 caution. Even more dangerous is the
13445 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
13446 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
13447 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
13448 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
13449 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
13450 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
13451 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
13454 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
13456 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
13457 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
13458 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
13459 auto-expire turned on.
13463 @subsection Washing Mail
13464 @cindex mail washing
13465 @cindex list server brain damage
13466 @cindex incoming mail treatment
13468 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
13469 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
13470 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
13471 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
13472 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
13473 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
13475 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
13476 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
13477 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
13480 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
13481 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
13482 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
13483 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
13486 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13487 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13488 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
13489 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
13490 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
13493 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13494 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13495 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
13496 Emacs running on MS machines.
13500 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13501 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13502 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
13503 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
13506 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13507 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13508 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
13509 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
13511 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13512 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13513 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
13514 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
13515 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
13516 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
13517 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
13520 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
13521 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
13524 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
13525 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
13528 This can also be done non-destructively with
13529 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
13531 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
13532 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
13533 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
13535 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13536 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13538 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
13539 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
13540 @code{References} headers.
13544 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13545 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13546 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
13550 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
13551 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
13552 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
13559 @subsection Duplicates
13561 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
13562 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
13563 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
13564 @cindex duplicate mails
13565 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
13566 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
13567 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
13568 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
13569 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
13570 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
13571 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
13572 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
13573 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
13574 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
13575 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
13576 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
13577 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
13579 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
13580 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
13581 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
13582 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
13584 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
13587 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
13588 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
13592 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
13593 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
13594 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
13595 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
13596 (any mail "mail.misc")
13603 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13604 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
13609 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
13610 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
13611 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
13612 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
13613 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
13616 @node Not Reading Mail
13617 @subsection Not Reading Mail
13619 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
13620 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
13621 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
13623 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
13624 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
13625 mail, which should help.
13627 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13628 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13629 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13630 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13631 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13632 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
13633 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
13634 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
13635 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
13636 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
13637 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
13639 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
13640 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
13644 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
13645 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
13647 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
13648 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
13649 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
13651 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
13652 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
13653 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
13654 Spool}). You might notice that only five back ends are listed below;
13655 @code{nnmaildir}'s documentation has not yet been completely
13656 incorporated into this manual. Until it is, you can find it at
13657 @uref{http://multivac.cwru.edu./nnmaildir/}.
13660 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
13661 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
13662 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
13663 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
13664 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
13665 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
13669 @node Unix Mail Box
13670 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
13672 @cindex unix mail box
13674 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13675 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13676 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
13677 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
13678 which group it belongs in.
13680 Virtual server settings:
13683 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
13684 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13685 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
13688 @item nnmbox-active-file
13689 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13690 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
13691 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
13693 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
13694 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13695 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
13696 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
13701 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
13705 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13706 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13707 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
13708 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
13709 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
13711 Virtual server settings:
13714 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
13715 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13716 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
13718 @item nnbabyl-active-file
13719 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13720 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
13721 @file{~/.rmail-active}
13723 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13724 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13725 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
13731 @subsubsection Mail Spool
13733 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
13735 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
13736 format. It should be used with some caution.
13738 @vindex nnml-directory
13739 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
13740 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
13741 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
13742 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
13744 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
13747 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
13748 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
13749 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
13750 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
13751 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
13752 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
13753 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
13754 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
13756 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
13757 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
13758 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
13759 back end when it comes to reading mail.
13761 @cindex self contained nnml servers
13762 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
13763 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13764 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13765 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
13766 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
13767 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
13768 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
13769 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
13772 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
13773 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
13774 them next time it starts.
13776 Virtual server settings:
13779 @item nnml-directory
13780 @vindex nnml-directory
13781 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
13782 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
13785 @item nnml-active-file
13786 @vindex nnml-active-file
13787 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
13788 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
13790 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
13791 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
13792 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13793 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
13795 @item nnml-get-new-mail
13796 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13797 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
13800 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
13801 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
13802 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13803 default is @code{nil}.
13805 @item nnml-nov-file-name
13806 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
13807 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
13809 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13810 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
13811 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
13813 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
13814 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
13815 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13816 default is @code{nil}.
13818 @item nnml-marks-file-name
13819 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
13820 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
13822 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
13823 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
13824 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
13829 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
13830 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
13831 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
13832 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
13833 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
13834 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
13835 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
13840 @subsubsection MH Spool
13842 @cindex mh-e mail spool
13844 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
13845 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
13846 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
13847 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
13849 Virtual server settings:
13852 @item nnmh-directory
13853 @vindex nnmh-directory
13854 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
13855 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13858 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
13859 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13860 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
13864 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
13865 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
13866 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
13867 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
13868 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
13869 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
13870 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
13875 @subsubsection Mail Folders
13877 @cindex mbox folders
13878 @cindex mail folders
13880 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
13881 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
13882 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
13885 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
13886 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
13887 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13888 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13889 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
13890 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
13891 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
13892 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
13893 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
13894 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
13895 @code{nnfolder} directory).
13897 Virtual server settings:
13900 @item nnfolder-directory
13901 @vindex nnfolder-directory
13902 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
13903 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13906 @item nnfolder-active-file
13907 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
13908 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
13910 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13911 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13912 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13913 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
13915 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
13916 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13917 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
13920 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13921 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13922 @cindex backup files
13923 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
13924 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
13925 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
13926 your @file{.emacs} file:
13929 (defun turn-off-backup ()
13930 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
13932 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
13935 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13936 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13937 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
13938 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
13939 extract some information from it before removing it.
13941 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13942 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13943 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13944 default is @code{nil}.
13946 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13947 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
13948 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
13950 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
13951 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
13952 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
13953 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13955 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13956 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
13957 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
13958 default is @code{nil}.
13960 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13961 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
13962 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
13964 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
13965 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
13966 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
13967 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
13972 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
13973 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
13974 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
13975 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
13976 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
13977 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
13980 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
13981 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
13983 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
13984 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
13985 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
13986 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
13987 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
13989 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
13990 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
13991 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
13992 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
13993 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
13994 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
13995 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
13996 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
13999 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
14000 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
14001 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
14002 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
14007 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
14008 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
14009 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
14010 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
14011 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
14012 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
14013 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
14014 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
14015 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
14016 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
14017 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
14018 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
14019 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
14024 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
14025 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
14026 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
14027 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
14028 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
14029 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
14030 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
14031 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
14032 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
14033 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
14034 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
14035 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
14036 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
14037 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
14039 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
14040 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
14045 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
14046 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
14047 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
14048 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
14049 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
14050 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
14051 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
14052 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
14053 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
14054 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
14055 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
14056 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
14057 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
14058 provided by the active file and overviews.
14060 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
14061 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
14062 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
14063 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
14064 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
14067 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
14068 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
14073 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
14074 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
14075 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
14076 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
14077 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
14078 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
14079 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
14083 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
14084 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
14085 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
14086 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
14087 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
14088 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
14089 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
14090 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
14091 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
14093 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
14094 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
14095 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
14096 friendly mail back end all over.
14100 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
14101 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
14102 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
14103 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
14104 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
14105 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
14106 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
14107 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
14110 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
14111 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
14112 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
14113 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
14114 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
14115 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
14116 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
14117 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
14118 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
14119 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will undergo
14120 treatment such as duplicate checking.
14122 An article will not necessarily keep the same number across Gnus
14123 sessions; articles are renumbered starting from 1 for each Gnus session
14124 (more precisely, each time you open the @code{nnmaildir} server). This
14125 way, you don't get gaps in your article number ranges, and when entering
14126 large groups, Gnus is likely to give a more accurate article count. The
14127 price is that @code{nnmaildir} doesn't work with the cache or agent.
14128 This will probably be changed in the future.
14130 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
14131 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
14132 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
14133 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
14134 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
14137 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses group
14138 parameters slightly different from those of other mail backends.
14140 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
14141 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
14142 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
14143 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
14144 parameter to somthing small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
14145 would) to make it use less memory.
14147 Startup and shutdown are likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than
14148 with other backends. Everything in between is likely to be faster,
14149 depending in part on your filesystem.
14151 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
14152 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived backend.
14157 @node Browsing the Web
14158 @section Browsing the Web
14160 @cindex browsing the web
14164 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
14165 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
14166 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
14167 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
14168 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
14169 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
14170 even know what a news group is.
14172 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
14173 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
14174 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
14175 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
14176 you mad in the end.
14178 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
14181 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
14182 interfaces to these sources.
14186 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
14187 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
14188 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
14189 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
14190 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
14191 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
14194 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
14196 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
14197 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
14198 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
14199 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
14200 though, you should be ok.
14202 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
14203 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
14204 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
14205 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
14206 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
14208 @node Archiving Mail
14209 @subsection Archiving Mail
14210 @cindex archiving mail
14211 @cindex backup of mail
14213 Some of the back ends, notably nnml and nnfolder, now actually store
14214 the article marks with each group. For these servers, archiving and
14215 restoring a group while preserving marks is fairly simple.
14217 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
14218 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @code{.newsrc.eld} deity
14221 To archive an entire @code{nnml} or @code{nnfolder} server, take a
14222 recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need to shut down
14223 Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or similar. You
14224 restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and adding a server
14225 definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The @ref{Article
14226 Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things might interfer
14227 with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus before you
14230 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml} or
14231 @code{nnfolder} groups, while preserving marks. For @code{nnml}, you
14232 copy all files in the group's directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need
14233 to copy both the base folder file itself (@code{FOO}, say), and the
14234 marks file (@code{FOO.mrk} in this example). Restoring the group is
14235 done with @kbd{G m} from the Group buffer. The last step makes Gnus
14236 notice the new directory.
14239 @subsection Web Searches
14243 @cindex InReference
14244 @cindex Usenet searches
14245 @cindex searching the Usenet
14247 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
14248 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
14249 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
14250 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
14251 searches without having to use a browser.
14253 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
14254 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
14255 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
14256 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
14257 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
14259 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
14260 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
14261 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
14262 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
14263 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
14264 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
14265 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
14266 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
14267 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
14268 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
14271 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
14272 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
14273 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
14274 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
14275 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
14276 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
14278 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
14279 to use @code{nnweb}.
14281 Virtual server variables:
14286 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
14287 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
14291 @vindex nnweb-search
14292 The search string to feed to the search engine.
14294 @item nnweb-max-hits
14295 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
14296 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
14299 @item nnweb-type-definition
14300 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
14301 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
14302 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
14307 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
14311 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
14314 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
14317 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
14321 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
14328 @subsection Slashdot
14332 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
14333 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
14334 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
14336 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
14337 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
14340 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14341 '((nnslashdot "")))
14344 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
14345 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
14346 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
14347 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
14348 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
14351 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
14352 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14354 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
14355 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
14356 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
14357 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
14358 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
14359 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
14362 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
14365 @item nnslashdot-threaded
14366 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
14367 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
14368 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
14369 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
14370 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
14371 but much, much slower than untreaded.
14373 @item nnslashdot-login-name
14374 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
14375 The login name to use when posting.
14377 @item nnslashdot-password
14378 @vindex nnslashdot-password
14379 The password to use when posting.
14381 @item nnslashdot-directory
14382 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
14383 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
14384 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
14386 @item nnslashdot-active-url
14387 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
14388 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
14389 news articles and comments. The default is
14390 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
14392 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
14393 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
14394 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
14396 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
14398 @item nnslashdot-article-url
14399 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
14400 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
14402 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
14404 @item nnslashdot-threshold
14405 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
14406 The score threshold. The default is -1.
14408 @item nnslashdot-group-number
14409 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
14410 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
14411 updated. The default is 0.
14418 @subsection Ultimate
14420 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
14422 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
14423 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
14424 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
14425 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
14427 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
14428 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
14429 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
14430 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
14431 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
14432 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
14433 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
14435 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
14438 @item nnultimate-directory
14439 @vindex nnultimate-directory
14440 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
14441 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
14446 @subsection Web Archive
14448 @cindex Web Archive
14450 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
14451 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
14452 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
14453 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14456 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
14457 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
14458 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
14459 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
14460 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
14461 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
14462 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
14464 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
14467 @item nnwarchive-directory
14468 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
14469 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
14470 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
14472 @item nnwarchive-login
14473 @vindex nnwarchive-login
14474 The account name on the web server.
14476 @item nnwarchive-passwd
14477 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
14478 The password for your account on the web server.
14486 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
14487 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
14488 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14491 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
14492 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
14495 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
14498 @item nnrss-directory
14499 @vindex nnrss-directory
14500 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
14501 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
14505 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
14506 the summary buffer.
14509 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
14510 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
14512 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
14514 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
14515 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
14518 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
14521 (require 'browse-url)
14523 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
14525 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
14528 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
14529 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
14531 (browse-url (cdr url))
14532 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
14534 (eval-after-load "gnus"
14535 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
14536 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
14537 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
14540 @node Customizing w3
14541 @subsection Customizing w3
14547 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
14548 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
14549 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
14551 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
14552 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
14553 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
14556 (eval-after-load "w3"
14558 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
14559 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
14560 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
14561 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
14563 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
14566 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
14567 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
14576 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14577 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14578 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14579 specify the network address of the server.
14581 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14582 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14583 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14584 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
14585 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
14587 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
14588 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
14589 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
14590 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
14592 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14593 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
14594 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14595 usage explained in this section.
14597 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14598 might look something like the following. (Note that for SSL/TLS, you
14599 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
14602 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14603 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14604 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14606 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14607 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14608 ; a UW server running on localhost
14610 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14611 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14612 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14613 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14614 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14615 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14616 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14617 (nnimap-stream network))
14618 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14620 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14621 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14622 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14625 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14630 @item nnimap-address
14631 @vindex nnimap-address
14633 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14634 server name if not specified.
14636 @item nnimap-server-port
14637 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14638 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14640 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
14643 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14644 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14647 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14648 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14649 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14650 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14651 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14652 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14653 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14655 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14656 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14657 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14660 Example server specification:
14663 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14664 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14665 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14668 @item nnimap-stream
14669 @vindex nnimap-stream
14670 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14671 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14672 of SSL/TLS. (IMAP over SSL/TLS is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
14673 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
14675 Example server specification:
14678 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14679 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14682 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14686 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
14687 @samp{imtest} program.
14689 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14691 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14692 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14695 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
14696 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
14697 library @samp{ssl.el}.
14699 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14701 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14704 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14705 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14706 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14707 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14708 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14709 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14710 restrictions on IMAP commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14711 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14712 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14715 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14716 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14717 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14718 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14719 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14720 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14721 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14722 to OpenSSL/SSLeay. You also need @samp{ssl.el} (from the W3
14723 distribution, for instance).
14725 @vindex imap-shell-program
14726 @vindex imap-shell-host
14727 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14728 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14730 @item nnimap-authenticator
14731 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14733 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14734 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14736 Example server specification:
14739 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14740 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14743 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14747 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
14748 external program @code{imtest}.
14750 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
14753 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
14754 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14756 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14758 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14760 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14763 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14765 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14766 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14767 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14768 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14769 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14770 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14773 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14774 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14775 running in circles yet?
14777 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14778 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14781 The possible options are:
14786 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14789 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14790 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14791 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14792 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14794 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14799 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
14800 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
14802 If non-nil, marks dormant articles as ticked (as well), for other IMAP
14803 clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will naturally still (only) be
14804 marked as ticked. This is to make dormant articles stand out, just
14805 like ticked articles, in other IMAP clients. (In other words, Gnus has
14806 two ``Tick'' marks and IMAP has only one.)
14808 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
14809 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
14812 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
14813 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14814 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
14815 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14818 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
14819 as ticked for other users.
14821 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
14823 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
14825 This variable contain the IMAP search command sent to server when
14826 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
14827 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
14828 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
14830 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
14831 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
14832 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
14833 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
14835 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14836 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14838 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14839 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14840 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14846 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14847 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14848 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14853 @node Splitting in IMAP
14854 @subsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14855 @cindex splitting imap mail
14857 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14858 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14859 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14860 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14861 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14865 Here are the variables of interest:
14869 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14870 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14872 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14874 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14875 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14877 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14879 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14880 @cindex splitting, inbox
14882 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14884 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14885 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14889 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14890 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14893 No nnmail equivalent.
14895 @item nnimap-split-rule
14896 @cindex Splitting, rules
14897 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14899 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14902 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14903 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14904 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14905 Neither did I, we need examples.
14908 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14910 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14911 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14912 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14915 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14916 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14917 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14919 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14920 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14924 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14927 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14928 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14929 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14930 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14932 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14933 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14934 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14935 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14936 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14937 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14939 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14940 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14941 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14943 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14944 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14945 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14947 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
14949 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14950 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14951 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14954 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14955 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14956 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14957 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14958 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14959 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14962 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14963 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14964 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14965 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14966 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14967 group/function elements.
14969 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14971 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14973 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14975 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14976 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14978 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14979 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14980 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14983 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14984 @cindex splitting, fancy
14985 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14986 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14988 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14989 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14990 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14992 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14993 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14994 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14995 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
15000 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
15001 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
15004 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
15008 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
15009 @subsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
15010 @cindex editing imap acls
15011 @cindex Access Control Lists
15012 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
15014 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
15016 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
15017 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
15018 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
15021 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
15022 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
15023 editing window with detailed instructions.
15025 Some possible uses:
15029 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
15030 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
15031 follow the list without subscribing to it.
15033 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
15034 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
15035 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
15039 @node Expunging mailboxes
15040 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
15044 @cindex Manual expunging
15046 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
15048 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
15049 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
15050 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
15052 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
15057 @node Other Sources
15058 @section Other Sources
15060 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
15061 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
15065 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
15066 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
15067 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
15068 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
15069 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
15073 @node Directory Groups
15074 @subsection Directory Groups
15076 @cindex directory groups
15078 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
15079 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
15082 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
15083 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
15084 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
15085 back end to read directories. Big deal.
15087 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
15088 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
15089 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
15090 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
15091 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
15093 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
15095 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
15096 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
15097 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
15098 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
15101 @node Anything Groups
15102 @subsection Anything Groups
15105 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
15106 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
15107 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
15110 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
15111 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
15112 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
15113 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
15114 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
15115 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
15116 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
15117 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
15118 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
15119 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
15122 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
15123 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
15124 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
15125 in the article buffer, just as usual.
15127 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
15128 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
15129 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
15130 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
15132 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
15133 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
15134 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
15135 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
15136 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
15137 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
15138 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
15139 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
15144 @item nneething-map-file-directory
15145 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
15146 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
15147 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
15149 @item nneething-exclude-files
15150 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
15151 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
15152 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
15154 @item nneething-include-files
15155 @vindex nneething-include-files
15156 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
15157 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
15159 @item nneething-map-file
15160 @vindex nneething-map-file
15161 Name of the map files.
15165 @node Document Groups
15166 @subsection Document Groups
15168 @cindex documentation group
15171 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
15172 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
15179 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
15184 The standard Unix mbox file.
15186 @cindex MMDF mail box
15188 The MMDF mail box format.
15191 Several news articles appended into a file.
15194 @cindex rnews batch files
15195 The rnews batch transport format.
15196 @cindex forwarded messages
15199 Forwarded articles.
15202 Netscape mail boxes.
15205 MIME multipart messages.
15207 @item standard-digest
15208 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
15211 A MIME digest of messages.
15213 @item lanl-gov-announce
15214 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
15216 @item rfc822-forward
15217 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
15220 The Outlook mail box.
15223 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
15226 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
15229 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
15232 An RFC934-forwarded message.
15238 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
15241 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
15244 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
15245 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
15246 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
15249 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
15250 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
15251 group. And that's it.
15253 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
15254 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
15255 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
15256 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
15257 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
15258 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
15259 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
15260 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
15261 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
15262 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
15264 Virtual server variables:
15267 @item nndoc-article-type
15268 @vindex nndoc-article-type
15269 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
15270 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
15271 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
15272 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail},
15273 @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman} or @code{guess}.
15275 @item nndoc-post-type
15276 @vindex nndoc-post-type
15277 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
15278 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
15283 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
15287 @node Document Server Internals
15288 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
15290 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
15291 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
15292 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
15293 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
15295 First, here's an example document type definition:
15299 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
15300 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
15303 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
15304 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
15305 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
15306 types can be defined with very few settings:
15309 @item first-article
15310 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
15311 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
15314 @item article-begin
15315 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
15316 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
15318 @item head-begin-function
15319 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
15322 @item nndoc-head-begin
15323 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
15326 @item nndoc-head-end
15327 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
15328 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
15330 @item body-begin-function
15331 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
15335 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
15338 @item body-end-function
15339 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
15343 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
15346 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
15347 regexp will be totally ignored.
15351 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
15352 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
15353 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
15354 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
15355 something that's palatable for Gnus:
15358 @item prepare-body-function
15359 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
15360 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
15361 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
15363 @item article-transform-function
15364 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
15365 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
15366 body of the article.
15368 @item generate-head-function
15369 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
15370 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
15371 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
15372 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
15376 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
15381 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15382 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15383 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
15384 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
15385 (head-end . "^ ?$")
15386 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
15387 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
15388 (subtype digest guess))
15391 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
15392 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
15393 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
15394 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
15395 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
15397 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
15398 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
15399 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
15400 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
15401 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
15402 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
15403 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
15404 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
15405 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
15406 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
15414 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
15415 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
15416 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
15418 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
15419 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
15420 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
15423 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
15424 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
15425 that interested in doing things properly.
15427 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
15428 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
15431 First some terminology:
15436 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
15437 get news and/or mail from.
15440 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
15441 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
15444 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
15448 @item message packets
15449 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
15450 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
15451 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15453 @item response packets
15454 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
15455 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
15456 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15466 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
15467 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
15468 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
15469 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
15472 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
15475 You put the packet in your home directory.
15478 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
15479 the native or secondary server.
15482 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
15483 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
15486 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
15490 You transfer this packet to the server.
15493 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
15496 You then repeat until you die.
15500 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
15501 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
15504 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
15505 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
15506 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
15510 @node SOUP Commands
15511 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
15513 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
15517 @kindex G s b (Group)
15518 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
15519 Pack all unread articles in the current group
15520 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
15521 process/prefix convention.
15524 @kindex G s w (Group)
15525 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
15526 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
15529 @kindex G s s (Group)
15530 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
15531 Send all replies from the replies packet
15532 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
15535 @kindex G s p (Group)
15536 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
15537 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
15540 @kindex G s r (Group)
15541 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
15542 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
15545 @kindex O s (Summary)
15546 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
15547 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
15548 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
15549 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15554 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
15559 @item gnus-soup-directory
15560 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
15561 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
15562 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
15564 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
15565 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
15566 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
15567 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
15569 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
15570 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
15571 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
15572 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
15574 @item gnus-soup-packer
15575 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
15576 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15577 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
15579 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
15580 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
15581 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15582 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15584 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
15585 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
15586 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
15588 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15589 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15590 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
15591 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
15597 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
15600 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
15601 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
15602 you can read them at leisure.
15604 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
15608 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
15609 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
15610 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
15611 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
15613 @item nnsoup-directory
15614 @vindex nnsoup-directory
15615 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
15616 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
15618 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
15619 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
15620 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
15621 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
15623 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
15624 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
15625 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
15626 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
15627 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
15629 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
15630 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
15631 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
15632 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
15634 @item nnsoup-active-file
15635 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
15636 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
15637 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
15638 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
15639 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
15641 @item nnsoup-packer
15642 @vindex nnsoup-packer
15643 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
15644 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
15646 @item nnsoup-unpacker
15647 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
15648 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
15649 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15651 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
15652 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
15653 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
15656 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
15657 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
15658 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
15661 @item nnsoup-always-save
15662 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
15663 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
15669 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
15671 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
15672 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
15673 more for that to happen.
15675 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
15676 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
15677 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
15680 In specific, this is what it does:
15683 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
15684 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
15687 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
15688 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
15689 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
15692 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
15693 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
15694 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
15697 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
15698 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
15699 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
15701 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
15707 @item nngateway-address
15708 @vindex nngateway-address
15709 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
15711 @item nngateway-header-transformation
15712 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
15713 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
15714 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
15715 transformation should be called, and defaults to
15716 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
15717 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
15720 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
15721 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
15722 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
15725 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
15728 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
15731 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
15734 The following pre-defined functions exist:
15736 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15739 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15740 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15741 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
15743 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15745 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15746 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15747 @code{nngateway-address}.
15752 (setq gnus-post-method
15754 "mail2news@@replay.com"
15755 (nngateway-header-transformation
15756 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
15764 So, to use this, simply say something like:
15767 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
15772 @node Combined Groups
15773 @section Combined Groups
15775 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
15779 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
15780 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
15784 @node Virtual Groups
15785 @subsection Virtual Groups
15787 @cindex virtual groups
15788 @cindex merging groups
15790 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
15793 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
15794 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
15795 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
15797 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
15798 regexp to match component groups.
15800 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
15801 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
15802 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
15803 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
15804 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
15805 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
15806 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
15807 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
15809 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
15810 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
15813 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
15816 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
15817 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
15819 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
15820 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
15821 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
15822 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
15825 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
15828 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
15829 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
15830 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
15832 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
15833 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
15834 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
15835 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
15836 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
15838 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
15839 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
15840 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
15842 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
15843 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
15844 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
15845 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
15846 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
15847 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
15848 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
15849 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
15850 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
15851 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
15852 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
15854 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
15855 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
15856 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
15857 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
15858 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
15859 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
15860 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
15862 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
15863 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
15865 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
15866 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
15870 @node Kibozed Groups
15871 @subsection Kibozed Groups
15875 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
15876 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
15877 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
15878 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
15880 @kindex G k (Group)
15881 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
15884 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
15885 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
15886 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
15887 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
15889 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
15890 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
15891 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
15893 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
15894 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
15895 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
15896 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
15897 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
15898 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
15899 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
15900 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
15902 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
15903 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
15904 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
15905 Stranger things have happened.
15907 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
15908 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
15910 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
15911 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
15912 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
15913 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
15914 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
15915 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
15917 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
15918 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
15921 @node Gnus Unplugged
15922 @section Gnus Unplugged
15927 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
15929 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
15930 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
15931 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
15932 read news. Believe it or not.
15934 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
15935 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
15936 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
15937 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
15938 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
15940 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
15941 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
15942 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
15943 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
15944 reading news on a machine.
15946 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
15950 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
15951 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
15955 Then, put the following magical incantation in your @file{.gnus.el}
15959 (setq gnus-agent t)
15963 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
15965 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
15968 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
15969 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
15970 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
15971 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
15972 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
15973 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
15974 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
15975 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
15976 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
15977 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
15982 @subsection Agent Basics
15984 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
15986 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
15987 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
15988 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
15989 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
15991 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
15992 connected to the net continuously.
15994 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
15995 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
15997 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
16002 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
16003 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
16004 already fetched while in this mode.
16007 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
16008 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
16009 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
16010 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
16011 Source Specifiers}).
16014 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
16015 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
16016 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
16017 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
16018 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
16021 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
16022 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
16023 then you read the news offline.
16026 And then you go to step 2.
16029 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
16035 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
16036 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
16037 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
16038 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
16039 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
16040 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
16043 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
16050 @node Agent Categories
16051 @subsection Agent Categories
16053 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
16054 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
16055 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
16056 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
16057 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
16058 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
16059 you're interested in the articles anyway.
16061 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
16062 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
16063 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
16064 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
16065 managing categories.
16068 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
16069 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
16070 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
16074 @node Category Syntax
16075 @subsubsection Category Syntax
16077 A category consists of two things.
16081 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
16082 are eligible for downloading; and
16085 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
16086 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
16087 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
16090 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
16091 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
16092 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
16093 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
16095 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
16096 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
16097 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
16099 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
16100 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
16101 operators sprinkled in between.
16103 Perhaps some examples are in order.
16105 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
16106 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
16112 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
16113 short (for some value of ``short'').
16115 Here's a more complex predicate:
16124 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
16125 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
16128 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
16129 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
16130 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
16132 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
16133 you want to do, you can write your own.
16137 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
16138 lines; default 100.
16141 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
16142 lines; default 200.
16145 True iff the article has a download score less than
16146 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
16149 True iff the article has a download score greater than
16150 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
16153 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
16154 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
16155 checksum and sees whether articles match.
16164 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
16165 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
16166 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
16169 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
16170 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
16171 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
16172 something along the lines of the following:
16175 (defun my-article-old-p ()
16176 "Say whether an article is old."
16177 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
16178 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
16181 with the predicate then defined as:
16184 (not my-article-old-p)
16187 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
16188 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
16192 (require 'gnus-agent)
16193 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
16194 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
16195 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
16198 and simply specify your predicate as:
16204 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
16205 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
16206 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
16207 just don't give a damn.
16209 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
16210 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
16211 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
16212 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
16213 parameters like so:
16216 (agent-predicate . short)
16219 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
16220 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
16221 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
16223 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
16226 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
16229 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
16230 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
16231 predicate is assumed to be a list.
16234 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
16235 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
16236 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
16237 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
16238 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
16239 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
16241 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
16242 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
16243 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
16244 if it's to be specific to that group.
16246 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
16253 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
16254 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
16260 Category specification
16264 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16270 Group Parameter specification
16273 (agent-score ("from"
16274 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16279 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
16285 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
16292 Category specification
16295 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
16301 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
16305 Group Parameter specification
16308 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
16311 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
16316 Use @code{normal} score files
16318 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
16319 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
16320 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
16321 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
16323 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
16324 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
16325 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
16326 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
16330 Category Specification
16337 Group Parameter specification
16340 (agent-score . file)
16345 @node Category Buffer
16346 @subsubsection Category Buffer
16348 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
16349 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
16350 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
16352 The following commands are available in this buffer:
16356 @kindex q (Category)
16357 @findex gnus-category-exit
16358 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
16361 @kindex k (Category)
16362 @findex gnus-category-kill
16363 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
16366 @kindex c (Category)
16367 @findex gnus-category-copy
16368 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
16371 @kindex a (Category)
16372 @findex gnus-category-add
16373 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
16376 @kindex p (Category)
16377 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
16378 Edit the predicate of the current category
16379 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
16382 @kindex g (Category)
16383 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
16384 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
16385 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
16388 @kindex s (Category)
16389 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
16390 Edit the download score rule of the current category
16391 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
16394 @kindex l (Category)
16395 @findex gnus-category-list
16396 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
16400 @node Category Variables
16401 @subsubsection Category Variables
16404 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
16405 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
16406 Hook run in category buffers.
16408 @item gnus-category-line-format
16409 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
16410 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
16411 Variables}). Valid elements are:
16415 The name of the category.
16418 The number of groups in the category.
16421 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
16422 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
16423 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
16425 @item gnus-agent-short-article
16426 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
16427 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
16429 @item gnus-agent-long-article
16430 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
16431 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
16433 @item gnus-agent-low-score
16434 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
16435 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
16438 @item gnus-agent-high-score
16439 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
16440 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
16446 @node Agent Commands
16447 @subsection Agent Commands
16449 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
16450 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
16451 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
16455 * Group Agent Commands::
16456 * Summary Agent Commands::
16457 * Server Agent Commands::
16460 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
16461 following incantation:
16463 @cindex gnus-agent-batch
16465 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch
16470 @node Group Agent Commands
16471 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
16475 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
16476 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
16477 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
16478 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
16481 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
16482 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
16483 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
16486 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
16487 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
16488 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
16489 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
16492 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
16493 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
16494 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
16495 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
16498 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
16499 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
16500 Add the current group to an Agent category
16501 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
16502 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16505 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
16506 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
16507 Remove the current group from its category, if any
16508 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
16509 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16512 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
16513 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16514 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
16520 @node Summary Agent Commands
16521 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
16525 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
16526 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
16527 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
16530 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
16531 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
16532 Remove the downloading mark from the article
16533 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
16536 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
16537 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
16538 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
16541 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
16542 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
16543 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
16546 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
16547 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
16548 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
16549 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
16554 @node Server Agent Commands
16555 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
16559 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
16560 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
16561 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
16562 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
16565 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
16566 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
16567 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
16568 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
16574 @subsection Agent Expiry
16576 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
16577 @findex gnus-agent-expire
16578 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
16579 @cindex Agent expiry
16580 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
16583 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
16584 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
16585 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
16586 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
16587 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
16588 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
16590 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} can also be a list of regexp/day pairs.
16591 The regexps will be matched against group names to allow differing
16592 expiry in different groups.
16595 (setq gnus-agent-expire-days
16601 If you use the list form, the last element must always be the default
16602 method---it must always match all groups.
16604 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
16605 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
16606 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
16607 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
16608 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
16610 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
16611 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
16612 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's a special
16613 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} command to fix possible problems.
16615 @node Agent and IMAP
16616 @subsection Agent and IMAP
16618 The Agent work with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
16619 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
16620 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
16621 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
16623 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
16624 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
16625 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
16626 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
16628 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
16629 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
16630 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
16631 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
16632 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
16634 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16635 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
16636 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
16637 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
16638 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
16639 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
16641 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
16642 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
16643 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
16644 in the group buffer by default.
16646 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
16647 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
16652 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
16655 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
16659 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
16660 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
16661 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
16662 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
16663 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
16664 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
16665 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
16666 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
16669 @node Outgoing Messages
16670 @subsection Outgoing Messages
16672 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
16673 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
16674 after posting, and edit them at will.
16676 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
16677 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
16678 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
16679 messages in the draft group.
16683 @node Agent Variables
16684 @subsection Agent Variables
16687 @item gnus-agent-directory
16688 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
16689 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
16690 @file{~/News/agent/}.
16692 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
16693 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
16694 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
16695 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
16696 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
16699 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16700 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16701 Hook run when connecting to the network.
16703 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16704 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16705 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
16707 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
16708 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
16709 Hook run when after finishing fetching articles.
16711 @item gnus-agent-cache
16712 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
16713 Variable to control whether use the locally stored NOV and articles when
16716 @item gnus-agent-go-online
16717 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
16718 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
16719 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
16720 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
16721 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
16722 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
16728 @node Example Setup
16729 @subsection Example Setup
16731 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
16732 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
16733 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
16736 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
16737 ;;; from your ISP's server.
16738 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
16740 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
16741 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
16742 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
16744 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
16745 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
16747 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
16748 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; The obsolete setting.
16749 (setq gnus-agent t)
16752 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
16753 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
16756 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
16757 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
16758 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
16759 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
16760 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
16763 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
16764 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
16765 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
16766 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
16767 back all the killed groups.)
16769 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
16770 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
16771 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
16774 @node Batching Agents
16775 @subsection Batching Agents
16777 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
16778 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
16779 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
16783 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
16787 @node Agent Caveats
16788 @subsection Agent Caveats
16790 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
16791 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
16795 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
16799 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
16801 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is `nil'.
16805 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
16806 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP and also uses the
16807 locally stored articles.
16814 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
16815 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
16816 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
16819 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
16820 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
16821 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
16822 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
16823 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
16825 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
16826 before generating the summary buffer.
16828 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
16829 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
16830 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
16832 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
16833 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
16834 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
16835 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
16838 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
16839 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
16840 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
16841 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
16842 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
16843 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
16844 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
16845 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
16846 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
16847 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
16848 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
16849 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
16850 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
16851 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
16852 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
16853 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
16854 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
16858 @node Summary Score Commands
16859 @section Summary Score Commands
16860 @cindex score commands
16862 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
16863 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
16864 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
16865 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
16866 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
16868 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
16869 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
16870 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
16871 score file the current one.
16873 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
16878 @kindex V s (Summary)
16879 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
16880 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
16883 @kindex V S (Summary)
16884 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
16885 Display the score of the current article
16886 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
16889 @kindex V t (Summary)
16890 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
16891 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
16892 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
16895 @kindex V R (Summary)
16896 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
16897 Run the current summary through the scoring process
16898 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
16899 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
16900 effect you're having.
16903 @kindex V c (Summary)
16904 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
16905 Make a different score file the current
16906 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
16909 @kindex V e (Summary)
16910 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
16911 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
16912 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
16916 @kindex V f (Summary)
16917 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
16918 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
16919 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
16922 @kindex V F (Summary)
16923 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16924 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
16925 after editing score files.
16928 @kindex V C (Summary)
16929 @findex gnus-score-customize
16930 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
16931 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
16935 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
16940 @kindex V m (Summary)
16941 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
16942 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
16943 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
16946 @kindex V x (Summary)
16947 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
16948 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
16949 expunge all articles below this score
16950 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
16953 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
16954 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
16957 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
16958 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
16962 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
16963 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
16965 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
16966 keys are available:
16970 Score on the author name.
16973 Score on the subject line.
16976 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
16979 Score on the @code{References} line.
16985 Score on the number of lines.
16988 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
16991 Score on an "extra" header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
16992 if your NNTP server tracks additional header data in overviews.
16995 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
16996 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
16997 @file{ADAPT} files.)
17006 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
17012 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
17013 what headers you are scoring on.
17025 Substring matching.
17028 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
17057 Greater than number.
17062 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
17063 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
17064 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
17069 Temporary score entry.
17072 Permanent score entry.
17075 Immediately scoring.
17079 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
17080 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
17081 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
17085 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
17086 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
17087 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
17088 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
17090 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
17091 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
17092 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
17093 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
17094 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
17096 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
17097 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
17098 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
17099 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
17100 current score file.
17102 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
17103 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
17104 pretend they are keymaps or not.
17107 @node Group Score Commands
17108 @section Group Score Commands
17109 @cindex group score commands
17111 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
17116 @kindex W f (Group)
17117 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
17118 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
17119 all the time. This command will flush the cache
17120 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
17124 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
17126 @findex gnus-batch-score
17127 @cindex batch scoring
17129 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
17133 @node Score Variables
17134 @section Score Variables
17135 @cindex score variables
17139 @item gnus-use-scoring
17140 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
17141 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
17142 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
17144 @item gnus-kill-killed
17145 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
17146 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
17147 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
17148 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
17149 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
17150 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
17151 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
17153 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
17154 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
17155 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
17156 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
17157 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
17159 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
17160 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
17161 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
17162 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
17164 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17165 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17166 @cindex score cache
17167 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
17168 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
17169 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
17170 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
17171 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
17172 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
17175 @item gnus-save-score
17176 @vindex gnus-save-score
17177 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
17178 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
17179 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
17181 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
17182 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
17183 across group visits.
17185 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17186 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17187 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
17188 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
17189 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
17190 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
17191 manually entered data.
17193 @item gnus-summary-default-score
17194 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
17195 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
17197 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
17198 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
17199 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
17200 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
17201 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
17202 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
17204 @item gnus-score-over-mark
17205 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
17206 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
17207 default. Default is @samp{+}.
17209 @item gnus-score-below-mark
17210 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
17211 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
17212 default. Default is @samp{-}.
17214 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17215 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17216 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
17217 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
17219 Predefined functions available are:
17222 @item gnus-score-find-single
17223 @findex gnus-score-find-single
17224 Only apply the group's own score file.
17226 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
17227 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
17228 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
17229 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
17230 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
17231 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
17232 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
17233 then a regexp match is done.
17235 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
17236 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
17238 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
17239 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
17240 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
17241 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
17243 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17244 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17245 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
17246 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
17247 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
17251 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
17252 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
17253 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
17254 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
17255 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
17256 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
17257 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
17260 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
17261 overall score file, you could use the value
17263 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
17264 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
17267 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
17268 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
17269 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
17270 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
17271 are expired. It's 7 by default.
17273 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17274 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17275 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
17276 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
17277 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
17278 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
17279 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
17280 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
17282 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17283 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17284 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
17286 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
17287 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
17288 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
17289 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
17290 threading---according to the current value of
17291 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
17292 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
17293 simplified in this manner.
17298 @node Score File Format
17299 @section Score File Format
17300 @cindex score file format
17302 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
17303 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
17304 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
17306 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
17310 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
17312 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
17314 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
17316 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
17321 (mark-and-expunge -10)
17325 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
17326 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
17327 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
17328 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
17332 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
17333 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
17335 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
17336 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
17337 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
17339 Six keys are supported by this alist:
17344 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
17345 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
17346 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
17347 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
17348 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
17349 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
17350 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
17351 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
17352 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
17353 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
17354 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
17355 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
17356 to articles that matches these score entries.
17358 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
17359 score entry has one to four elements.
17363 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
17364 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
17368 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
17369 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
17370 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
17371 is successful. If this element is not present, the
17372 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
17373 instead. This is 1000 by default.
17376 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
17377 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
17378 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
17379 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
17380 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
17383 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
17384 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
17385 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
17386 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
17389 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
17390 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
17391 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
17392 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
17393 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
17394 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
17395 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
17396 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
17397 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
17398 instead, if you feel like.
17401 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
17402 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
17403 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
17404 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
17405 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
17406 if your NNTP server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
17409 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
17413 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
17414 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
17416 These predicates are true if
17419 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
17422 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
17423 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
17430 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
17431 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
17432 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
17433 it's not. I think.)
17435 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
17436 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
17437 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
17438 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
17441 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
17442 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
17443 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
17444 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
17445 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
17446 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
17447 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
17451 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
17452 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
17453 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
17454 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
17455 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
17456 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
17457 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
17458 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
17461 @item Head, Body, All
17462 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
17466 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
17467 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
17468 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
17469 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
17470 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
17471 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
17472 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
17476 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
17477 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
17478 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
17479 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
17480 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
17481 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
17482 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
17483 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
17484 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
17485 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
17486 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
17490 @cindex Score File Atoms
17492 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17493 lower than this number will be marked as read.
17496 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17497 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
17499 @item mark-and-expunge
17500 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17501 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
17504 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
17505 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
17506 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
17507 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
17508 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
17511 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
17512 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
17515 @item exclude-files
17516 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
17517 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
17521 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
17522 ignored when handling global score files.
17525 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
17526 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
17527 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
17528 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
17531 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
17532 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
17533 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
17534 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
17536 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
17540 (mark-and-expunge -100)
17543 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
17544 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
17545 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
17546 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
17547 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
17549 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
17550 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
17551 scoring rules exist.
17554 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
17555 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
17556 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
17557 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
17558 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
17559 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
17560 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17561 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
17562 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
17563 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
17564 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
17568 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
17569 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
17570 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
17571 file for a number of groups.
17574 @cindex local variables
17575 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
17576 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
17577 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
17578 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
17579 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
17583 @node Score File Editing
17584 @section Score File Editing
17586 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
17587 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
17588 with a mode for that.
17590 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
17591 additional commands:
17596 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
17597 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
17598 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
17599 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
17602 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
17603 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
17604 Insert the current date in numerical format
17605 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
17606 you were wondering.
17609 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
17610 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
17611 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
17612 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
17613 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
17618 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
17620 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
17621 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
17623 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
17624 e} to begin editing score files.
17627 @node Adaptive Scoring
17628 @section Adaptive Scoring
17629 @cindex adaptive scoring
17631 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
17632 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
17633 stupidity, to be precise.
17635 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
17636 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
17637 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
17638 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
17639 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17640 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
17641 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
17642 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
17643 variable to @code{(word line)}.
17645 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17646 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
17647 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
17648 might look something like this:
17651 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17652 '((gnus-unread-mark)
17653 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
17654 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
17655 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
17656 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
17657 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
17658 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
17659 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
17660 (gnus-ancient-mark)
17661 (gnus-low-score-mark)
17662 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
17665 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
17666 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
17667 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
17668 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
17669 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
17670 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
17673 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
17674 will be applied to each article.
17676 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
17677 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
17678 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
17679 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
17681 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
17682 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
17683 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
17684 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
17686 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
17687 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
17688 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
17689 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
17691 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
17692 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
17693 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
17694 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
17695 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
17696 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
17698 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
17699 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
17700 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
17701 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
17702 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
17703 aspirins afterwards.)
17705 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
17706 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
17707 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
17709 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
17710 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
17711 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
17713 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
17714 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
17715 let you use different rules in different groups.
17717 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
17718 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
17719 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
17722 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
17723 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
17724 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
17725 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
17726 the length of the match is less than
17727 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
17728 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
17731 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17732 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
17733 headers. If you adapt on words, the
17734 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
17735 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
17738 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17739 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
17740 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
17741 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
17742 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
17745 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
17746 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
17747 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
17748 score with 30 points.
17750 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
17751 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
17752 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
17753 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
17754 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
17756 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
17757 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
17758 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
17759 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
17760 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
17762 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
17763 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
17764 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
17765 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
17767 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
17768 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
17769 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
17770 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
17772 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
17773 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
17774 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
17775 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
17776 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
17778 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
17779 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
17780 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
17782 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
17783 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
17784 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
17785 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
17788 @node Home Score File
17789 @section Home Score File
17791 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
17792 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
17793 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
17794 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
17796 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
17797 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
17798 could perhaps use the same home score file.
17800 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
17801 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
17806 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
17810 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
17811 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
17815 A list. The elements in this list can be:
17819 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
17820 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
17823 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
17824 the home score file.
17827 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
17830 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
17835 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
17838 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17839 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
17842 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
17843 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
17845 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
17847 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17848 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
17851 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
17852 Other functions include
17855 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
17856 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
17857 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
17858 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
17862 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
17863 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
17864 their own home score files:
17867 (setq gnus-home-score-file
17868 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
17869 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
17870 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
17871 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
17874 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
17875 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
17876 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
17877 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
17878 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
17880 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
17881 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
17882 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
17883 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
17884 precedence over this variable.
17887 @node Followups To Yourself
17888 @section Followups To Yourself
17890 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
17891 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
17892 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
17893 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
17894 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
17895 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
17899 @item gnus-score-followup-article
17900 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
17901 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
17904 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
17905 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
17906 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
17910 @vindex message-sent-hook
17911 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
17912 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
17914 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
17918 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
17919 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
17923 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17924 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
17927 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
17928 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
17933 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
17937 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
17938 is system-dependent.
17941 @node Scoring On Other Headers
17942 @section Scoring On Other Headers
17943 @cindex scoring on other headers
17945 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
17946 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
17947 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
17948 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
17949 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
17951 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
17952 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
17953 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
17954 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
17955 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
17957 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
17960 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
17961 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
17964 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
17965 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
17966 time if you have much mail.
17968 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
17969 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
17975 @section Scoring Tips
17976 @cindex scoring tips
17982 @cindex scoring crossposts
17983 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
17984 the @code{Xref} header.
17986 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
17989 @item Multiple crossposts
17990 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
17991 more than, say, 3 groups:
17994 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
17998 @item Matching on the body
17999 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
18000 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
18001 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
18002 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
18003 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
18004 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
18005 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
18008 @item Marking as read
18009 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
18010 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
18011 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
18015 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
18017 @item Negated character classes
18018 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
18019 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
18020 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
18024 @node Reverse Scoring
18025 @section Reverse Scoring
18026 @cindex reverse scoring
18028 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
18029 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
18030 like this in your score file:
18034 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
18039 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
18040 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
18043 @node Global Score Files
18044 @section Global Score Files
18045 @cindex global score files
18047 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
18048 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
18049 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
18051 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
18052 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
18053 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
18055 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
18056 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
18057 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
18058 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
18059 files are applicable to which group.
18061 To use the score file
18062 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
18063 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
18067 (setq gnus-global-score-files
18068 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
18069 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
18072 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
18074 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
18075 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
18076 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
18077 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
18079 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
18080 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
18082 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
18083 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
18084 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
18085 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
18086 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
18087 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
18089 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
18095 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
18097 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
18099 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
18101 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
18102 lowered out of existence.
18104 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
18105 articles completely.
18108 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
18109 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
18110 old articles for a long time.
18113 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
18114 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
18115 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
18116 holding our breath yet?
18120 @section Kill Files
18123 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
18124 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
18125 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
18127 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
18128 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
18129 files into score files.
18131 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
18132 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
18133 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
18134 that isn't a very good idea.
18136 Normal kill files look like this:
18139 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18140 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
18144 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
18145 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
18147 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
18148 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
18151 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
18156 @kindex M-k (Summary)
18157 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
18158 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
18161 @kindex M-K (Summary)
18162 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
18163 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
18166 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
18171 @kindex M-k (Group)
18172 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
18173 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
18176 @kindex M-K (Group)
18177 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
18178 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
18181 Kill file variables:
18184 @item gnus-kill-file-name
18185 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
18186 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
18187 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
18188 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
18189 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
18190 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
18192 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18193 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18194 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
18195 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
18198 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
18199 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
18200 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
18201 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
18202 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
18203 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
18204 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
18205 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
18206 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
18208 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18209 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18210 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
18215 @node Converting Kill Files
18216 @section Converting Kill Files
18218 @cindex converting kill files
18220 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
18221 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
18222 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
18225 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
18226 You can fetch it from
18227 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
18229 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
18230 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
18231 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
18239 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
18240 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
18241 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
18242 news articles generated every day.
18244 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
18245 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
18246 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
18247 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
18248 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
18249 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
18250 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
18251 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
18254 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
18255 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
18258 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
18259 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
18260 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
18261 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
18265 @node Using GroupLens
18266 @subsection Using GroupLens
18268 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
18270 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
18271 better bit in town at the moment.
18273 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
18277 @item gnus-use-grouplens
18278 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
18279 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
18280 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
18282 @item grouplens-pseudonym
18283 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
18284 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
18285 with the Better Bit Bureau.
18287 @item grouplens-newsgroups
18288 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
18289 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
18293 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
18294 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
18295 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
18296 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
18297 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
18298 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
18301 @node Rating Articles
18302 @subsection Rating Articles
18304 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
18305 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
18306 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
18307 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
18310 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
18315 @kindex r (GroupLens)
18316 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
18317 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
18320 @kindex k (GroupLens)
18321 @findex grouplens-score-thread
18322 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
18323 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
18324 threads in rec.humor.
18328 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
18329 the score of the article you're reading.
18334 @kindex n (GroupLens)
18335 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
18336 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
18339 @kindex , (GroupLens)
18340 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
18341 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
18345 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
18346 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
18349 @node Displaying Predictions
18350 @subsection Displaying Predictions
18352 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
18353 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
18354 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
18355 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
18356 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
18358 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
18359 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
18360 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
18361 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
18362 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
18363 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
18364 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
18365 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
18366 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
18367 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
18368 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
18369 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
18370 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
18372 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
18373 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
18374 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
18375 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
18377 The following are valid values for that variable.
18380 @item prediction-spot
18381 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
18384 @item confidence-interval
18385 A numeric confidence interval.
18387 @item prediction-bar
18388 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
18390 @item confidence-bar
18391 Numerical confidence.
18393 @item confidence-spot
18394 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
18396 @item prediction-num
18397 Plain-old numeric value.
18399 @item confidence-plus-minus
18400 Prediction +/- confidence.
18405 @node GroupLens Variables
18406 @subsection GroupLens Variables
18410 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
18411 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
18412 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
18413 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
18416 @item grouplens-bbb-host
18417 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
18420 @item grouplens-bbb-port
18421 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
18423 @item grouplens-score-offset
18424 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
18425 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
18428 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
18429 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
18430 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
18435 @node Advanced Scoring
18436 @section Advanced Scoring
18438 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
18439 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
18440 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
18441 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
18442 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
18444 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
18448 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
18449 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
18450 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
18454 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
18455 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
18457 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
18458 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
18459 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
18460 non-@code{nil} value.
18462 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
18463 operator, and various match operators.
18470 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18471 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
18472 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
18477 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18478 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
18479 then this operator will return @code{false}.
18484 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
18485 logical negation of the value of its argument.
18489 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
18490 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
18491 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
18492 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
18493 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
18494 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
18495 the ancestry you want to go.
18497 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
18498 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
18499 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
18500 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
18501 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
18504 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
18505 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
18507 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
18508 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
18511 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
18512 when he's talking about Gnus:
18516 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18517 ("subject" "Gnus"))
18523 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
18527 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18534 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
18535 really don't want to read what he's written:
18539 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18540 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
18544 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
18545 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
18546 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
18553 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
18554 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
18555 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
18556 ("body" "white.*socks"))
18560 The possibilities are endless.
18563 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
18564 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
18566 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
18567 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
18568 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
18569 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
18570 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
18571 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
18572 @samp{subject}) first.
18574 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
18575 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
18586 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
18587 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
18593 ("subject" "Gnus")))
18600 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
18601 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
18606 @section Score Decays
18607 @cindex score decays
18610 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
18611 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
18612 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
18613 use them in any sensible way.
18615 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
18616 @findex gnus-decay-score
18617 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
18618 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
18619 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
18620 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
18621 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
18622 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
18623 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
18624 definition of that function:
18627 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
18629 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
18630 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
18633 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
18635 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
18637 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
18640 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
18641 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
18642 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
18643 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
18647 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
18650 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
18653 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
18657 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
18658 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
18659 the new score, which should be an integer.
18661 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
18662 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
18667 @include message.texi
18668 @chapter Emacs MIME
18669 @include emacs-mime.texi
18671 @include sieve.texi
18679 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
18680 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
18681 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
18682 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
18683 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
18684 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
18685 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
18686 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
18687 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
18688 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
18689 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
18690 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
18691 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
18692 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
18693 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
18694 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
18695 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
18696 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
18697 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
18701 @node Process/Prefix
18702 @section Process/Prefix
18703 @cindex process/prefix convention
18705 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
18706 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
18708 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
18709 command to be performed on.
18713 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
18714 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
18715 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
18716 with the current one.
18718 @vindex transient-mark-mode
18719 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
18720 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
18722 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
18723 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
18726 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
18727 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
18729 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
18732 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
18733 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
18734 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
18735 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
18737 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
18738 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
18739 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
18740 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
18741 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
18742 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
18743 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
18744 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
18746 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
18747 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
18748 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
18749 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
18750 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
18754 @section Interactive
18755 @cindex interaction
18759 @item gnus-novice-user
18760 @vindex gnus-novice-user
18761 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
18762 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
18763 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
18764 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
18767 @item gnus-expert-user
18768 @vindex gnus-expert-user
18769 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
18770 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
18771 matter how strange.
18773 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
18774 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
18775 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
18776 is @code{t} by default.
18778 @item gnus-interactive-exit
18779 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
18780 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18785 @node Symbolic Prefixes
18786 @section Symbolic Prefixes
18787 @cindex symbolic prefixes
18789 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
18790 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
18791 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
18792 rule of 900 to the current article.
18794 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
18795 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
18796 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
18797 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
18798 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
18799 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
18800 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
18802 @kindex M-i (Summary)
18803 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
18804 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
18805 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
18806 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
18807 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
18808 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
18809 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
18810 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
18812 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
18813 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
18814 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
18816 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
18820 @node Formatting Variables
18821 @section Formatting Variables
18822 @cindex formatting variables
18824 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
18825 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
18826 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
18827 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
18828 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
18831 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
18832 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
18833 lots of percentages everywhere.
18836 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
18837 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
18838 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
18839 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
18840 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
18841 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
18842 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
18843 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
18846 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
18847 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
18848 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
18849 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
18850 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
18851 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
18852 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
18853 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
18855 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
18856 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
18858 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
18859 @findex gnus-update-format
18860 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
18861 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
18862 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
18863 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
18867 @node Formatting Basics
18868 @subsection Formatting Basics
18870 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
18871 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
18872 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
18874 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
18875 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
18876 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
18877 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
18878 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
18881 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
18882 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
18883 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
18884 less than 4 characters wide.
18886 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
18887 @samp{%&user-date;}.
18890 @node Mode Line Formatting
18891 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
18893 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
18894 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
18895 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
18896 with the following two differences:
18901 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
18904 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
18905 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
18906 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
18907 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
18908 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
18909 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
18910 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
18915 @node Advanced Formatting
18916 @subsection Advanced Formatting
18918 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
18919 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
18920 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
18921 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
18923 These are the valid modifiers:
18928 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
18932 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
18937 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
18940 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
18945 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
18948 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
18951 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
18954 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
18960 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
18965 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
18966 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
18967 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
18968 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
18969 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
18970 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
18971 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
18973 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
18974 last operation, padding.
18976 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
18977 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
18978 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
18979 @xref{Compilation}.
18982 @node User-Defined Specs
18983 @subsection User-Defined Specs
18985 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
18986 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
18987 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
18988 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
18989 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
18990 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
18991 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
18992 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
18993 should protect against that.
18995 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
18996 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
18998 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
18999 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
19000 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
19001 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
19005 @node Formatting Fonts
19006 @subsection Formatting Fonts
19008 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
19009 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
19010 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
19011 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
19014 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
19015 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
19016 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
19017 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
19018 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
19019 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
19021 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
19022 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
19023 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
19024 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
19025 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
19026 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
19027 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
19028 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
19030 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
19033 ;; Create three face types.
19034 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
19035 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
19037 ;; We want the article count to be in
19038 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
19039 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
19040 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
19042 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
19043 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
19045 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
19046 (setq gnus-group-line-format
19047 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
19050 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
19051 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
19053 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
19054 mode-line variables.
19056 @node Positioning Point
19057 @subsection Positioning Point
19059 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
19060 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
19061 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
19063 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
19065 @findex gnus-goto-colon
19066 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
19067 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
19069 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
19070 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
19071 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
19076 @subsection Tabulation
19078 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
19079 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
19080 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
19081 about lining up the following text afterwards.
19083 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
19084 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
19086 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19087 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
19088 This is the soft tabulator.
19090 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19091 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
19092 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
19095 @node Wide Characters
19096 @subsection Wide Characters
19098 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
19099 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
19100 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
19102 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
19103 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
19104 these coutries, that's not true.
19106 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
19107 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
19108 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
19109 prettieer. The default value is @code{t}.
19113 @node Window Layout
19114 @section Window Layout
19115 @cindex window layout
19117 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
19119 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
19120 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
19121 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
19122 @code{t} by default.
19124 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
19125 glitches. Use at your own peril.
19127 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
19128 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
19129 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
19132 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
19133 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
19134 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19138 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
19139 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
19140 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
19141 possible names is listed below.
19143 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
19144 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
19147 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19151 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
19152 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
19153 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
19154 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
19155 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
19156 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
19157 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
19158 size spec per split.
19160 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
19161 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
19162 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
19163 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
19164 present) gets focus.
19166 Here's a more complicated example:
19169 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
19170 (summary 0.25 point)
19171 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
19175 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
19176 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
19177 occupy, not a percentage.
19179 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
19180 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
19181 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
19182 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
19183 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
19186 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
19189 (article (horizontal 1.0
19194 (summary 0.25 point)
19199 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
19200 @code{horizontal} thingie?
19202 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
19203 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
19204 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
19205 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
19206 the screen is to be given to this strip.
19208 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
19209 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
19210 lines from the splits.
19212 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
19216 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
19217 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
19218 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
19219 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
19220 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
19221 size = number | frame-params
19222 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
19225 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
19226 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
19227 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
19228 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
19230 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
19231 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
19232 @cindex window height
19233 @cindex window width
19234 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
19235 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
19236 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
19237 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
19238 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
19239 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
19241 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
19242 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
19243 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
19244 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
19246 @findex gnus-configure-frame
19247 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
19248 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
19249 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
19250 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
19251 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
19252 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
19253 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
19254 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
19255 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
19256 configuration list.
19259 (gnus-configure-frame
19263 (article 0.3 point))
19271 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
19272 @code{frame} split:
19275 (gnus-configure-frame
19278 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
19280 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
19281 (user-position . t)
19282 (left . -1) (top . 1))
19287 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
19288 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
19289 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
19290 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
19291 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
19292 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
19293 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
19294 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
19296 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
19297 be found in its default value.
19299 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
19300 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
19301 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
19305 (message (horizontal 1.0
19306 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
19308 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
19313 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
19314 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
19315 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
19320 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
19321 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
19322 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
19323 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
19324 (name . "Message"))
19325 (message 1.0 point))))
19328 @findex gnus-add-configuration
19329 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
19330 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
19331 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
19332 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
19335 (gnus-add-configuration
19336 '(article (vertical 1.0
19338 (summary .25 point)
19342 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
19343 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
19344 Gnus has been loaded.
19346 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
19347 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
19348 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
19349 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
19350 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
19352 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
19353 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
19354 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
19357 @subsection Example Window Configurations
19361 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
19362 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
19377 (gnus-add-configuration
19380 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19382 (summary 0.16 point)
19385 (gnus-add-configuration
19388 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19389 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
19395 @node Faces and Fonts
19396 @section Faces and Fonts
19401 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
19402 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
19403 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
19408 @section Compilation
19409 @cindex compilation
19410 @cindex byte-compilation
19412 @findex gnus-compile
19414 Remember all those line format specification variables?
19415 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
19416 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
19417 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
19418 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
19419 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
19422 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
19423 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
19424 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
19425 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
19426 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
19427 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
19428 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
19432 @section Mode Lines
19435 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
19436 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
19437 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
19438 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
19439 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
19440 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
19441 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
19444 @cindex display-time
19446 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
19447 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
19448 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
19449 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
19450 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
19451 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
19452 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
19453 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
19456 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
19458 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
19459 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
19461 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
19462 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
19463 (length display-time-string)))))
19466 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
19467 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
19468 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
19469 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
19470 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
19473 @node Highlighting and Menus
19474 @section Highlighting and Menus
19476 @cindex highlighting
19479 @vindex gnus-visual
19480 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
19481 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
19482 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
19485 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
19486 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
19489 @item group-highlight
19490 Do highlights in the group buffer.
19491 @item summary-highlight
19492 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
19493 @item article-highlight
19494 Do highlights in the article buffer.
19496 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
19498 Create menus in the group buffer.
19500 Create menus in the summary buffers.
19502 Create menus in the article buffer.
19504 Create menus in the browse buffer.
19506 Create menus in the server buffer.
19508 Create menus in the score buffers.
19510 Create menus in all buffers.
19513 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
19514 buffers, you could say something like:
19517 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
19520 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
19523 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
19526 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
19527 in all Gnus buffers.
19529 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
19532 @item gnus-mouse-face
19533 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
19534 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
19535 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
19539 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
19543 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
19544 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
19545 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
19547 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
19548 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
19549 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
19551 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
19552 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
19553 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
19555 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
19556 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
19557 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
19559 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
19560 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
19561 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
19563 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
19564 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
19565 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
19576 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
19577 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
19578 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
19579 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
19580 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
19584 @vindex gnus-carpal
19585 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
19586 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
19587 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
19592 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19593 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19594 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
19596 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
19597 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
19598 Face used on buttons.
19600 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
19601 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
19602 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
19604 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19605 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19606 Buttons in the group buffer.
19608 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19609 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19610 Buttons in the summary buffer.
19612 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19613 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19614 Buttons in the server buffer.
19616 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19617 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19618 Buttons in the browse buffer.
19621 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
19622 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
19623 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
19631 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
19632 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
19633 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
19634 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
19635 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
19637 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
19638 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
19639 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
19641 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
19642 been idle for thirty minutes:
19645 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
19648 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
19652 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
19655 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
19656 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
19657 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19659 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
19660 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
19661 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
19662 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19664 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
19665 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
19666 @var{idle} minutes.
19668 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
19669 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
19672 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
19673 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
19674 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
19676 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
19677 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
19678 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
19679 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
19681 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
19682 your @file{.gnus} file:
19684 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
19686 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
19689 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
19690 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
19691 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
19692 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
19693 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
19694 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
19695 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
19696 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
19697 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
19698 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
19699 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
19701 @findex gnus-demon-init
19702 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
19703 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
19704 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
19705 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
19706 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
19708 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
19709 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
19710 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
19719 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
19720 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
19722 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
19723 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
19724 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
19725 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
19728 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
19729 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
19730 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
19731 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
19733 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
19734 this will make spam disappear.
19736 There are some variables to customize, of course:
19739 @item gnus-use-nocem
19740 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
19741 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
19744 @item gnus-nocem-groups
19745 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
19746 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
19747 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
19748 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
19750 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
19751 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
19752 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
19753 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
19754 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
19755 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
19757 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
19758 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
19760 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
19761 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
19762 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
19763 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
19764 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
19765 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
19766 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
19767 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
19768 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
19769 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
19771 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
19772 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
19775 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
19778 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
19779 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
19782 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
19785 The specs are applied left-to-right.
19788 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
19789 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
19791 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
19792 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
19793 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
19794 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
19796 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
19797 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
19800 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
19802 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
19810 This might be dangerous, though.
19812 @item gnus-nocem-directory
19813 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
19814 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
19815 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
19817 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19818 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
19819 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
19820 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
19821 might then see old spam.
19823 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
19824 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
19825 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
19826 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
19827 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
19830 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19831 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
19832 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
19833 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
19837 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
19838 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
19839 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
19840 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
19847 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
19848 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
19849 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
19851 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
19852 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
19853 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
19854 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
19855 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
19856 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
19857 @code{undo} function.
19859 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
19860 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
19861 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
19862 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
19863 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
19864 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
19865 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
19866 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
19867 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
19868 never be totally undoable.
19870 @findex gnus-undo-mode
19871 @vindex gnus-use-undo
19873 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
19874 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
19875 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
19876 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
19880 @node Predicate Specifiers
19881 @section Predicate Specifiers
19882 @cindex predicate specifiers
19884 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
19885 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
19886 to type all that much.
19888 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
19893 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
19894 gnus-article-unread-p)
19897 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
19898 functions all take one parameter.
19900 @findex gnus-make-predicate
19901 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
19902 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
19903 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
19908 @section Moderation
19911 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
19912 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
19913 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
19916 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
19920 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
19923 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
19925 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
19930 You split your incoming mail by matching on
19931 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
19932 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
19935 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
19936 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
19939 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
19940 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
19944 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
19947 (setq gnus-moderated-list
19948 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
19952 @node Image Enhancements
19953 @section Image Enhancements
19955 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
19956 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
19959 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
19960 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
19961 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
19962 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
19963 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
19976 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
19977 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
19978 over your shoulder as you read news.
19981 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
19982 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
19983 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
19984 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
19985 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
19990 @subsubsection Picon Basics
19992 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
20001 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
20002 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
20003 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
20004 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
20005 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
20006 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
20007 @code{GIF} formats.
20010 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20011 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
20012 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
20013 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
20014 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
20016 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20017 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
20018 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
20019 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
20020 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
20021 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20023 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
20024 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
20027 @node Picon Requirements
20028 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
20030 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must have @code{x} support
20031 compiled into XEmacs. To display color picons which are much nicer
20032 than the black & white one, you also need one of @code{xpm} or
20033 @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
20035 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20036 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
20037 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
20038 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
20039 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
20040 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20043 @subsubsection Easy Picons
20045 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
20046 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
20049 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
20050 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
20053 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
20054 containing the Picons databases.
20056 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
20059 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20060 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
20065 @subsubsection Hard Picons
20073 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
20074 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
20075 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
20076 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
20077 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
20082 @item gnus-picons-database
20083 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20084 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
20085 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
20086 subdirectories. This is only useful if
20087 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
20088 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
20090 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20091 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20092 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
20093 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
20094 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
20095 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
20096 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20098 @item gnus-picons-display-where
20099 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20100 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
20101 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
20102 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
20103 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
20104 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
20105 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
20107 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20108 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20109 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
20114 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
20115 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
20117 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
20118 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
20121 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20123 @item gnus-article-display-picons
20124 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
20125 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
20126 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
20128 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20129 @findex gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20130 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
20131 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the function name, not @code{xface})
20137 @node Picon Useless Configuration
20138 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
20146 The following variables offer further control over how things are
20147 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
20148 don't need to worry about.
20152 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
20153 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
20154 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20155 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
20157 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
20158 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
20159 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
20160 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
20162 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
20163 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
20164 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20165 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
20166 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
20168 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20169 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20170 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
20171 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
20172 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
20173 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
20174 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
20175 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20177 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20178 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20179 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
20180 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
20181 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20183 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20184 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20185 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
20186 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
20187 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
20188 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
20189 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
20191 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20192 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20193 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
20194 Defaults to @code{nil}.
20196 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
20197 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
20198 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
20199 Defaults to @code{t}.
20201 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20202 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20203 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
20204 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
20206 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
20207 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
20208 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
20210 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20211 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20212 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
20213 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
20215 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
20216 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
20218 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20219 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20220 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
20221 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
20222 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
20223 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
20224 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
20225 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
20236 @subsection Smileys
20241 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
20246 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
20247 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
20249 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
20250 @file{.gnus.el} file:
20253 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
20256 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
20257 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
20258 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
20259 text and maps that to file names.
20261 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
20262 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
20263 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
20264 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
20265 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
20266 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
20268 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
20269 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
20271 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
20272 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
20273 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
20275 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
20276 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
20280 @item smiley-data-directory
20281 @vindex smiley-data-directory
20282 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
20284 @item smiley-flesh-color
20285 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
20286 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
20288 @item smiley-features-color
20289 @vindex smiley-features-color
20290 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20292 @item smiley-tongue-color
20293 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
20294 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
20296 @item smiley-circle-color
20297 @vindex smiley-circle-color
20298 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20300 @item smiley-mouse-face
20301 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
20302 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
20311 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
20312 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
20313 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
20317 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
20318 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
20319 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
20320 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
20328 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
20329 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
20330 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
20331 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
20333 The variable that controls this is the
20334 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
20335 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
20336 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
20337 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
20338 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
20340 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
20341 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
20342 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
20343 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
20346 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
20347 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
20348 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
20349 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
20350 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
20351 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
20352 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
20353 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
20355 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
20358 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
20359 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
20361 @findex gnus-random-x-face
20362 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files
20363 in @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
20364 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
20365 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
20366 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big.
20368 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a file as the parameter, and then
20369 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
20370 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
20372 Here's how you would typically use the former function. Put something
20373 like the folllowing in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
20376 (setq message-required-news-headers
20377 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20378 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
20381 Using the latter function would be something like this:
20384 (setq message-required-news-headers
20385 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20386 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
20387 (gnus-x-face-from-file
20388 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
20393 @subsection Toolbar
20403 @item gnus-use-toolbar
20404 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
20405 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
20406 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
20407 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
20409 @item gnus-group-toolbar
20410 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
20411 The toolbar in the group buffer.
20413 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
20414 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
20415 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
20417 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20418 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20419 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
20425 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
20428 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20429 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20430 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
20431 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
20432 unusual directory structure.
20434 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20435 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20436 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
20437 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
20439 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20440 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20441 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
20442 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
20443 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
20444 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
20446 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20447 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20448 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
20462 @node Fuzzy Matching
20463 @section Fuzzy Matching
20464 @cindex fuzzy matching
20466 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
20467 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
20469 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
20470 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
20471 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
20473 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
20474 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
20475 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
20476 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
20477 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
20480 @node Thwarting Email Spam
20481 @section Thwarting Email Spam
20485 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
20487 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
20488 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
20489 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
20490 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
20491 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
20492 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
20493 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
20494 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
20497 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
20498 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
20499 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
20500 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
20501 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
20502 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
20506 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
20507 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
20509 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
20510 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
20511 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
20512 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
20513 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
20514 part of the mail address.)
20517 (setq message-default-news-headers
20518 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
20521 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
20522 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
20527 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
20528 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
20529 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
20535 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
20536 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
20537 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
20538 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
20540 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
20541 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
20542 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
20543 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
20544 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
20545 your fancy split rule in this way:
20550 (to "larsi" "misc")
20554 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
20555 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
20556 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
20557 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
20558 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
20560 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
20561 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
20562 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
20563 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
20564 cosmic balance somewhat.
20566 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
20567 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
20568 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
20569 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
20572 @node Various Various
20573 @section Various Various
20579 @item gnus-home-directory
20580 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
20581 defaults to @file{~/}.
20583 @item gnus-directory
20584 @vindex gnus-directory
20585 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
20586 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
20587 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
20589 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
20590 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
20591 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
20592 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
20594 @item gnus-default-directory
20595 @vindex gnus-default-directory
20596 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
20597 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
20598 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
20599 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
20600 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
20601 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
20604 @vindex gnus-verbose
20605 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
20606 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
20607 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
20608 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
20609 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
20611 @item gnus-verbose-backends
20612 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
20613 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
20614 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
20616 @item nnheader-max-head-length
20617 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
20618 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
20619 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
20620 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
20621 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
20622 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
20623 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
20624 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
20625 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
20627 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
20628 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
20629 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
20630 read when doing the operation described above.
20632 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20633 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20635 @cindex invalid characters in file names
20636 @cindex characters in file names
20637 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
20638 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
20639 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
20642 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
20646 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
20647 Windows (phooey) systems.
20649 @item gnus-hidden-properties
20650 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
20651 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
20652 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
20653 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
20655 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
20656 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
20657 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
20658 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
20659 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
20661 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
20662 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
20663 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
20665 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20666 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
20668 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
20669 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
20670 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
20671 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
20674 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
20682 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
20683 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
20685 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
20687 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
20693 Not because of victories @*
20696 but for the common sunshine,@*
20698 the largess of the spring.
20702 but for the day's work done@*
20703 as well as I was able;@*
20704 not for a seat upon the dais@*
20705 but at the common table.@*
20710 @chapter Appendices
20713 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
20714 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
20715 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
20716 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
20717 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
20718 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
20719 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
20720 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
20721 * Frequently Asked Questions::
20728 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
20730 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
20731 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
20732 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
20733 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
20734 @samp{xemacs-base}, and @samp{fsf-compat}.
20741 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
20742 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
20744 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
20745 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
20746 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
20747 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
20748 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
20750 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
20751 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
20752 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
20753 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
20754 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
20755 appropriate name, don't you think?)
20757 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
20758 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
20759 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
20760 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
20763 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
20764 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
20765 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
20766 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
20767 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
20768 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
20769 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
20770 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
20771 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
20775 @node Gnus Versions
20776 @subsection Gnus Versions
20778 @cindex September Gnus
20780 @cindex Quassia Gnus
20781 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
20785 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
20786 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
20787 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
20789 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
20790 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
20792 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
20793 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
20795 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
20796 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
20798 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
20799 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
20802 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
20804 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
20805 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
20806 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
20807 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
20808 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
20809 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
20812 @node Other Gnus Versions
20813 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
20816 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
20817 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
20818 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
20819 @sc{mime} capabilities.
20821 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
20822 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
20823 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
20824 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
20831 What's the point of Gnus?
20833 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
20834 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
20835 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
20836 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
20837 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
20838 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
20839 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
20840 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
20841 keep track of millions of people who post?
20843 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
20844 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
20845 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
20846 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
20847 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
20848 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
20849 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
20850 every one of you to explore and invent.
20852 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
20853 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
20856 @node Compatibility
20857 @subsection Compatibility
20859 @cindex compatibility
20860 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
20861 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
20862 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
20867 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
20871 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
20874 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
20877 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
20878 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
20879 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
20880 important variables have their values copied into their global
20881 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
20882 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
20884 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
20885 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
20886 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
20887 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
20888 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
20892 @cindex highlighting
20893 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
20894 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
20895 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
20896 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
20897 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
20898 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
20901 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
20902 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
20903 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
20904 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
20906 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
20907 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
20908 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
20909 to stop doing it the old way.
20911 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
20913 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
20915 @cindex reporting bugs
20917 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
20918 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
20919 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
20921 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
20922 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
20923 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
20924 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
20929 @subsection Conformity
20931 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
20932 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
20940 There are no known breaches of this standard.
20944 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
20946 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
20947 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
20948 We do have some breaches to this one.
20954 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
20955 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
20956 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
20957 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
20958 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
20963 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
20964 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
20965 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
20966 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
20968 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
20970 All the various MIME RFCs are supported.
20972 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
20973 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
20975 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
20978 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
20979 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
20980 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-MIME aware PGP
20981 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
20982 decoding (verification and decryption).
20984 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
20985 RFC 2015 (superceded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
20986 1991) describes the MIME-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
20987 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
20989 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
20990 RFC 2633 describes the S/MIME format.
20992 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
20993 RFC 1730 is IMAP version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (IMAP 4
20994 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for IMAP. RFC
20995 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for IMAP. RFC 2359
20996 describes a IMAP protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
20997 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with IMAP. RFC 1731 describes the
20998 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for IMAP.
21002 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
21003 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
21008 @subsection Emacsen
21014 Gnus should work on :
21022 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
21026 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
21027 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
21030 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
21031 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
21032 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
21036 @node Gnus Development
21037 @subsection Gnus Development
21039 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
21040 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
21041 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
21042 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
21043 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
21044 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
21045 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
21046 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
21048 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
21049 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
21050 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
21051 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
21052 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
21055 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
21056 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
21057 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
21058 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
21059 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
21061 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
21062 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
21063 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
21064 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
21065 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
21066 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
21067 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
21068 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
21069 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
21070 can't be assumed to do so.
21075 @subsection Contributors
21076 @cindex contributors
21078 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
21079 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
21080 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
21081 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
21082 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
21083 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
21084 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
21085 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
21086 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
21087 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
21089 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
21095 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
21098 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
21099 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
21100 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
21101 functionality and stuff.
21104 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
21105 well as numerous other things).
21108 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
21111 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
21114 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
21117 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
21120 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
21121 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
21124 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
21127 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
21128 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21131 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
21134 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
21137 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
21140 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
21143 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
21144 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
21147 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
21150 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
21153 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
21156 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
21160 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
21163 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
21166 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
21169 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
21170 well as autoconf support.
21174 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
21175 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
21177 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
21186 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
21190 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
21200 Alexei V. Barantsev,
21215 Massimo Campostrini,
21220 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
21221 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
21225 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
21228 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
21234 Michael Welsh Duggan,
21239 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
21243 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
21251 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
21253 Michelangelo Grigni,
21257 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
21259 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
21261 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
21268 François Felix Ingrand,
21269 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
21270 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
21272 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
21283 Peter Skov Knudsen,
21284 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
21286 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
21287 Thor Kristoffersen,
21290 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
21308 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
21309 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
21316 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
21321 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
21325 John McClary Prevost,
21331 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
21336 Christian von Roques,
21339 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
21346 Philippe Schnoebelen,
21348 Randal L. Schwartz,
21362 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
21367 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
21383 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
21388 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
21389 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
21390 (550kB and counting).
21392 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
21395 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
21396 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
21400 @subsection New Features
21401 @cindex new features
21404 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
21405 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
21406 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
21407 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
21408 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
21411 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
21412 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
21413 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
21416 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
21418 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
21423 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
21424 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
21427 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
21428 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
21431 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
21434 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
21435 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
21436 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
21439 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
21440 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
21441 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
21442 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21445 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
21446 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21449 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
21450 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
21451 (@pxref{The Active File}).
21454 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
21455 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
21458 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
21459 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
21460 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21463 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
21464 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
21465 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
21468 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
21469 the @file{.emacs} file.
21472 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
21473 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
21476 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
21477 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
21480 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
21481 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21484 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
21485 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
21488 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
21489 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21492 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
21495 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
21496 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
21499 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
21500 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
21503 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
21504 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
21507 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
21510 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
21511 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21514 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
21518 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
21522 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
21523 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
21526 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
21532 @node September Gnus
21533 @subsubsection September Gnus
21537 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
21541 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
21546 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
21547 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
21551 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
21552 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
21556 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
21560 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
21561 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
21564 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
21568 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21571 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
21574 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
21577 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
21581 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
21582 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
21585 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
21589 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
21593 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
21597 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
21601 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
21604 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
21605 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
21608 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
21612 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
21613 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
21616 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
21619 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
21620 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
21621 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21624 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
21628 The Gnus cache is much faster.
21631 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
21635 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
21636 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
21639 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
21640 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
21643 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
21644 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
21647 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
21648 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
21649 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
21652 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
21653 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
21656 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
21659 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21662 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
21665 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
21668 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
21669 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
21672 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
21676 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
21679 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
21684 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
21687 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
21691 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21694 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
21698 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
21701 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
21704 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
21705 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21708 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
21709 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
21713 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
21714 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
21717 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
21721 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
21722 buffer to allow easier treatment.
21725 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
21728 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
21732 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
21736 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
21737 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
21740 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
21744 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
21745 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
21748 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
21749 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21752 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
21756 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
21759 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
21762 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
21768 @subsubsection Red Gnus
21770 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
21774 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
21781 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
21784 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
21785 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21788 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
21789 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
21793 Article washing status can be displayed in the
21794 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
21797 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
21800 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
21801 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
21804 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
21808 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
21809 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
21813 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
21814 Server Internals}).
21817 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
21821 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
21824 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
21825 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
21828 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
21829 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
21830 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
21833 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
21834 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21837 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
21838 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
21841 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
21845 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
21846 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21849 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
21850 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21853 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
21857 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
21860 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
21864 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
21865 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
21868 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
21869 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
21872 A new command for reading collections of documents
21873 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
21874 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
21877 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
21881 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
21882 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
21885 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
21886 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
21887 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
21890 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
21891 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
21895 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
21899 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
21903 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
21908 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
21912 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
21916 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
21917 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
21920 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
21926 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
21928 New features in Gnus 5.6:
21933 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
21934 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
21935 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
21938 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
21939 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
21940 group, which is created automatically.
21943 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
21947 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
21950 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
21951 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
21954 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
21958 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
21961 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
21962 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
21965 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
21968 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
21969 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
21972 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
21973 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
21976 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
21977 control over simplification.
21980 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
21983 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
21987 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
21990 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
21993 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
21994 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
21995 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
21998 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
21999 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
22002 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
22006 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
22007 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
22010 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
22011 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
22014 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
22018 A history of where mails have been split is available.
22021 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
22024 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
22025 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
22028 A new function for citing in Message has been
22029 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
22032 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
22035 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
22039 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
22040 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
22043 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
22044 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
22047 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
22050 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
22054 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
22055 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
22057 New features in Gnus 5.8:
22062 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
22063 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
22065 If you used procmail like in
22068 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
22069 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
22070 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
22071 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
22074 this now has changed to
22078 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
22082 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
22083 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
22086 Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
22087 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
22090 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
22091 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
22094 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
22095 called to position point.
22098 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
22099 summary buffers and NOV files.
22102 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
22103 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
22106 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
22107 subtly different manner.
22110 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
22111 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
22112 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
22115 Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
22123 @section The Manual
22127 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
22128 either @code{texi2dvi}
22130 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
22131 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
22133 to get what you hold in your hands now.
22135 The following conventions have been used:
22140 This is a @samp{string}
22143 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
22146 This is a @file{file}
22149 This is a @code{symbol}
22153 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
22157 (setq flargnoze "yes")
22160 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
22163 (setq flumphel 'yes)
22166 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
22167 ever get them confused.
22171 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
22172 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
22173 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
22174 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
22175 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
22176 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
22177 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
22183 @node On Writing Manuals
22184 @section On Writing Manuals
22186 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
22187 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
22188 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
22189 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
22190 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
22191 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
22194 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
22195 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
22196 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
22199 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
22200 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
22205 @section Terminology
22207 @cindex terminology
22212 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
22213 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
22214 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
22215 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
22216 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
22220 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
22221 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
22222 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
22223 not posting, and replying is not following up.
22227 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
22231 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
22236 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of back ends, both news and mail
22237 back ends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
22238 is all done by the back ends.
22242 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
22243 default, way of getting news.
22247 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
22248 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
22253 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
22254 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
22258 A message that has been posted as news.
22261 @cindex mail message
22262 A message that has been mailed.
22266 A mail message or news article
22270 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
22275 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
22280 A line from the head of an article.
22284 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
22285 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
22289 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
22290 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
22291 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
22292 normal @sc{head} format.
22296 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
22297 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
22298 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
22299 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
22300 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
22301 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
22303 @item killed groups
22304 @cindex killed groups
22305 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
22306 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
22308 @item zombie groups
22309 @cindex zombie groups
22310 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
22313 @cindex active file
22314 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
22315 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
22316 is rather large, as you might surmise.
22319 @cindex bogus groups
22320 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
22321 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
22322 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
22325 @cindex activating groups
22326 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
22327 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
22328 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
22332 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
22334 @item select method
22335 @cindex select method
22336 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
22339 @item virtual server
22340 @cindex virtual server
22341 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
22342 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
22343 whole is a virtual server.
22347 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
22348 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
22351 @item ephemeral groups
22352 @cindex ephemeral groups
22353 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
22354 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
22355 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
22358 @cindex solid groups
22359 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
22360 group buffer are solid groups.
22362 @item sparse articles
22363 @cindex sparse articles
22364 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
22365 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
22369 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
22370 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
22374 @cindex thread root
22375 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
22376 articles in the thread.
22380 An article that has responses.
22384 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
22388 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
22389 specified by RFC 1153.
22395 @node Customization
22396 @section Customization
22397 @cindex general customization
22399 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
22400 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
22401 for some quite common situations.
22404 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
22405 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
22406 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
22407 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
22411 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
22412 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
22414 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
22415 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
22416 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
22420 @item gnus-read-active-file
22421 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
22422 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
22423 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22424 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
22425 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
22427 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
22428 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
22429 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
22430 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
22434 @node Slow Terminal Connection
22435 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
22437 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
22438 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
22439 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
22443 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
22444 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
22445 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
22446 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
22447 horizontal and vertical recentering.
22449 @item gnus-visible-headers
22450 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
22451 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
22452 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
22453 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
22455 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
22457 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
22458 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
22459 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
22462 @item gnus-use-full-window
22463 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
22464 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
22465 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
22466 want to read them anyway.
22468 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22469 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
22473 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
22474 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
22475 lines, which might save some time.
22479 @node Little Disk Space
22480 @subsection Little Disk Space
22483 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
22484 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
22488 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
22489 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
22490 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22491 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22494 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
22495 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
22496 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22497 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22500 @item gnus-save-killed-list
22501 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
22502 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
22503 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
22504 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
22510 @subsection Slow Machine
22511 @cindex slow machine
22513 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
22514 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
22516 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22517 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
22519 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
22520 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
22521 summary buffer faster.
22525 @node Troubleshooting
22526 @section Troubleshooting
22527 @cindex troubleshooting
22529 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
22537 Make sure your computer is switched on.
22540 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
22541 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
22545 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
22546 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
22547 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
22548 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
22551 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
22555 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
22556 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
22557 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
22558 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
22559 something like that.
22562 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
22565 @cindex reporting bugs
22567 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
22569 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
22570 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
22571 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
22572 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
22574 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
22575 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
22576 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
22577 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
22580 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
22581 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
22582 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
22583 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
22584 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
22585 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
22587 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
22588 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
22589 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
22593 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
22594 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
22596 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
22597 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
22599 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
22600 @cindex ding mailing list
22601 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
22602 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
22606 @node Gnus Reference Guide
22607 @section Gnus Reference Guide
22609 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
22610 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
22611 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
22612 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
22615 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
22616 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
22617 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
22618 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
22619 and general methods of operation.
22622 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
22623 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
22624 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
22625 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
22626 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
22627 * Group Info:: The group info format.
22628 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
22629 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
22630 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
22634 @node Gnus Utility Functions
22635 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
22636 @cindex Gnus utility functions
22637 @cindex utility functions
22639 @cindex internal variables
22641 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
22642 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
22643 Below is a list of the most common ones.
22647 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
22648 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
22649 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
22651 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
22652 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
22653 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
22655 @item gnus-group-real-name
22656 @findex gnus-group-real-name
22657 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
22660 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
22661 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
22662 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
22663 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
22665 @item gnus-get-info
22666 @findex gnus-get-info
22667 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
22669 @item gnus-group-unread
22670 @findex gnus-group-unread
22671 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
22675 @findex gnus-active
22676 The active entry for @var{group}.
22678 @item gnus-set-active
22679 @findex gnus-set-active
22680 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
22682 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22683 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
22684 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
22687 @item gnus-continuum-version
22688 @findex gnus-continuum-version
22689 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
22690 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
22693 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
22694 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
22695 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
22697 @item gnus-news-group-p
22698 @findex gnus-news-group-p
22699 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
22701 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22702 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
22703 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
22705 @item gnus-server-to-method
22706 @findex gnus-server-to-method
22707 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
22709 @item gnus-server-equal
22710 @findex gnus-server-equal
22711 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
22713 @item gnus-group-native-p
22714 @findex gnus-group-native-p
22715 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
22717 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
22718 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
22719 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
22721 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
22722 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
22723 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
22725 @item group-group-find-parameter
22726 @findex group-group-find-parameter
22727 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
22728 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
22730 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
22731 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
22732 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
22734 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
22735 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
22736 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
22738 @item gnus-check-backend-function
22739 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
22740 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
22741 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
22744 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
22748 @item gnus-read-method
22749 @findex gnus-read-method
22750 Prompts the user for a select method.
22755 @node Back End Interface
22756 @subsection Back End Interface
22758 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
22759 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
22760 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
22761 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
22762 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
22763 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
22765 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
22766 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
22767 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
22768 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
22769 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
22770 been opened, the function should fail.
22772 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
22773 name. Take this example:
22777 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
22778 (nntp-port-number 4324))
22781 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
22782 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
22784 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
22785 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
22786 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
22788 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
22789 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
22790 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
22792 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
22793 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
22794 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
22795 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
22796 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
22797 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
22800 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
22801 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
22802 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
22803 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
22806 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
22807 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
22808 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
22809 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
22810 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
22811 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
22812 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
22813 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
22814 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
22815 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
22817 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
22818 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
22819 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
22820 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
22821 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
22822 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
22823 of numbers as long as possible.
22825 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
22828 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
22831 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
22832 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
22833 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
22834 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
22835 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
22836 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
22840 @node Required Back End Functions
22841 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
22845 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
22847 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
22848 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
22849 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
22850 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
22852 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
22853 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
22854 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
22855 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
22857 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
22858 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
22859 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
22860 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
22861 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
22862 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
22863 number, do maximum fetches.
22865 Here's an example HEAD:
22868 221 1056 Article retrieved.
22869 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
22870 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
22871 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
22872 Subject: Re: Something very droll
22873 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
22874 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
22876 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
22877 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
22878 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
22882 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
22883 these in the data buffer.
22885 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
22889 head = error / valid-head
22890 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
22891 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
22892 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
22893 header = <text> eol
22896 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
22897 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
22901 nov-buffer = *nov-line
22902 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
22903 field = <text except TAB>
22906 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
22910 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
22912 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
22913 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
22915 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
22916 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
22917 server. In fact, it should do so.
22919 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
22920 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
22923 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
22925 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
22926 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
22929 There should be no data returned.
22932 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
22934 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
22935 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
22936 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
22937 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
22939 There should be no data returned.
22942 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
22944 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
22945 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
22946 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
22947 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
22949 There should be no data returned.
22952 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
22954 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
22956 There should be no data returned.
22959 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
22961 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
22962 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
22963 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
22964 it would be nice if that were possible.
22966 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
22967 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
22968 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
22969 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
22970 into its article buffer.
22972 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
22973 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
22974 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
22975 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
22976 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
22977 on successful article retrieval.
22980 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
22982 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
22983 making @var{group} the current group.
22985 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
22988 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
22991 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
22994 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
22995 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
22996 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
22997 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
22998 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
22999 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
23000 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
23001 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
23004 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
23005 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
23006 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
23010 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
23012 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
23013 a no-op on most back ends.
23015 There should be no data returned.
23018 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
23020 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
23023 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
23026 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
23027 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
23030 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
23031 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
23034 active-file = *active-line
23035 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
23037 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
23040 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
23041 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
23042 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
23045 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
23047 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
23048 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
23049 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
23050 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
23051 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
23052 clear if the posting could not be completed.
23054 There should be no result data from this function.
23059 @node Optional Back End Functions
23060 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
23064 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
23066 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
23067 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
23068 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
23070 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
23071 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
23072 former is in the same format as the data from
23073 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
23074 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
23077 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
23081 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
23083 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
23084 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
23085 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
23086 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
23087 should return the (altered) group info.
23089 There should be no result data from this function.
23092 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
23094 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
23095 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
23096 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
23097 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
23098 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
23099 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
23100 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
23101 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
23103 There should be no result data from this function.
23106 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
23108 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
23109 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
23110 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
23111 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
23112 propagate the mark information to the server.
23114 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
23117 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
23120 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
23121 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
23122 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
23123 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
23124 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
23125 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
23126 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
23127 possible, not limit itself to these.
23129 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
23130 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
23131 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
23132 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
23134 An example action list:
23137 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
23138 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
23139 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
23142 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
23143 mark on (currently not used for anything).
23145 There should be no result data from this function.
23147 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
23149 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
23150 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
23151 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
23152 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
23153 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
23155 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
23156 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
23157 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
23160 There should be no result data from this function.
23163 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
23165 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
23166 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
23167 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
23168 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
23169 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
23170 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
23171 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
23173 There should be no result data from this function.
23176 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
23178 The result data from this function should be a description of
23182 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
23184 description = <text>
23187 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
23189 The result data from this function should be the description of all
23190 groups available on the server.
23193 description-buffer = *description-line
23197 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
23199 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
23200 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
23201 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
23202 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
23203 in the active buffer format.
23205 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
23206 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
23207 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
23208 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
23209 many groups, so nnml and the like are probably safe. But for back ends
23210 like nntp, where the groups have been created by the server, it is quite
23211 likely that there can be many groups.
23214 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
23216 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
23218 There should be no return data.
23221 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
23223 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
23224 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
23225 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
23226 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
23227 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
23230 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
23233 There should be no result data returned.
23236 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
23239 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
23240 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
23242 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
23243 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
23244 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
23245 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
23246 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
23247 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
23249 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
23250 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
23253 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
23254 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23256 There should be no data returned.
23259 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
23261 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
23262 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
23263 this function in short order.
23265 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
23266 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23268 There should be no data returned.
23271 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
23273 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
23274 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
23276 There should be no data returned.
23279 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
23281 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
23282 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
23283 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
23285 There should be no data returned.
23288 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
23290 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
23291 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
23293 There should be no data returned.
23298 @node Error Messaging
23299 @subsubsection Error Messaging
23301 @findex nnheader-report
23302 @findex nnheader-get-report
23303 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
23304 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
23305 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
23306 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
23307 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
23308 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
23311 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
23313 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
23316 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
23317 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
23318 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
23319 takes one argument---the server symbol.
23321 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
23322 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
23323 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
23326 @node Writing New Back Ends
23327 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
23329 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
23330 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
23331 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
23332 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
23333 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
23336 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
23337 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
23338 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
23340 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
23341 package called @code{nnoo}.
23343 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
23344 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
23350 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
23351 parameters. For instance:
23354 (nnoo-declare nndir
23358 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
23359 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
23362 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
23363 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
23364 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
23366 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
23367 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
23368 a function in those back ends.
23371 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23372 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23373 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23376 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
23377 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
23378 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
23380 @item nnoo-define-basics
23381 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
23385 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23389 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
23390 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
23391 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
23393 @item nnoo-map-functions
23394 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
23395 functions from the parent back ends.
23398 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23399 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23400 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
23403 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
23404 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
23405 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
23406 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
23409 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
23410 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
23411 haven't already been defined.
23417 nnmh-request-newgroups)
23421 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
23422 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
23423 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
23428 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
23431 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
23432 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
23436 (require 'nnheader)
23440 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
23442 (nnoo-declare nndir
23445 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23446 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23447 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23449 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
23450 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
23453 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
23455 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
23456 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
23457 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
23459 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
23460 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
23462 ;;; Interface functions.
23464 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23466 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
23467 (setq nndir-directory
23468 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
23470 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
23471 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
23472 (push `(nndir-current-group
23473 ,(file-name-nondirectory
23474 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23476 (push `(nndir-top-directory
23477 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23479 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
23481 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23482 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23483 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23484 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
23485 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
23489 nnmh-status-message
23491 nnmh-request-newgroups))
23497 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23498 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23500 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
23501 @findex gnus-declare-backend
23502 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
23503 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
23504 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
23506 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
23507 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
23512 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
23515 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
23517 The abilities can be:
23521 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
23523 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
23525 This back end supports both mail and news.
23527 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
23530 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
23531 articles and groups.
23533 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
23534 true for almost all back ends.
23535 @item prompt-address
23536 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
23537 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
23538 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
23542 @node Mail-like Back Ends
23543 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
23545 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
23546 back ends is the heavy dependence by the mail back ends on common
23547 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
23548 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
23551 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
23552 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
23553 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
23556 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
23557 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
23560 This function takes four parameters.
23564 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
23567 @item exit-function
23568 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
23570 @item temp-directory
23571 Where the temporary files should be stored.
23574 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
23575 performed for one group only.
23578 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
23579 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
23580 find the article number assigned to this article.
23582 The function also uses the following variables:
23583 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
23584 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
23585 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
23586 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
23590 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
23591 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
23595 @node Score File Syntax
23596 @subsection Score File Syntax
23598 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
23599 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
23600 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
23602 Here's a typical score file:
23606 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
23613 BNF definition of a score file:
23616 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
23617 element = rule / atom
23618 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
23619 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
23620 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
23621 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
23623 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
23624 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
23625 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
23626 date-header = "date"
23627 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23628 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23629 score = "nil" / <integer>
23630 date = "nil" / <natural number>
23631 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
23632 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
23633 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
23634 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
23635 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23636 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23637 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
23638 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
23639 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
23640 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
23641 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
23642 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
23643 exclude-files / read-only / touched
23644 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
23645 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
23646 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
23647 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
23648 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
23649 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
23650 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
23651 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
23652 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
23653 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
23654 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
23655 eval = "eval" space <form>
23656 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
23659 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
23662 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
23663 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
23664 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
23665 one looong line, then that's ok.
23667 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
23668 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
23672 @subsection Headers
23674 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
23675 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
23676 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
23677 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
23679 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
23680 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
23681 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
23682 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
23683 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
23684 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
23685 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
23687 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
23688 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
23689 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
23690 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
23691 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
23693 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
23694 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
23700 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
23701 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
23703 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
23704 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
23705 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
23706 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
23708 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
23712 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
23715 is transformed into
23718 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
23721 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
23722 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
23725 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
23728 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
23729 is slightly tricky:
23732 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
23738 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
23741 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
23747 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
23754 and is equal to the previous range.
23756 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
23757 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
23758 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
23762 range = simple-range / normal-range
23763 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
23764 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
23765 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
23766 number *[ " " contents ]
23769 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
23770 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
23771 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
23772 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
23773 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
23778 @subsection Group Info
23780 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
23781 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
23782 describes the group.
23784 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
23785 second is a more complex one:
23788 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
23790 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
23791 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
23793 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
23796 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
23797 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
23798 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
23799 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
23800 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
23801 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
23802 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
23803 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
23804 this section is about.
23806 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
23807 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
23808 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
23810 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
23813 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
23814 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
23815 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
23816 group = quote <string> quote
23817 ralevel = rank / level
23818 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23819 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
23820 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
23822 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
23823 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
23824 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
23825 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
23828 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
23829 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
23832 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
23833 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
23836 @item gnus-info-group
23837 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
23838 @findex gnus-info-group
23839 @findex gnus-info-set-group
23840 Get/set the group name.
23842 @item gnus-info-rank
23843 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
23844 @findex gnus-info-rank
23845 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
23846 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
23848 @item gnus-info-level
23849 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
23850 @findex gnus-info-level
23851 @findex gnus-info-set-level
23852 Get/set the group level.
23854 @item gnus-info-score
23855 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
23856 @findex gnus-info-score
23857 @findex gnus-info-set-score
23858 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
23860 @item gnus-info-read
23861 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
23862 @findex gnus-info-read
23863 @findex gnus-info-set-read
23864 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
23866 @item gnus-info-marks
23867 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
23868 @findex gnus-info-marks
23869 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
23870 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
23872 @item gnus-info-method
23873 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
23874 @findex gnus-info-method
23875 @findex gnus-info-set-method
23876 Get/set the group select method.
23878 @item gnus-info-params
23879 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
23880 @findex gnus-info-params
23881 @findex gnus-info-set-params
23882 Get/set the group parameters.
23885 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
23886 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
23888 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
23889 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
23890 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
23891 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
23894 @node Extended Interactive
23895 @subsection Extended Interactive
23896 @cindex interactive
23897 @findex gnus-interactive
23899 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
23900 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
23901 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
23904 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
23905 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
23910 The best thing to do would have been to implement
23911 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
23912 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
23913 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
23914 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
23915 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
23916 @code{interactive}.
23918 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
23923 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
23924 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
23928 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
23929 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
23930 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
23933 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
23937 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
23941 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
23947 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
23948 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
23952 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
23953 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
23954 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
23956 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
23957 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
23958 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
23959 Gnus, that's very useful.
23961 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
23962 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
23963 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
23964 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
23965 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
23966 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
23967 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
23968 following function:
23971 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
23975 (,function ,@@args))
23979 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
23980 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
23981 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
23984 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
23985 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
23986 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
23988 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
23989 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
23990 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
23993 @node Various File Formats
23994 @subsection Various File Formats
23997 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
23998 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
24002 @node Active File Format
24003 @subsubsection Active File Format
24005 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
24006 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
24009 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
24012 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
24013 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
24014 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
24015 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
24016 no.general 1000 900 y
24019 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
24022 active = *group-line
24023 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
24024 group = <non-white-space string>
24026 high-number = <non-negative integer>
24027 low-number = <positive integer>
24028 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
24031 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
24032 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
24035 @node Newsgroups File Format
24036 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
24038 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
24039 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
24040 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
24043 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
24044 Here's the definition:
24048 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
24049 group = <non-white-space string>
24051 description = <string>
24056 @node Emacs for Heathens
24057 @section Emacs for Heathens
24059 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
24060 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
24061 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
24062 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
24063 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
24064 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
24065 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
24069 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
24070 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
24075 @subsection Keystrokes
24079 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
24082 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
24085 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
24086 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
24087 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
24088 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
24089 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
24090 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
24092 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
24093 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
24094 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
24095 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
24096 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
24097 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
24098 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
24100 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
24101 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
24102 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
24103 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
24104 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
24105 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
24106 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
24108 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
24109 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
24110 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
24111 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
24112 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
24118 @subsection Emacs Lisp
24120 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
24121 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
24122 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
24123 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
24125 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
24126 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
24127 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
24128 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
24129 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
24130 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
24131 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
24134 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
24135 write the following:
24138 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
24141 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
24142 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
24143 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
24146 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
24147 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
24148 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
24149 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
24150 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
24152 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
24153 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
24154 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
24158 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
24162 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
24165 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
24166 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
24169 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
24172 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
24173 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
24176 @include gnus-faq.texi
24196 @c Local Variables:
24198 @c coding: iso-8859-1
24200 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
24201 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
24202 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
24203 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
24204 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref