1 \input texinfo @c -*-texinfo-*-
4 @settitle Quassia Gnus 0.4 Manual
11 @setchapternewpage odd
15 \documentclass[twoside,a4paper,openright,11pt]{book}
16 \usepackage[latin1]{inputenc}
17 \usepackage{pagestyle}
24 \newcommand{\gnuschaptername}{}
25 \newcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
27 \newcommand{\gnusbackslash}{/}
29 \newcommand{\gnusxref}[1]{See ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
30 \newcommand{\gnuspxref}[1]{see ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
32 \newcommand{\gnuskindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
33 \newcommand{\gnusindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
35 \newcommand{\gnustt}[1]{{\fontfamily{pfu}\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont #1}}
36 \newcommand{\gnuscode}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
37 \newcommand{\gnussamp}[1]{``{\fontencoding{OT1}\fontfamily{pcr}\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont #1}''}
38 \newcommand{\gnuslisp}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
39 \newcommand{\gnuskbd}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
40 \newcommand{\gnusfile}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
41 \newcommand{\gnusdfn}[1]{\textit{#1}}
42 \newcommand{\gnusi}[1]{\textit{#1}}
43 \newcommand{\gnusstrong}[1]{\textbf{#1}}
44 \newcommand{\gnusemph}[1]{\textit{#1}}
45 \newcommand{\gnusvar}[1]{{\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont\textsl{\textsf{#1}}}}
46 \newcommand{\gnussc}[1]{\textsc{#1}}
47 \newcommand{\gnustitle}[1]{{\huge\textbf{#1}}}
48 \newcommand{\gnusauthor}[1]{{\large\textbf{#1}}}
50 \newcommand{\gnusbullet}{{${\bullet}$}}
51 \newcommand{\gnusdollar}{\$}
52 \newcommand{\gnusampersand}{\&}
53 \newcommand{\gnuspercent}{\%}
54 \newcommand{\gnushash}{\#}
55 \newcommand{\gnushat}{\symbol{"5E}}
56 \newcommand{\gnusunderline}{\symbol{"5F}}
57 \newcommand{\gnusnot}{$\neg$}
58 \newcommand{\gnustilde}{\symbol{"7E}}
59 \newcommand{\gnusless}{{$<$}}
60 \newcommand{\gnusgreater}{{$>$}}
62 \newcommand{\gnushead}{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-head.eps,height=1cm}}}
63 \newcommand{\gnusinteresting}{
64 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\gnushead]{\gnushead}
67 \newcommand{\gnuscleardoublepage}{\ifodd\count0\mbox{}\clearpage\thispagestyle{empty}\mbox{}\clearpage\else\clearpage\fi}
69 \newcommand{\gnuspagechapter}[1]{
76 \newcommand{\gnuschapter}[2]{
78 \ifdim \gnusdimen = 0pt\setcounter{page}{1}\pagestyle{gnus}\pagenumbering{arabic} \gnusdimen 1pt\fi
80 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
81 \renewcommand{\gnuschaptername}{#2}
84 \begin{picture}(500,500)(0,0)
85 \put(480,350){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{#1}}
86 \put(40,300){\makebox(500,50)[bl]{{\Huge\bf{#2}}}}
91 \newcommand{\gnusfigure}[3]{
93 \mbox{}\ifodd\count0\hspace*{-0.8cm}\else\hspace*{-3cm}\fi\begin{picture}(440,#2)
100 \newcommand{\gnusicon}[1]{
101 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\raisebox{-1.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/#1-up.ps,height=1.5cm}}]{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/#1-up.ps,height=1cm}}}
104 \newcommand{\gnuspicon}[1]{
105 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,height=1.5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=#1,height=1.5cm}}
108 \newcommand{\gnusxface}[1]{
109 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,height=1cm}]{\epsfig{figure=#1,height=1cm}}
113 \newcommand{\gnusitemx}[1]{\mbox{}\vspace*{-\itemsep}\vspace*{-\parsep}\item#1}
115 \newcommand{\gnussection}[1]{
116 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{#1}
120 \newenvironment{codelist}%
125 \newenvironment{kbdlist}%
131 \newenvironment{dfnlist}%
136 \newenvironment{stronglist}%
141 \newenvironment{samplist}%
146 \newenvironment{varlist}%
151 \newenvironment{emphlist}%
156 \newlength\gnusheadtextwidth
157 \setlength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{\headtextwidth}
158 \addtolength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{1cm}
160 \newpagestyle{gnuspreamble}%
165 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\mbox{}}\textbf{\hfill\roman{page}}}
169 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\roman{page}\hfill\mbox{}}}
178 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
180 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
185 \newpagestyle{gnusindex}%
190 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\gnuschaptername\hfill\arabic{page}}}}
194 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}
202 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
204 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
214 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{3.1cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{chapter}.\arabic{section}} \textbf{\gnussectionname\hfill\arabic{page}}}}}
218 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{-2.95cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}}
226 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
228 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=1cm}}
233 \pagenumbering{roman}
234 \pagestyle{gnuspreamble}
244 %\addtolength{\oddsidemargin}{-5cm}
245 %\addtolength{\evensidemargin}{-5cm}
247 \addtolength{\textheight}{2cm}
249 \gnustitle{\gnustitlename}\\
252 \hspace*{0cm}\epsfig{figure=gnus-big-logo.eps,height=15cm}
255 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
262 \thispagestyle{empty}
264 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
266 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
267 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
268 are preserved on all copies.
270 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
271 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
272 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
273 permission notice identical to this one.
275 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
276 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
285 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
287 Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
289 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
290 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
291 are preserved on all copies.
294 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
295 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
296 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
297 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
300 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
301 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
302 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
303 permission notice identical to this one.
305 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
306 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
312 @title Quassia Gnus 0.4 Manual
314 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
317 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
318 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
320 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
321 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
322 are preserved on all copies.
324 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
325 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
326 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
327 permission notice identical to this one.
329 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
330 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
339 @top The Gnus Newsreader
343 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
344 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
345 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
348 This manual corresponds to Quassia Gnus 0.4.
359 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
360 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
362 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
363 being accused of plagiarism:
365 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
366 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
367 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
368 even read news with it!
370 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
371 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
372 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
373 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
374 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
381 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
382 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
383 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
384 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
385 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
386 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
387 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
388 * Various:: General purpose settings.
389 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
390 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
391 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
392 * Key Index:: Key Index.
396 @chapter Starting Gnus
401 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
402 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
405 @findex gnus-other-frame
406 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
407 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
408 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
410 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
411 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
412 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
415 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
416 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
417 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
418 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
419 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
420 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
421 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
422 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
423 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
424 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
425 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
429 @node Finding the News
430 @section Finding the News
433 @vindex gnus-select-method
435 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
436 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
437 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
438 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
441 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
442 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
445 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
448 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
451 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
454 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
455 certainly be much faster.
457 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
459 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
460 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
461 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
462 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
463 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
464 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
466 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
467 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
468 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
469 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
471 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
472 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
473 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
474 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
475 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
476 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
478 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
480 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
481 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
482 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
483 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
484 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
485 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
487 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
489 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
490 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
491 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
492 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
493 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
494 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
497 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
498 would typically set this variable to
501 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
506 @section The First Time
507 @cindex first time usage
509 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
510 be subscribed by default.
512 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
513 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
514 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
515 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
518 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
519 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
520 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
522 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
523 help you with most common problems.
525 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
526 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
530 @node The Server is Down
531 @section The Server is Down
532 @cindex server errors
534 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
535 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
536 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
538 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
539 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
540 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
541 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
542 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
543 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
544 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
546 @findex gnus-no-server
547 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
549 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
550 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
551 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
552 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
553 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
554 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
559 @section Slave Gnusae
562 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
563 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
564 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
565 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
567 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
570 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
571 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
572 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
573 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
574 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
575 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
576 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
578 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
579 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
580 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
581 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
582 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
583 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
584 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
585 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
587 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
588 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
591 @node Fetching a Group
592 @section Fetching a Group
593 @cindex fetching a group
595 @findex gnus-fetch-group
596 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
597 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
598 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
599 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
600 It takes the group name as a parameter.
608 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
609 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
610 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
611 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
612 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
613 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
614 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
615 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
616 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
619 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
620 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
621 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
625 @node Checking New Groups
626 @subsection Checking New Groups
628 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
629 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
630 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
631 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
632 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
633 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
634 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
635 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
636 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
637 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
639 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
640 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
641 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
642 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
643 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
644 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
645 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
646 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
647 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
648 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
649 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
651 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
652 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
653 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
654 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
655 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
656 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
659 @node Subscription Methods
660 @subsection Subscription Methods
662 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
663 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
664 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
666 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
667 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
669 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
673 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
674 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
675 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
676 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
677 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
679 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
680 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
681 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
682 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the grop buffer.
684 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
685 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
686 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
688 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
689 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
690 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
691 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
692 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
693 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
694 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
695 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
696 up. Or something like that.
698 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
699 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
700 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
701 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
702 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
704 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
705 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
710 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
711 A closely related variable is
712 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
713 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
714 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
715 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
718 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
719 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
720 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
721 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
724 @node Filtering New Groups
725 @subsection Filtering New Groups
727 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
728 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
729 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
732 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
735 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
736 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
737 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
738 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
739 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
740 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
741 subscribing these groups.
742 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
743 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
745 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
746 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
747 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
748 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
749 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
750 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
751 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
752 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
754 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
755 Yet another variable that meddles here is
756 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
757 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
758 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
759 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
760 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
761 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
762 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
763 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
765 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
766 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
769 @node Changing Servers
770 @section Changing Servers
771 @cindex changing servers
773 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
774 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
775 very flaky and you want to use another.
777 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
778 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
782 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
783 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
784 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
785 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
788 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
789 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
790 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
791 functions more than absolutely necessary.
793 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
794 @findex gnus-change-server
795 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
796 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
797 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
798 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
799 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
801 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
802 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
803 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
804 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
805 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
807 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
808 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
809 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
810 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
811 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
812 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
816 @section Startup Files
817 @cindex startup files
822 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
823 information is traditionally stored in this file.
825 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
826 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
827 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
828 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
829 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
830 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
831 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
833 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
834 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
835 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
836 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file.
838 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
839 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
840 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
841 the file and save some space, as well as making exit from Gnus faster.
842 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
843 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
845 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
846 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
847 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
848 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
849 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
850 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
851 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
852 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
853 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
854 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
855 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
856 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
858 @vindex gnus-startup-file
859 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
860 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
861 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
863 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
864 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
865 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
866 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
867 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
868 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
869 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
870 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
871 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
872 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
875 (defun turn-off-backup ()
876 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
878 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
879 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
882 @vindex gnus-init-file
883 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
884 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
885 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
886 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
887 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
888 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
889 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
890 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
891 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
900 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
901 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
902 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
903 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
904 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
907 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
908 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
911 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
912 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
913 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
915 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
916 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
917 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
918 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
919 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
920 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
923 @node The Active File
924 @section The Active File
926 @cindex ignored groups
928 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
929 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
930 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
932 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
933 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
934 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
935 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
936 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
937 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
938 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
941 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
942 @c if you set it to anything else.
944 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
946 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
947 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
948 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
950 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
951 you actually subscribe to.
953 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
954 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
955 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
956 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
958 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
959 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
960 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
961 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
962 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
963 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
965 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
966 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
967 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
968 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
969 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
970 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
972 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
973 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
975 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
976 secondary select methods.
979 @node Startup Variables
980 @section Startup Variables
985 @vindex gnus-load-hook
986 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
987 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
988 times you start Gnus.
990 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
991 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
992 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
994 @item gnus-startup-hook
995 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
996 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
998 @item gnus-started-hook
999 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1000 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1003 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1004 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1005 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1006 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1007 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1008 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1009 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1010 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1012 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1013 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1014 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1015 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1016 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1017 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1019 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1020 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1021 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1023 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1024 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1025 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1027 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1028 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1029 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1030 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1035 @node The Group Buffer
1036 @chapter The Group Buffer
1037 @cindex group buffer
1039 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1040 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1041 long as Gnus is active.
1045 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1046 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1047 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1048 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1049 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1050 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1051 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1052 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1058 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1059 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1060 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1061 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1062 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1063 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1064 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1065 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1066 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1067 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1068 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1069 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1070 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1071 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1072 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1073 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1074 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1078 @node Group Buffer Format
1079 @section Group Buffer Format
1082 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1083 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1084 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1088 @node Group Line Specification
1089 @subsection Group Line Specification
1090 @cindex group buffer format
1092 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1093 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1095 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1098 25: news.announce.newusers
1099 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1104 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1105 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1106 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1107 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1109 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1110 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1111 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1112 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1113 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1114 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1116 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1118 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1119 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1120 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1121 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1124 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1125 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1126 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1128 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1133 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1136 Whether the group is subscribed.
1139 Level of subscribedness.
1142 Number of unread articles.
1145 Number of dormant articles.
1148 Number of ticked articles.
1151 Number of read articles.
1154 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1155 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1158 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1161 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1170 Newsgroup description.
1173 @samp{m} if moderated.
1176 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1185 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1189 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1192 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1193 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1194 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1195 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1196 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1199 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1201 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1205 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1209 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1210 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1211 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1212 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1213 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1214 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1219 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1220 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1221 group, or a bogus native group.
1224 @node Group Modeline Specification
1225 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1226 @cindex group modeline
1228 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1229 The mode line can be changed by setting
1230 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). It
1231 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1235 The native news server.
1237 The native select method.
1241 @node Group Highlighting
1242 @subsection Group Highlighting
1243 @cindex highlighting
1244 @cindex group highlighting
1246 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1247 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1248 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1249 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1250 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1252 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1256 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1258 ,(custom-face-lookup "Red" nil nil t nil nil))
1259 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) .
1260 ,(custom-face-lookup "SeaGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1262 ,(custom-face-lookup "SpringGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1264 ,(custom-face-lookup "SteelBlue" nil nil t nil nil))
1266 ,(custom-face-lookup "SkyBlue" nil nil t nil nil))))
1269 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1276 The number of unread articles in the group.
1280 Whether the group is a mail group.
1282 The level of the group.
1284 The score of the group.
1286 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1288 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1289 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1291 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1292 topic being inserted.
1295 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1296 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1297 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1299 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1300 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1301 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1302 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1303 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1306 @node Group Maneuvering
1307 @section Group Maneuvering
1308 @cindex group movement
1310 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1311 expected, hopefully.
1317 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1318 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1319 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1325 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1326 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1327 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1331 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1332 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1336 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1337 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1341 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1342 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1343 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1347 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1348 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1349 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1352 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1358 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1359 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1360 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1365 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1366 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1367 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1371 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1372 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1373 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1376 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1377 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1378 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1379 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1383 @node Selecting a Group
1384 @section Selecting a Group
1385 @cindex group selection
1390 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1391 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1392 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1393 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1394 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1395 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1396 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1397 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1398 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1399 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1403 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1404 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1405 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1406 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1407 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1411 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1412 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1413 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1414 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1415 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1416 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1417 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1418 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1419 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1420 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1423 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1424 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1425 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1426 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1427 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1430 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1431 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1432 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1433 doing any processing of its contents
1434 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1435 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1436 manner will have no permanent effects.
1440 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1441 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1442 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1443 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1444 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1445 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1446 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1447 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1450 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1451 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1452 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1453 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1458 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1459 full summary buffer.
1462 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1465 Select the most high-scored article in the group when entering the
1469 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1470 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1471 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1475 @node Subscription Commands
1476 @section Subscription Commands
1477 @cindex subscription
1485 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1486 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
1487 Toggle subscription to the current group
1488 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1494 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1495 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1496 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1497 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1503 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1504 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
1505 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1511 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1512 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1515 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1516 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1517 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1518 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1519 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1525 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1526 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1530 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1531 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1534 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1535 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1536 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1537 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1538 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1539 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1540 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1541 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1542 @file{.newsrc} file.
1546 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1556 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1557 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1558 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
1559 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1560 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1561 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1566 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1567 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1568 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1572 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1573 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1574 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1576 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1577 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1578 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1579 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1580 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1581 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1588 @section Group Levels
1592 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1593 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1594 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1595 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1596 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1598 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1604 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1605 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1606 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1607 prompted for a level.
1610 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1611 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1612 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1613 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1614 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
1615 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1616 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1617 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1618 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1619 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
1620 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
1621 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
1622 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
1623 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
1624 reasons of efficiency.
1626 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1627 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1629 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1630 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1631 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1633 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1634 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1635 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1636 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1637 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1638 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1639 relevant valid ranges.
1641 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1642 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1643 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
1644 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1645 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1646 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1649 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1650 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1651 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1654 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1655 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1656 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1657 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1660 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1661 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1662 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1663 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1665 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1666 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
1667 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
1668 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
1669 to 5. The default is 6.
1673 @section Group Score
1676 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1677 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1678 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1681 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1682 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1683 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1684 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1685 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1686 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1687 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1689 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1690 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1691 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1692 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1693 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1694 action after each summary exit, you can add
1695 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1696 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1697 slow things down somewhat.
1700 @node Marking Groups
1701 @section Marking Groups
1702 @cindex marking groups
1704 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1705 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1706 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1707 bidding on those groups.
1709 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1710 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1711 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1719 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1720 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1726 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1727 Remove the mark from the current group
1728 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1732 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1733 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1737 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1738 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1742 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1743 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1747 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1748 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1749 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1752 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1754 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1755 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1756 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1757 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1758 the command to be executed.
1761 @node Foreign Groups
1762 @section Foreign Groups
1763 @cindex foreign groups
1765 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1766 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1767 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1768 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1775 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1776 @cindex making groups
1777 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1778 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1779 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1783 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1784 @cindex renaming groups
1785 Rename the current group to something else
1786 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
1787 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1793 @findex gnus-group-customize
1794 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1798 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1799 @cindex renaming groups
1800 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1801 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1805 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1806 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1807 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1811 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1812 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1813 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1817 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1819 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1820 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1825 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1826 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1830 @cindex (ding) archive
1831 @cindex archive group
1832 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1833 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1834 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1835 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1836 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1837 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1838 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1842 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1844 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1845 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1846 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1847 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1851 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1853 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
1854 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1855 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1859 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1860 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1862 Make a group based on some file or other
1863 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1864 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1865 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1866 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1867 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1868 this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file type.
1869 @xref{Document Groups}.
1873 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1878 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1879 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1880 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1881 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
1882 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1883 @xref{Web Searches}.
1886 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1887 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1888 This function will delete the current group
1889 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1890 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1891 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1892 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
1893 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
1897 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1898 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1899 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1903 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1904 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1905 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1908 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1911 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1912 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1913 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1914 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1915 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers.
1918 @node Group Parameters
1919 @section Group Parameters
1920 @cindex group parameters
1922 The group parameters store information local to a particular group:
1927 If the group parameter list contains an element that looks like
1928 @code{(to-address . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used by
1929 the backend when doing followups and posts. This is primarily useful in
1930 mail groups that represent closed mailing lists---mailing lists where
1931 it's expected that everybody that writes to the mailing list is
1932 subscribed to it. Since using this parameter ensures that the mail only
1933 goes to the mailing list itself, it means that members won't receive two
1934 copies of your followups.
1936 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
1937 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
1938 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
1939 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
1940 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
1941 list address instead.
1945 If the group parameter list has an element that looks like
1946 @code{(to-list . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used when
1947 doing a @kbd{a} in that group. It is totally ignored when doing a
1948 followup---except that if it is present in a news group, you'll get mail
1949 group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
1951 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
1952 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
1953 sending the message.
1957 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
1958 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
1959 of whether it has any unread articles.
1961 @item broken-reply-to
1962 @cindex broken-reply-to
1963 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
1964 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
1965 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
1966 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
1967 broken behavior. So there!
1971 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
1972 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
1976 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list, Gnus will treat
1977 all responses as if they were responses to news articles. This can be
1978 useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a news group.
1982 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list and set to
1983 @code{t}, newly composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current
1984 group. If it is present and set to @code{none}, no @code{Gcc:} header
1985 will be generated, if it is present and a string, this string will be
1986 inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header (this symbol takes precedence
1987 over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later). @xref{Archived
1992 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
1993 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
1994 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
1997 @cindex total-expire
1998 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
1999 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2000 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2001 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2006 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2007 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2008 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2009 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2010 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2011 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2014 @cindex score file group parameter
2015 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2016 @file{file} into the current adaptive score file for the group in
2017 question. All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2020 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2021 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2022 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2023 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2026 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2027 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2028 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2029 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2032 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2033 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2037 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2040 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2045 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2046 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2047 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2050 @item @var{(variable form)}
2051 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2052 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2053 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2054 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2055 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2056 @code{eval}ed there.
2058 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2059 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2060 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2061 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2062 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2066 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group.
2068 @pxref{Topic Parameters}.
2070 Here's an example group parameter list:
2073 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2078 @node Listing Groups
2079 @section Listing Groups
2080 @cindex group listing
2082 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2090 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2091 List all groups that have unread articles
2092 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2093 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2094 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2095 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2102 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2103 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2104 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2105 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2106 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2107 unsubscribed groups).
2111 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2112 List all unread groups on a specific level
2113 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2114 with no unread articles.
2118 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2119 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2120 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2121 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2126 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2127 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2131 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2132 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2133 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2137 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2138 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2142 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2143 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2144 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2145 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2146 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2147 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2148 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2149 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2153 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2154 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2155 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2159 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2160 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2161 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2165 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2166 @cindex visible group parameter
2167 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2168 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2169 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2170 get the same effect.
2172 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2173 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2174 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2175 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2176 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2179 @node Sorting Groups
2180 @section Sorting Groups
2181 @cindex sorting groups
2183 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2184 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2185 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2186 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2187 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2188 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2193 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2194 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2195 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2197 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2198 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2199 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2201 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2202 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2203 Sort by group level.
2205 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2206 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2207 Sort by group score.
2209 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2210 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2211 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2212 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}.
2214 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2215 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2216 Sort by number of unread articles.
2218 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2219 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2220 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2225 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2226 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2230 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2231 some sorting criteria:
2235 @kindex G S a (Group)
2236 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2237 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2238 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2241 @kindex G S u (Group)
2242 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2243 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2244 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2247 @kindex G S l (Group)
2248 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2249 Sort the group buffer by group level
2250 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2253 @kindex G S v (Group)
2254 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2255 Sort the group buffer by group score
2256 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}).
2259 @kindex G S r (Group)
2260 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2261 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2262 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2265 @kindex G S m (Group)
2266 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2267 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2268 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2272 When given a prefix, all these commands will sort in reverse order.
2274 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2278 @kindex G P a (Group)
2279 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2280 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2281 group name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2284 @kindex G P u (Group)
2285 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2286 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by the number of
2287 unread articles (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2290 @kindex G P l (Group)
2291 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2292 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group level
2293 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2296 @kindex G P v (Group)
2297 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2298 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group score
2299 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}).
2302 @kindex G P r (Group)
2303 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2304 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group rank
2305 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}).
2308 @kindex G P m (Group)
2309 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2310 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2311 backend name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2317 @node Group Maintenance
2318 @section Group Maintenance
2319 @cindex bogus groups
2324 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2325 Find bogus groups and delete them
2326 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2330 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
2331 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
2332 If given a prefix, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
2336 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2337 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2338 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2339 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2342 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2343 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2344 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2345 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2350 @node Browse Foreign Server
2351 @section Browse Foreign Server
2352 @cindex foreign servers
2353 @cindex browsing servers
2358 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2359 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2360 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2361 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2364 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2365 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2366 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2367 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2369 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2374 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2375 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2379 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2380 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2383 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2384 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2385 Enter the current group and display the first article
2386 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2389 @kindex RET (Browse)
2390 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2391 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2395 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2396 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2397 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2403 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2404 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2408 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2409 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2410 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2415 @section Exiting Gnus
2416 @cindex exiting Gnus
2418 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2423 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2424 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2425 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2426 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2430 @findex gnus-group-exit
2431 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
2432 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2436 @findex gnus-group-quit
2437 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2438 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2441 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2442 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2443 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2444 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2445 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2450 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2451 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2452 trying to customize meta-variables.
2457 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2458 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2459 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2465 @section Group Topics
2468 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2469 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2470 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2471 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2472 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2473 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2477 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
2478 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
2489 2: alt.religion.emacs
2492 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2494 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2495 13: comp.sources.unix
2498 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2500 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2501 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2502 is a toggling command.)
2504 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2505 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2506 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2507 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2510 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2511 the hook for the group mode:
2514 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2518 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2519 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2520 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2521 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2522 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2526 @node Topic Variables
2527 @subsection Topic Variables
2528 @cindex topic variables
2530 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2531 really neat, I think.
2533 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2534 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2535 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2548 Number of groups in the topic.
2550 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2552 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2555 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2556 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2557 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2560 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2561 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2563 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2564 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2565 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2568 @node Topic Commands
2569 @subsection Topic Commands
2570 @cindex topic commands
2572 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2573 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2574 definitions slightly.
2580 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2581 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2582 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2586 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2587 Move the current group to some other topic
2588 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2589 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2593 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2594 Copy the current group to some other topic
2595 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2596 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2600 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2601 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2602 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2603 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2607 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2608 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2609 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2613 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2614 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2615 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2619 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
2620 Toggle hiding empty topics
2621 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
2625 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2626 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2627 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2630 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2631 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2632 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2633 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2637 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2639 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2640 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2641 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2642 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2643 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2644 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2647 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2648 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2649 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2650 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2651 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2655 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2656 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2657 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2661 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2662 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2663 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2668 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2669 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2672 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2673 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2674 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2678 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2679 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2680 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2684 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2685 @cindex group parameters
2686 @cindex topic parameters
2688 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2689 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2695 @subsection Topic Sorting
2696 @cindex topic sorting
2698 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2704 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2705 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2706 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2707 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2710 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2711 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2712 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2713 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2716 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2717 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2718 Sort the current topic by group level
2719 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2722 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2723 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2724 Sort the current topic by group score
2725 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}).
2728 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2729 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2730 Sort the current topic by group rank
2731 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2734 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2735 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2736 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2737 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2741 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2744 @node Topic Topology
2745 @subsection Topic Topology
2746 @cindex topic topology
2749 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2755 2: alt.religion.emacs
2758 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2760 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2761 13: comp.sources.unix
2764 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2765 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2766 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2771 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2772 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2776 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2777 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2778 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2779 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2780 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2781 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2783 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2784 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2785 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2788 @node Topic Parameters
2789 @subsection Topic Parameters
2790 @cindex topic parameters
2792 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2793 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
2794 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2796 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2797 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2798 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2799 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2805 2: alt.religion.emacs
2809 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2811 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2812 13: comp.sources.unix
2816 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2817 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2818 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2819 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2820 @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2821 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2823 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2824 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2825 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2826 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2827 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2829 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2830 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2831 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2832 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2833 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2834 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2835 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2836 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2839 @node Misc Group Stuff
2840 @section Misc Group Stuff
2843 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2844 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2845 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2846 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
2853 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2854 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2855 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2859 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2860 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
2861 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
2865 @findex gnus-group-mail
2866 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
2870 Variables for the group buffer:
2874 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
2875 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
2876 is called after the group buffer has been
2879 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
2880 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2881 is called after the group buffer is
2882 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
2885 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2886 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2887 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
2888 whether they are empty or not.
2893 @node Scanning New Messages
2894 @subsection Scanning New Messages
2895 @cindex new messages
2896 @cindex scanning new news
2902 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
2903 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
2904 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
2905 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
2906 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
2907 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
2912 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
2913 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
2914 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
2915 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
2916 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
2917 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
2918 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
2920 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
2921 @cindex activating groups
2923 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
2924 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
2929 @findex gnus-group-restart
2930 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
2931 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
2932 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
2936 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
2937 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
2939 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
2940 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
2944 @node Group Information
2945 @subsection Group Information
2946 @cindex group information
2947 @cindex information on groups
2954 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
2955 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
2958 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
2959 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
2960 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
2961 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
2962 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
2963 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
2964 for fetching the file.
2966 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
2967 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
2971 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
2973 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
2974 @cindex describing groups
2975 @cindex group description
2976 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
2977 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
2978 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
2982 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
2983 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
2984 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
2991 @findex gnus-version
2992 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
2996 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
2997 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3000 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3003 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3004 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3008 @node Group Timestamp
3009 @subsection Group Timestamp
3011 @cindex group timestamps
3013 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3014 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3015 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3018 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3021 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3023 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3024 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3027 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3028 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3031 This will result in lines looking like:
3034 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3035 0: custom 19961002T012713
3038 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3039 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3043 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3044 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3049 @subsection File Commands
3050 @cindex file commands
3056 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3057 @vindex gnus-init-file
3058 @cindex reading init file
3059 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3060 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3064 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3065 @cindex saving .newsrc
3066 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3067 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3068 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3071 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3072 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3073 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3078 @node The Summary Buffer
3079 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3080 @cindex summary buffer
3082 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3083 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3085 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3086 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3088 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3091 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3092 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3093 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3094 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3095 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3096 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3097 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3098 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3099 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3100 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3101 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3102 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3103 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3104 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3105 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3106 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3107 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3108 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3109 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3110 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3111 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3112 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3113 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3114 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3115 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3116 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3117 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3121 @node Summary Buffer Format
3122 @section Summary Buffer Format
3123 @cindex summary buffer format
3127 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
3128 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
3129 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
3135 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3136 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3137 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3140 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3141 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3142 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3143 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3144 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3145 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
3146 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3147 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3148 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3149 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3150 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead.
3152 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3153 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3154 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3155 with those specs that require it. The default is @samp{}.
3158 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3159 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3161 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3162 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3163 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3164 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3165 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3167 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3169 The following format specification characters are understood:
3177 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
3178 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3179 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @samp{}.)
3181 Full @code{From} header.
3183 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3185 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3186 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3187 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3188 may be more thorough.
3190 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3193 Number of lines in the article.
3195 Number of characters in the article.
3197 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3199 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3200 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3202 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3203 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3205 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3206 for adopted articles.
3208 One space for each thread level.
3210 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3216 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
3218 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3219 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3220 default level. If the difference between
3221 @code{gnus-summary-default-level} and the score is less than
3222 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3230 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3232 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
3238 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3239 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3241 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3242 article has any children.
3248 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3249 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
3250 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3251 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3252 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3253 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3256 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3257 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3258 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3259 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
3260 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3261 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3263 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3264 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3266 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3269 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3270 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3272 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3273 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar. Set
3274 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you like. The default
3275 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3277 Here are the elements you can play with:
3283 Unprefixed group name.
3285 Current article number.
3289 Number of unread articles in this group.
3291 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
3294 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3295 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3296 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3297 and no unselected ones.
3299 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3300 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3302 Subject of the current article.
3304 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
3306 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
3308 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3310 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
3312 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3314 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3318 @node Summary Highlighting
3319 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3323 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3324 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3325 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3326 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3327 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3329 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3330 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3331 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3332 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3334 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3335 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3336 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
3337 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3339 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3340 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3341 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3342 list where the elements are of the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3343 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3344 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3346 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3347 ((> score default) . bold))
3349 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3350 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3354 @node Summary Maneuvering
3355 @section Summary Maneuvering
3356 @cindex summary movement
3358 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3359 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3361 None of these commands select articles.
3366 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3367 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3368 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3369 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3370 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3374 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3375 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3376 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3377 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3378 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3383 @kindex G j (Summary)
3384 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3385 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
3386 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3389 @kindex G g (Summary)
3390 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3391 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
3392 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3395 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3396 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3397 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3398 to the group buffer.
3400 Variables related to summary movement:
3404 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3405 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3406 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3407 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3408 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3409 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3410 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3411 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3412 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3413 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3414 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3415 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3416 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3417 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3419 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3420 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3421 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3422 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3423 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3424 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) This variable is not
3425 particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3427 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3428 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3429 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3430 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3431 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3433 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3434 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3435 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3436 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3437 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3438 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3439 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3440 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3446 @node Choosing Articles
3447 @section Choosing Articles
3448 @cindex selecting articles
3451 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3452 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3456 @node Choosing Commands
3457 @subsection Choosing Commands
3459 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3460 and they all select and display an article.
3464 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3465 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3466 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3467 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3472 @kindex G n (Summary)
3473 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3474 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
3475 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3480 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3481 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
3482 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3487 @kindex G N (Summary)
3488 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3489 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3494 @kindex G P (Summary)
3495 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3496 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3499 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3500 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3501 Go to the next article with the same subject
3502 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3505 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3506 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3507 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3508 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3512 @kindex G f (Summary)
3514 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3515 Go to the first unread article
3516 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3520 @kindex G b (Summary)
3522 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3523 Go to the article with the highest score
3524 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3529 @kindex G l (Summary)
3530 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3531 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3534 @kindex G o (Summary)
3535 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3537 @cindex article history
3538 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3539 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3540 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3541 history as you like. For a somewhat related issue (if you use this
3542 command a lot), @pxref{Article Backlog}.
3546 @node Choosing Variables
3547 @subsection Choosing Variables
3549 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3552 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3553 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3554 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3555 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3556 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3557 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3559 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3560 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3561 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3562 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3564 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3565 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3566 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3567 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3568 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3569 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3570 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3571 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3572 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3573 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3574 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3575 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3576 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3577 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3582 @node Paging the Article
3583 @section Scrolling the Article
3584 @cindex article scrolling
3589 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3590 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3591 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3592 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3593 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3596 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3597 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3598 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3601 @kindex RET (Summary)
3602 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3603 Scroll the current article one line forward
3604 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3608 @kindex A g (Summary)
3610 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3611 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3612 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3613 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3614 the way it came from the server.
3619 @kindex A < (Summary)
3620 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3621 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3622 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3627 @kindex A > (Summary)
3628 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3629 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3633 @kindex A s (Summary)
3635 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3636 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3637 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3642 @node Reply Followup and Post
3643 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3646 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3647 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3651 @node Summary Mail Commands
3652 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3654 @cindex composing mail
3656 Commands for composing a mail message:
3662 @kindex S r (Summary)
3664 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3665 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
3666 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
3667 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3668 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3673 @kindex S R (Summary)
3674 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3675 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
3676 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3677 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3678 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3681 @kindex S w (Summary)
3682 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3683 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3684 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
3685 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
3686 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
3689 @kindex S W (Summary)
3690 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3691 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3692 message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3693 the process/prefix convention.
3696 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3697 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3698 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
3699 Forward the current article to some other person
3700 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3701 headers of the forwarded article.
3706 @kindex S m (Summary)
3707 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3708 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
3709 Send a mail to some other person
3710 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3713 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3714 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3715 @cindex bouncing mail
3716 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3717 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3718 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3719 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3720 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3721 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3722 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3723 very well fail, though.
3726 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3727 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3728 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3729 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3730 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3731 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3732 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3733 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3734 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3735 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3737 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3738 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3739 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3740 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3741 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
3743 This command understands the process/prefix convention
3744 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3747 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3748 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3749 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
3750 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
3751 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3754 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3755 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3756 @cindex crossposting
3757 @cindex excessive crossposting
3758 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3759 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3761 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3762 This command is provided as a way to fight back agains the current
3763 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3764 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3765 command understands the process/prefix convention
3766 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
3771 @node Summary Post Commands
3772 @subsection Summary Post Commands
3774 @cindex composing news
3776 Commands for posting a news article:
3782 @kindex S p (Summary)
3783 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
3784 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
3785 Post an article to the current group
3786 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
3791 @kindex S f (Summary)
3792 @findex gnus-summary-followup
3793 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
3794 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
3798 @kindex S F (Summary)
3800 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
3801 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
3802 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
3803 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
3804 process/prefix convention.
3807 @kindex S n (Summary)
3808 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3809 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3810 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
3813 @kindex S n (Summary)
3814 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3815 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3816 message through mail and include the original message
3817 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
3818 the process/prefix convention.
3821 @kindex S o p (Summary)
3822 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
3823 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
3824 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3825 headers of the forwarded article.
3828 @kindex S O p (Summary)
3829 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
3831 @cindex making digests
3832 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
3833 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
3834 process/prefix convention.
3837 @kindex S u (Summary)
3838 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
3839 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
3840 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
3841 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
3845 @node Canceling and Superseding
3846 @section Canceling Articles
3847 @cindex canceling articles
3848 @cindex superseding articles
3850 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
3851 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
3853 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
3855 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
3857 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
3858 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
3859 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
3860 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
3861 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
3863 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
3864 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
3867 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
3868 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
3869 your original article.
3871 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
3873 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
3874 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
3875 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
3878 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
3879 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
3880 have posted almost the same article twice.
3882 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
3883 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
3884 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
3885 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
3886 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
3887 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
3888 header by substituting one of those words for the word
3889 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
3890 you would do normally. The previous article will be
3891 canceled/superseded.
3893 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
3896 @node Marking Articles
3897 @section Marking Articles
3898 @cindex article marking
3899 @cindex article ticking
3902 There are several marks you can set on an article.
3904 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
3905 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
3906 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
3908 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
3911 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
3912 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
3913 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
3917 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
3921 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
3922 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
3926 @node Unread Articles
3927 @subsection Unread Articles
3929 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
3934 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
3935 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
3937 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
3938 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
3939 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
3940 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
3941 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
3945 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
3946 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
3948 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
3949 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
3950 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
3953 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
3954 Markes as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
3956 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
3961 @subsection Read Articles
3962 @cindex expirable mark
3964 All the following marks mark articles as read.
3969 @vindex gnus-del-mark
3970 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
3971 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
3974 @vindex gnus-read-mark
3975 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
3978 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
3979 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
3980 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
3983 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
3984 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
3987 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
3988 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
3991 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
3992 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
3995 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
3996 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
3999 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
4000 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
4003 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
4004 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
4007 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
4008 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
4012 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
4013 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
4014 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
4018 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
4019 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
4021 One more special mark, though:
4025 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
4026 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
4028 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
4029 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
4030 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
4031 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
4037 @subsection Other Marks
4038 @cindex process mark
4041 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
4047 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
4048 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
4049 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
4050 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
4051 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
4054 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
4055 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
4056 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
4057 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
4060 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
4061 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
4062 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}
4065 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
4066 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
4067 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
4068 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
4071 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
4072 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
4073 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
4074 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
4075 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
4078 @vindex gnus-process-mark
4079 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
4080 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
4081 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
4082 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
4083 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
4087 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
4088 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
4089 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
4091 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
4092 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
4093 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
4097 @subsection Setting Marks
4098 @cindex setting marks
4100 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
4105 @kindex M c (Summary)
4106 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4107 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4108 @cindex mark as unread
4109 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4110 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
4116 @kindex M t (Summary)
4117 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
4118 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4119 @xref{Article Caching}
4124 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4125 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4126 Mark the current article as dormant
4127 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}
4131 @kindex M d (Summary)
4133 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4134 Mark the current article as read
4135 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4139 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4140 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4141 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4146 @kindex M k (Summary)
4147 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4148 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4149 and then select the next unread article
4150 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4154 @kindex M K (Summary)
4155 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4156 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4157 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4158 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4161 @kindex M C (Summary)
4162 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4163 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
4164 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4167 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4168 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4169 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4170 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4173 @kindex M H (Summary)
4174 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4175 Catchup the current group to point
4176 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4179 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4180 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4181 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4182 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4185 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4186 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4187 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4188 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4192 @kindex M e (Summary)
4194 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4195 Mark the current article as expirable
4196 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4199 @kindex M b (Summary)
4200 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4201 Set a bookmark in the current article
4202 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4205 @kindex M B (Summary)
4206 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4207 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4208 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4211 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4212 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4213 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4214 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4217 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4218 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4219 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4220 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4223 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4224 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4225 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4226 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4227 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4230 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4231 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4232 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4233 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4234 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4235 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4236 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4237 The default is @code{t}.
4240 @node Setting Process Marks
4241 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4242 @cindex setting process marks
4249 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4250 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4251 Mark the current article with the process mark
4252 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4253 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4257 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4258 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4259 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4260 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4263 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4264 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4265 Remove the process mark from all articles
4266 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4269 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4270 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4271 Invert the list of process marked articles
4272 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4275 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4276 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4277 Mark articles by a regular expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4280 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4281 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4282 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4285 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4286 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4287 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4288 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4291 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4292 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4293 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4294 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4297 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4298 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4299 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4300 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4303 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4304 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4305 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4308 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4309 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4310 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4311 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4314 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4315 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4316 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4319 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4320 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4321 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4322 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4325 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4326 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4327 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4328 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4331 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4332 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4333 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4334 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4337 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4338 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4339 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4340 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4349 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4350 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4351 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4358 @kindex / / (Summary)
4359 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4360 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4361 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4364 @kindex / a (Summary)
4365 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4366 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4367 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4371 @kindex / u (Summary)
4373 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4374 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
4375 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4376 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4377 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4380 @kindex / m (Summary)
4381 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4382 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have not been marked
4383 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4386 @kindex / t (Summary)
4387 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4388 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
4389 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4390 articles younger than that number of days.
4393 @kindex / n (Summary)
4394 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4395 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4396 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4397 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4400 @kindex / w (Summary)
4401 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4402 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4403 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4407 @kindex / v (Summary)
4408 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4409 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4410 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4414 @kindex M S (Summary)
4415 @kindex / E (Summary)
4416 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4417 Display all expunged articles
4418 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4421 @kindex / D (Summary)
4422 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4423 Display all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4426 @kindex / d (Summary)
4427 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4428 Hide all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4431 @kindex / c (Summary)
4432 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4433 Hide all dormant articles that have no children
4434 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4437 @kindex / C (Summary)
4438 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4439 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4440 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4441 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4449 @cindex article threading
4451 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4452 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4453 hierarchical fashion.
4455 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
4456 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
4457 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
4458 or simply missing. Weird news propagration excarcerbates the problem,
4459 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
4460 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
4461 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
4463 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
4467 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
4470 A tree-like article structure.
4473 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
4476 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
4477 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
4478 summary buffer. We then typicall have many sub-threads that really
4479 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
4480 called loose threads.
4482 @item thread gathering
4483 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
4485 @item sparse threads
4486 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
4487 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
4493 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4494 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4498 @node Customizing Threading
4499 @subsection Customizing Threading
4500 @cindex customizing threading
4506 @item gnus-show-threads
4507 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4508 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4509 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4510 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
4511 slower and more awkward.
4513 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4514 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4515 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4516 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
4517 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
4518 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
4519 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
4520 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
4521 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
4522 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4523 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4524 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
4526 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4527 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4528 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4529 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4530 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4531 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
4532 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
4533 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4534 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
4535 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
4536 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4537 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
4538 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4539 @code{nil} by default.
4541 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4542 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4543 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4544 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4545 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4546 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4547 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
4548 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4549 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4550 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4551 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4553 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4554 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4555 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4558 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4559 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4560 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4561 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4562 simplification is used.
4564 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4565 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4566 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4567 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4569 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4571 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4577 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4578 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4579 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4580 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4585 (mapconcat 'identity
4586 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4588 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4591 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4594 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4595 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4596 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4597 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4598 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4599 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4600 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
4601 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4603 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4604 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4605 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4606 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4607 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4608 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4609 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
4610 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
4611 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4615 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4616 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4617 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4618 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4620 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4621 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4622 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4625 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4629 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4630 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4633 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4634 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4635 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4636 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4637 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4638 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4640 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4641 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4642 There are four possible values:
4646 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
4647 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4648 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4649 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4650 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4655 @cindex adopting articles
4660 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4661 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4662 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4663 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4666 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4667 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4668 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4669 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4670 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4671 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4672 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4675 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4676 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4677 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4681 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4682 display them after one another.
4685 Don't gather loose threads.
4688 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4689 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4690 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
4693 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
4694 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
4695 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
4696 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
4697 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
4698 threads are expunged.
4700 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
4701 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
4702 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
4705 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4706 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4707 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
4708 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
4709 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
4712 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
4713 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
4714 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
4717 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
4718 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
4719 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
4720 @code{(gnus-decode-rfc1522)}, which means that QPized headers will be
4721 slightly decoded in a hackish way. This is likely to change in the
4722 future when Gnus becomes @sc{MIME}ified.
4727 @node Thread Commands
4728 @subsection Thread Commands
4729 @cindex thread commands
4735 @kindex T k (Summary)
4736 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
4737 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
4738 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
4739 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
4740 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
4745 @kindex T l (Summary)
4746 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
4747 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
4748 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
4749 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
4752 @kindex T i (Summary)
4753 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
4754 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
4755 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
4758 @kindex T # (Summary)
4759 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4760 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
4761 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4764 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
4765 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4766 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
4767 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4770 @kindex T T (Summary)
4771 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
4772 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
4775 @kindex T s (Summary)
4776 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
4777 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
4778 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
4781 @kindex T h (Summary)
4782 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
4783 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
4786 @kindex T S (Summary)
4787 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
4788 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
4791 @kindex T H (Summary)
4792 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
4793 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
4796 @kindex T t (Summary)
4797 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
4798 Re-thread the current article's thread
4799 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
4800 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
4803 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
4804 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
4805 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
4806 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
4810 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
4811 understand the numeric prefix.
4816 @kindex T n (Summary)
4817 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
4818 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
4821 @kindex T p (Summary)
4822 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
4823 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
4826 @kindex T d (Summary)
4827 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
4828 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
4831 @kindex T u (Summary)
4832 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
4833 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
4836 @kindex T o (Summary)
4837 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
4838 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
4841 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
4842 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
4843 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
4844 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
4845 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
4846 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
4847 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
4848 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
4849 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
4850 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
4851 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
4852 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
4859 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
4860 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
4861 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
4862 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4863 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
4864 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4865 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
4866 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
4867 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which is a list of functions.
4868 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
4869 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
4870 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
4871 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
4872 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
4874 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
4875 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
4876 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread. If you use
4877 more than one function, the primary sort key should be the last function
4878 in the list. You should probably always include
4879 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
4880 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
4881 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
4882 ascending article order.
4884 If you would like to sort by score, then by subject, and finally by
4885 number, you could do something like:
4888 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4889 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4890 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4891 gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score))
4894 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
4895 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
4896 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
4897 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
4898 which the articles arrived.
4900 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
4904 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4906 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t2 t1)))
4907 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
4910 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
4911 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
4912 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
4913 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
4916 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
4917 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
4918 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
4919 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
4920 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
4921 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
4922 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
4923 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
4924 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
4925 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
4926 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
4927 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
4928 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
4930 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
4934 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
4935 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
4936 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
4941 @node Asynchronous Fetching
4942 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
4943 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
4944 @cindex article pre-fetch
4947 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
4948 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
4949 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
4950 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
4951 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
4953 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
4954 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
4956 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
4957 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
4958 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
4959 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
4960 connection is blocked.
4962 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
4963 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
4964 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
4965 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
4967 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
4968 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
4969 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
4970 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
4973 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
4976 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
4977 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
4978 happen automatically.
4980 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
4981 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
4982 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
4983 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
4984 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
4985 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
4986 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
4988 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
4989 @findex gnus-async-read-p
4990 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
4991 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
4992 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
4993 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
4994 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
4995 data structure as the only parameter.
4997 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
5000 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
5001 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
5002 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
5003 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
5006 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
5009 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
5010 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
5011 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
5013 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
5014 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
5015 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
5016 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
5020 Remove articles when they are read.
5023 Remove articles when exiting the group.
5026 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
5028 @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
5029 If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
5030 from the next group.
5033 @node Article Caching
5034 @section Article Caching
5035 @cindex article caching
5038 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
5039 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
5040 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
5041 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
5042 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
5044 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
5046 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5047 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
5048 @vindex gnus-use-cache
5049 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
5050 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
5051 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
5052 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
5053 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
5055 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
5056 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
5057 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
5058 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
5059 as dormant, and don't worry.
5061 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
5063 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
5064 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
5065 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
5066 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
5067 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
5068 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
5069 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
5070 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
5071 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
5072 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
5074 @findex gnus-jog-cache
5075 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
5076 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
5077 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
5078 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
5079 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
5080 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
5083 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
5084 It is likely that you do not want caching on some groups. For instance,
5085 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
5086 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
5087 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space. To limit the caching,
5088 you could set the @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to
5089 @samp{^nnml}, for instance. This variable is @code{nil} by
5092 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
5093 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
5094 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
5095 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
5096 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
5097 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
5098 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
5099 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
5100 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
5104 @node Persistent Articles
5105 @section Persistent Articles
5106 @cindex persistent articles
5108 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
5109 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
5110 useful in my opinion.
5112 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
5113 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
5114 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
5115 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
5116 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
5117 the expiry going on at the news server.
5119 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
5120 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
5121 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
5127 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
5128 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
5131 @kindex M-* (Summary)
5132 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
5133 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
5134 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
5138 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
5140 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
5141 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
5142 interested in persistent articles:
5145 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
5149 @node Article Backlog
5150 @section Article Backlog
5152 @cindex article backlog
5154 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
5155 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
5156 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
5157 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
5158 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
5159 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5160 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
5161 increase memory usage some.
5163 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5164 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
5165 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5166 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
5167 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5168 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5169 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5171 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5174 @node Saving Articles
5175 @section Saving Articles
5176 @cindex saving articles
5178 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5179 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5180 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5181 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5182 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5184 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5185 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
5186 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5188 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5189 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5190 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5191 deleted before saving.
5197 @kindex O o (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5200 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
5201 Save the current article using the default article saver
5202 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5205 @kindex O m (Summary)
5206 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5207 Save the current article in mail format
5208 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5211 @kindex O r (Summary)
5212 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5213 Save the current article in rmail format
5214 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5217 @kindex O f (Summary)
5218 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5219 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
5220 Save the current article in plain file format
5221 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5224 @kindex O F (Summary)
5225 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5226 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5227 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5230 @kindex O b (Summary)
5231 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5232 Save the current article body in plain file format
5233 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5236 @kindex O h (Summary)
5237 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5238 Save the current article in mh folder format
5239 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5242 @kindex O v (Summary)
5243 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5244 Save the current article in a VM folder
5245 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5248 @kindex O p (Summary)
5249 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5250 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5251 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5254 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5255 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5256 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5257 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5258 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5259 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5260 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5261 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5262 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5263 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5264 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5265 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5269 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5270 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5271 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5272 functions below, or you can create your own.
5276 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5277 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5278 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5279 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5280 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5281 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5282 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5284 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5285 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5286 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5287 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5288 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5289 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5291 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5292 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5293 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5294 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5295 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5296 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5297 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5299 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5300 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5301 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5302 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5303 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5305 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5306 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5307 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5308 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5309 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5312 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5313 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5314 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5315 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5316 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
5318 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5319 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5320 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5321 reader to use this setting.
5324 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5325 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5326 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5327 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5330 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5331 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5332 available functions that generate names:
5336 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5337 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5338 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5340 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5341 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5342 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5344 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5345 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5346 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5348 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5349 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5350 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5353 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5354 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5355 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5356 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5357 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5361 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5362 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5363 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5364 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5367 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5368 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5369 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5370 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5371 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5372 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5373 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5374 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5375 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5377 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5378 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5379 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5380 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5382 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5383 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5384 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5387 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
5388 lots of mail groups called things like
5389 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
5390 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
5391 following will do just that:
5394 (defun my-save-name (group)
5395 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
5396 (substring group (match-end 0))))
5398 (setq gnus-split-methods
5399 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
5404 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5405 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5406 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5407 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5408 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5409 all the files in the toplevel directory
5410 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5411 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5412 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5413 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5415 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5416 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5417 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5418 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5419 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5422 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5426 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5427 (setq gnus-default-article-saver 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5430 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5431 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5432 the toplevel directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5433 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5436 @node Decoding Articles
5437 @section Decoding Articles
5438 @cindex decoding articles
5440 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5441 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5444 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5445 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
5446 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5447 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
5448 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5449 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5453 @cindex article series
5454 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5455 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5456 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5457 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5458 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5460 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5461 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5462 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5464 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5465 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5466 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5468 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5469 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5470 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5473 @node Uuencoded Articles
5474 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5476 @cindex uuencoded articles
5481 @kindex X u (Summary)
5482 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5483 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
5484 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5487 @kindex X U (Summary)
5488 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5489 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5490 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5493 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5494 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5495 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5498 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5499 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5500 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5501 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5505 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5506 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5507 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5508 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5509 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5511 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5512 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5513 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5514 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5517 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5518 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5519 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5520 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5521 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5522 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5526 @node Shell Archives
5527 @subsection Shell Archives
5529 @cindex shell archives
5530 @cindex shared articles
5532 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
5533 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
5534 some commands to deal with these:
5539 @kindex X s (Summary)
5540 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5541 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5544 @kindex X S (Summary)
5545 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5546 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5549 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5550 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5551 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5554 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5555 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5556 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5557 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5561 @node PostScript Files
5562 @subsection PostScript Files
5568 @kindex X p (Summary)
5569 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5570 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5573 @kindex X P (Summary)
5574 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5575 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5576 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5579 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5580 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5581 View the current PostScript series
5582 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5585 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5586 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5587 View and save the current PostScript series
5588 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5593 @subsection Other Files
5597 @kindex X o (Summary)
5598 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
5599 Save the current series
5600 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
5603 @kindex X b (Summary)
5604 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
5605 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
5606 doesn't really work yet.
5610 @node Decoding Variables
5611 @subsection Decoding Variables
5613 Adjective, not verb.
5616 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5617 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5618 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5622 @node Rule Variables
5623 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5624 @cindex rule variables
5626 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5627 variables are of the form
5630 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5637 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5638 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5640 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5641 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5644 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5645 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
5648 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5649 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5650 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
5651 user and default view rules.
5653 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5654 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5655 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
5660 @node Other Decode Variables
5661 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
5664 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5666 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5667 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
5668 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
5669 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
5670 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
5674 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
5675 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
5678 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
5679 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
5680 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
5683 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5684 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5685 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
5686 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
5687 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
5690 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5691 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5692 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
5694 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5695 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5696 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
5697 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
5698 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
5701 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5702 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5703 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
5705 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5706 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5707 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
5708 looking for files to display.
5710 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
5711 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
5712 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
5715 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5716 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5717 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
5720 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5721 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5722 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
5725 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5726 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5727 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
5730 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5731 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5732 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
5733 decoded articles as unread.
5735 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5736 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5737 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
5738 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
5740 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5741 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5743 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
5744 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
5745 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
5746 @code{metamail} for viewing.
5748 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5749 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5750 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
5751 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
5752 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
5753 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
5754 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
5755 simply dropped them.
5760 @node Uuencoding and Posting
5761 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
5765 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5766 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5767 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
5768 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
5769 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
5770 for you when you post the article.
5772 @item gnus-uu-post-length
5773 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
5774 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
5775 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
5777 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
5778 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
5779 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
5780 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
5781 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
5782 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
5783 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
5785 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5786 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5787 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
5788 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
5789 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
5790 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
5791 Default is @code{t}.
5797 @subsection Viewing Files
5798 @cindex viewing files
5799 @cindex pseudo-articles
5801 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
5802 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
5803 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
5804 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
5805 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
5806 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
5807 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
5809 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
5810 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
5811 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
5812 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
5814 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
5815 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
5816 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
5818 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
5819 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
5820 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
5821 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
5822 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
5824 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
5825 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
5826 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
5827 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
5828 a list of parameters to that command.
5830 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
5831 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
5832 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
5834 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
5835 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
5836 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
5839 @node Article Treatment
5840 @section Article Treatment
5842 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
5843 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
5844 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
5845 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
5846 these articles easier.
5849 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
5850 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look niced.
5851 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
5852 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
5853 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
5854 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
5855 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
5859 @node Article Highlighting
5860 @subsection Article Highlighting
5863 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
5864 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
5869 @kindex W H a (Summary)
5870 @findex gnus-article-highlight
5871 Highlight the current article (@code{gnus-article-highlight}).
5874 @kindex W H h (Summary)
5875 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
5876 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
5877 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
5878 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
5879 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
5880 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
5881 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name and
5882 @var{content} is the face for highlighting the header value. The first
5883 match made will be used. Note that @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^}
5884 prepended---Gnus will add one.
5887 @kindex W H c (Summary)
5888 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
5889 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
5891 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
5894 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5896 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5897 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
5898 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
5900 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5901 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5902 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
5904 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
5905 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
5906 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
5908 @item gnus-cite-face-list
5909 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
5910 List of faces used for highlighting citations. When there are citations
5911 from multiple articles in the same message, Gnus will try to give each
5912 citation from each article its own face. This should make it easier to
5915 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
5916 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
5917 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
5919 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5920 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5921 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
5923 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5924 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5925 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
5926 that it's a citation.
5928 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5929 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5930 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
5932 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5933 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5934 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
5936 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
5937 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
5938 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
5939 cited text belonging to the attribution.
5945 @kindex W H s (Summary)
5946 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
5947 @vindex gnus-signature-face
5948 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
5949 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
5950 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
5951 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
5952 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
5958 @node Article Fontisizing
5959 @subsection Article Fontisizing
5961 @cindex article emphasis
5963 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
5964 @kindex W e (Summary)
5965 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
5966 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
5967 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
5968 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
5970 @vindex gnus-article-emphasis
5971 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
5972 @code{gnus-article-emphasis} variable. This is an alist where the first
5973 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
5974 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
5975 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
5976 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
5977 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
5981 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
5982 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
5983 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
5986 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
5987 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
5988 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
5989 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
5990 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
5991 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
5992 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
5993 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
5994 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
5995 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
5996 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
5997 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
5998 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
6000 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
6001 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
6002 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
6006 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
6010 @node Article Hiding
6011 @subsection Article Hiding
6012 @cindex article hiding
6014 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
6015 too much cruft in most articles.
6020 @kindex W W a (Summary)
6021 @findex gnus-article-hide
6022 Do maximum hiding on the summary buffer (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}).
6025 @kindex W W h (Summary)
6026 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
6027 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
6031 @kindex W W b (Summary)
6032 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
6033 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
6034 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
6037 @kindex W W s (Summary)
6038 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
6039 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
6043 @kindex W W p (Summary)
6044 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
6045 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
6046 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
6047 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
6048 signature has been hidden.
6051 @kindex W W P (Summary)
6052 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
6053 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
6054 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
6057 @kindex W W c (Summary)
6058 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
6059 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
6060 customizing the hiding:
6064 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6065 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
6066 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
6067 50), hide the cited text.
6069 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6070 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
6071 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
6074 @item gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6075 @vindex gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
6076 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
6077 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
6078 by this format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
6083 Start point of the hidden text.
6085 End point of the hidden text.
6087 Length of the hidden text.
6090 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
6091 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
6092 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
6097 @kindex W W C (Summary)
6098 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
6099 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
6100 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
6101 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
6102 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
6106 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
6107 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
6108 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
6110 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
6111 citation customization.
6114 @node Article Washing
6115 @subsection Article Washing
6117 @cindex article washing
6119 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
6120 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
6122 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
6123 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
6129 @kindex W l (Summary)
6130 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
6131 Remove page breaks from the current article
6132 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}).
6135 @kindex W r (Summary)
6136 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
6137 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
6138 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
6139 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
6142 @kindex W t (Summary)
6143 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
6144 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
6145 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
6148 @kindex W v (Summary)
6149 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
6150 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
6151 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
6154 @kindex W m (Summary)
6155 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
6156 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
6157 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
6160 @kindex W o (Summary)
6161 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
6162 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
6165 @kindex W w (Summary)
6166 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
6167 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
6168 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
6169 late and certainly after any highlighting.
6171 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
6175 @kindex W c (Summary)
6176 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
6177 Remove CR (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines)
6178 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
6181 @kindex W q (Summary)
6182 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
6183 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
6184 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
6185 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
6186 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
6190 @kindex W f (Summary)
6192 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
6193 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
6194 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
6195 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
6198 \gnusxface{tmp/xface-karlheg.ps}
6199 \gnusxface{tmp/xface-kyle.ps}
6200 \gnusxface{tmp/xface-smb.ps}
6203 Look for and display any X-Face headers
6204 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
6205 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
6206 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
6207 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
6208 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
6209 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
6210 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
6211 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
6212 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
6213 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
6214 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
6215 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
6216 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
6220 @kindex W b (Summary)
6221 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6222 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6223 @xref{Article Buttons}
6226 @kindex W B (Summary)
6227 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6228 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6229 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6232 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6233 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6234 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6235 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6238 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6239 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6240 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6241 lines with a single empty line.
6242 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6245 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6246 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6247 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6248 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6251 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6252 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6253 Do all the three commands above
6254 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6257 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6258 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6259 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6260 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6265 @node Article Buttons
6266 @subsection Article Buttons
6269 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6270 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6271 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
6272 button on these references.
6274 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6275 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6276 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6281 @item gnus-button-alist
6282 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6283 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6286 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6292 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6293 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
6294 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6297 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
6298 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
6299 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6302 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6303 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6304 avoid false matches.
6307 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6310 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6311 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6315 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6318 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6321 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6322 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6323 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6324 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6325 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6328 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6331 @var{HEADER} is a regular expression.
6333 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6334 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6335 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6336 default values of the variables above.
6338 @item gnus-article-button-face
6339 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6340 Face used on buttons.
6342 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6343 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6344 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6350 @subsection Article Date
6352 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6353 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6354 when the article was sent.
6359 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6360 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6361 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6362 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6365 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6366 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6367 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6370 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6371 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6372 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6373 @findex format-time-string
6374 Display the date using a user-defined format
6375 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6376 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6377 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6378 for a list of possible format specs.
6381 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6382 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6383 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
6384 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}).
6387 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6388 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6389 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6390 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
6391 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6392 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6393 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6398 @node Article Signature
6399 @subsection Article Signature
6401 @cindex article signature
6403 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6404 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6405 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6406 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6407 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6408 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6409 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6410 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6411 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6414 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6415 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6416 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6417 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6418 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6419 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6420 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6421 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6424 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6427 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6428 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6433 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6436 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6439 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6440 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6442 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6443 in question is not a signature.
6446 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6447 listed above. Here's an example:
6450 (setq gnus-signature-limit
6451 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
6454 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
6455 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
6456 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
6457 signature after all.
6460 @node Article Commands
6461 @section Article Commands
6468 @kindex A P (Summary)
6469 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
6470 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
6471 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
6472 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
6473 run just before printing the buffer.
6478 @node Summary Sorting
6479 @section Summary Sorting
6480 @cindex summary sorting
6482 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6483 can't really see why you'd want that.
6488 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
6489 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
6490 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
6493 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
6494 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
6495 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
6498 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
6499 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
6500 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
6503 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
6504 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
6505 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
6508 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
6509 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
6510 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
6513 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
6514 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
6515 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
6518 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
6519 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
6520 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
6521 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
6522 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
6526 @node Finding the Parent
6527 @section Finding the Parent
6528 @cindex parent articles
6529 @cindex referring articles
6531 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
6533 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
6534 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
6535 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
6536 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
6537 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
6538 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
6539 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
6540 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
6542 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
6543 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
6544 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
6545 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
6546 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
6549 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
6550 @kindex A R (Summary)
6551 You can have Gnus fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References}
6552 header of the article by pushing @kbd{A R}
6553 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
6555 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
6556 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
6558 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
6559 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
6560 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
6561 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
6562 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
6563 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
6564 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
6566 The current select method will be used when fetching by
6567 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
6568 by giving this command a prefix.
6570 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
6571 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
6572 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
6573 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
6574 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
6575 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
6578 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
6579 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
6580 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
6581 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
6582 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
6583 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
6586 @node Alternative Approaches
6587 @section Alternative Approaches
6589 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
6590 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
6593 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
6594 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
6599 @subsection Pick and Read
6600 @cindex pick and read
6602 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
6603 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
6604 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
6605 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
6607 @findex gnus-pick-mode
6608 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
6609 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
6610 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
6611 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
6612 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
6614 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
6619 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6620 Pick the article on the current line
6621 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}). If given a numerical prefix,
6622 go to that article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
6623 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
6626 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
6627 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
6628 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
6629 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
6633 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6634 Unpick the article (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6638 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6639 Unpick all articles (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6643 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6644 Pick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6648 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6649 Unpick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6653 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6654 Pick the region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6658 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6659 Unpick the region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6663 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6664 Pick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6668 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6669 Unpick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6673 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6674 Pick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6678 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-buffer
6679 Unpick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-buffer}).
6683 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
6684 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
6685 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
6686 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
6687 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
6688 will still be visible when you are reading.
6692 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
6695 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
6698 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
6699 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
6701 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
6702 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
6703 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
6705 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
6706 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
6707 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
6708 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
6709 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
6710 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
6711 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
6715 @subsection Binary Groups
6716 @cindex binary groups
6718 @findex gnus-binary-mode
6719 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
6720 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
6721 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
6722 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
6723 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
6724 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
6727 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
6728 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
6729 command, when you have turned on this mode
6730 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
6732 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
6733 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
6737 @section Tree Display
6740 @vindex gnus-use-trees
6741 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
6742 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
6743 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
6746 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
6749 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
6750 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
6751 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
6753 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6754 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6755 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers. The default
6756 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}. For a list of valid specs, @pxref{Summary
6759 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
6760 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
6761 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
6762 default is @code{modeline}.
6764 @item gnus-tree-line-format
6765 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
6766 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
6767 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
6768 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
6769 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
6770 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
6776 The name of the poster.
6778 The @code{From} header.
6780 The number of the article.
6782 The opening bracket.
6784 The closing bracket.
6789 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6791 Variables related to the display are:
6794 @item gnus-tree-brackets
6795 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
6796 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
6797 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
6798 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
6799 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}))}.
6801 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6802 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6803 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
6804 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
6808 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
6809 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
6810 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
6811 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
6812 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
6813 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
6814 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
6815 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
6816 other windows displayed next to it.
6818 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
6819 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
6820 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
6821 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
6822 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
6823 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
6824 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
6828 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
6831 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
6841 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
6845 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
6846 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
6848 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
6850 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
6855 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
6856 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
6857 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
6860 (setq gnus-use-trees t
6861 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
6862 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
6863 (gnus-add-configuration
6867 (summary 0.75 point)
6872 @xref{Windows Configuration}.
6875 @node Mail Group Commands
6876 @section Mail Group Commands
6877 @cindex mail group commands
6879 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
6880 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
6882 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
6883 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6888 @kindex B e (Summary)
6889 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
6890 Expire all expirable articles in the group
6891 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
6894 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
6895 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
6896 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
6897 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
6898 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
6899 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
6902 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
6903 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
6904 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
6905 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
6906 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
6907 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
6910 @kindex B m (Summary)
6912 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
6913 Move the article from one mail group to another
6914 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6917 @kindex B c (Summary)
6919 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
6920 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
6921 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
6922 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
6925 @kindex B C (Summary)
6926 @cindex crosspost mail
6927 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
6928 Crosspost the current article to some other group
6929 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
6930 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
6931 be properly updated.
6934 @kindex B i (Summary)
6935 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
6936 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
6937 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
6938 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
6941 @kindex B r (Summary)
6942 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
6943 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6944 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
6945 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
6946 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
6950 @kindex B w (Summary)
6952 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
6953 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
6954 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
6955 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
6956 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}).
6959 @kindex B q (Summary)
6960 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
6961 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
6962 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
6963 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
6966 @kindex B p (Summary)
6967 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
6968 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
6969 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
6970 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
6971 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
6972 article from your news server (or rather, from
6973 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
6974 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
6975 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
6976 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
6977 just not have arrived yet.
6981 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
6982 @cindex moving articles
6983 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
6984 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
6985 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
6986 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
6987 suggestions you find reasonable.
6990 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
6991 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
6992 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
6993 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
6997 @node Various Summary Stuff
6998 @section Various Summary Stuff
7001 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
7002 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
7003 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
7004 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
7008 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
7009 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
7010 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
7012 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
7013 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
7014 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
7015 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
7016 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
7017 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
7020 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7021 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
7022 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
7023 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
7024 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
7026 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7027 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
7028 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
7029 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
7030 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
7031 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
7032 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
7033 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
7034 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
7035 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
7040 @node Summary Group Information
7041 @subsection Summary Group Information
7046 @kindex H f (Summary)
7047 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
7048 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
7049 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
7050 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
7051 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
7052 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
7053 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
7054 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
7055 be used for fetching the file.
7058 @kindex H d (Summary)
7059 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
7060 Give a brief description of the current group
7061 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
7062 rereading the description from the server.
7065 @kindex H h (Summary)
7066 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
7067 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
7068 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
7071 @kindex H i (Summary)
7072 @findex gnus-info-find-node
7073 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
7077 @node Searching for Articles
7078 @subsection Searching for Articles
7083 @kindex M-s (Summary)
7084 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
7085 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
7086 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
7089 @kindex M-r (Summary)
7090 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
7091 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
7092 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
7096 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
7097 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
7098 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
7099 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If given a prefix, search
7103 @kindex M-& (Summary)
7104 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
7105 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
7106 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
7109 @node Summary Generation Commands
7110 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
7115 @kindex Y g (Summary)
7116 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
7117 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
7120 @kindex Y c (Summary)
7121 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
7122 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
7123 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
7128 @node Really Various Summary Commands
7129 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
7134 @kindex C-d (Summary)
7135 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
7136 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
7137 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
7138 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
7139 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
7140 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
7141 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
7142 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
7146 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
7147 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
7148 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
7149 several documents into one biiig group
7150 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
7151 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
7152 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
7153 command understands the process/prefix convention
7154 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7157 @kindex C-t (Summary)
7158 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
7159 Toggle truncation of summary lines
7160 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
7161 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
7162 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
7166 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
7167 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
7168 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
7173 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
7174 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
7175 @cindex summary exit
7176 @cindex exiting groups
7178 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
7179 group and return you to the group buffer.
7185 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
7187 @findex gnus-summary-exit
7188 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
7189 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
7190 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
7191 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
7192 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
7193 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
7194 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
7195 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
7196 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
7197 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
7201 @kindex Z E (Summary)
7203 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
7204 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
7205 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
7209 @kindex Z c (Summary)
7211 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
7212 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
7213 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
7214 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
7217 @kindex Z C (Summary)
7218 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
7219 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
7220 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
7223 @kindex Z n (Summary)
7224 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
7225 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
7226 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
7229 @kindex Z R (Summary)
7230 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
7231 Exit this group, and then enter it again
7232 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
7233 all articles, both read and unread.
7237 @kindex Z G (Summary)
7238 @kindex M-g (Summary)
7239 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
7240 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
7241 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
7242 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
7243 articles, both read and unread.
7246 @kindex Z N (Summary)
7247 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
7248 Exit the group and go to the next group
7249 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
7252 @kindex Z P (Summary)
7253 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
7254 Exit the group and go to the previous group
7255 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
7258 @kindex Z s (Summary)
7259 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
7260 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
7261 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
7262 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
7263 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7266 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7267 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7270 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7271 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7272 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7273 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7274 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7275 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7276 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7277 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7278 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7279 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7280 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7281 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7283 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7285 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7286 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7287 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7288 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7289 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7290 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7291 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7292 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7293 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7296 @node Crosspost Handling
7297 @section Crosspost Handling
7301 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7302 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7303 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7304 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7305 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7306 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7309 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7310 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7311 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7312 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7313 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7315 @cindex cross-posting
7318 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7319 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7320 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7321 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7322 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7323 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7324 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7325 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7326 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7327 the cross reference mechanism.
7329 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7330 @cindex overview.fmt
7331 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7332 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7333 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7334 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7335 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7336 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7339 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7340 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7341 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7346 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7349 @node Duplicate Suppression
7350 @section Duplicate Suppression
7352 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7353 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7354 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7355 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
7360 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7361 is evil and not very common.
7364 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7365 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7368 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7369 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7372 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
7375 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
7376 well, but these four are the most common situations.
7378 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
7379 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
7380 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
7381 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
7382 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
7383 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
7384 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
7387 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
7388 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
7389 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
7390 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
7391 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
7395 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
7396 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
7397 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
7399 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
7400 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
7401 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
7402 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
7403 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
7404 session are suppressed.
7406 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
7407 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
7408 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
7409 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7411 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7412 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7413 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
7414 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7417 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
7418 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7419 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7420 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7421 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
7422 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7423 to you to figure out, I think.
7426 @node The Article Buffer
7427 @chapter The Article Buffer
7428 @cindex article buffer
7430 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7431 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7432 tell Gnus otherwise.
7435 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7436 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
7437 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7438 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7439 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7443 @node Hiding Headers
7444 @section Hiding Headers
7445 @cindex hiding headers
7446 @cindex deleting headers
7448 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7449 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7451 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7452 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7453 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7454 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7455 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7456 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7457 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7458 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7459 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7461 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7465 @item gnus-visible-headers
7466 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7467 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7468 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7469 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7471 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7472 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7475 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7478 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7481 @item gnus-ignored-headers
7482 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
7483 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
7484 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
7485 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
7486 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
7488 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
7489 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
7492 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
7495 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
7498 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
7499 variable will have no effect.
7503 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
7504 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
7505 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
7506 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
7507 the headers are to be displayed.
7509 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
7510 and then the subject, you might say something like:
7513 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
7516 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
7517 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
7519 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7520 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7521 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
7522 You can hide further boring headers by entering
7523 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
7524 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
7525 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
7526 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
7527 @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove from sight.
7529 These conditions are:
7532 Remove all empty headers.
7534 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
7537 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
7538 @code{Newsgroups} header.
7540 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
7543 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
7547 To include the four first elements, you could say something like;
7550 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
7551 '(empty newsgroups followup-to reply-to))
7554 This is also the default value for this variable.
7558 @section Using @sc{mime}
7561 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
7562 while people stand around yawning.
7564 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
7565 while all newsreaders die of fear.
7567 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
7568 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
7569 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
7571 @vindex gnus-show-mime
7572 @vindex gnus-show-mime-method
7573 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
7574 @findex metamail-buffer
7575 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
7576 @code{gnus-show-mime-method}, which is @code{metamail-buffer} by
7577 default. Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
7578 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
7579 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
7580 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
7581 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
7582 buffer. These can't be avoided.
7584 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the summary
7585 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
7586 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
7587 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
7588 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume
7589 button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you,
7590 and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the
7591 program to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly
7592 decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
7594 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
7597 @node Customizing Articles
7598 @section Customizing Articles
7599 @cindex article customization
7601 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7602 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
7603 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
7604 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
7606 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7607 By default this hook just contains @code{gnus-article-hide-headers},
7608 @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}, and
7609 @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight}, but there are thousands, nay
7610 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
7611 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
7612 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
7613 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
7614 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
7616 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
7617 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
7618 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
7619 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
7620 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
7623 @node Article Keymap
7624 @section Article Keymap
7626 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
7627 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
7628 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
7629 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
7632 A few additional keystrokes are available:
7637 @kindex SPACE (Article)
7638 @findex gnus-article-next-page
7639 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
7642 @kindex DEL (Article)
7643 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
7644 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
7647 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
7648 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
7649 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
7650 @kbd{r}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
7651 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
7654 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
7655 @findex gnus-article-mail
7656 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
7657 given a prefix, include the mail.
7661 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
7662 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
7663 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
7667 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
7668 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
7669 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
7672 @kindex TAB (Article)
7673 @findex gnus-article-next-button
7674 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
7675 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
7678 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
7679 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
7680 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
7686 @section Misc Article
7690 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
7691 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
7692 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
7693 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
7696 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
7697 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
7698 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
7699 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
7700 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
7701 the contents of the article buffer.
7703 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7704 @item gnus-article-display-hook
7705 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
7706 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
7707 hiding headers, and the like.
7709 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
7710 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
7711 Hook called in article mode buffers.
7713 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7714 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7715 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
7716 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
7718 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
7719 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
7720 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
7721 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. It accepts the same
7722 format specifications as that variable, with one extension:
7726 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
7727 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
7731 @vindex gnus-break-pages
7733 @item gnus-break-pages
7734 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
7735 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
7736 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
7737 paging will not be done.
7739 @item gnus-page-delimiter
7740 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
7741 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
7746 @node Composing Messages
7747 @chapter Composing Messages
7752 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
7753 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
7754 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
7755 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
7756 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
7757 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
7758 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
7761 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
7762 * Post:: Posting and following up.
7763 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
7764 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
7765 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
7766 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
7767 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
7770 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
7771 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
7777 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
7780 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
7781 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
7782 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
7783 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
7785 @item gnus-add-to-list
7786 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
7787 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
7788 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
7796 Variables for composing news articles:
7799 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7800 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7801 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
7802 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
7803 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
7804 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to send the
7805 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
7806 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
7807 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
7810 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7811 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7812 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
7813 file. It is 1000 by default.
7818 @node Posting Server
7819 @section Posting Server
7821 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
7822 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
7824 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
7826 @vindex gnus-post-method
7828 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
7829 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
7830 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
7831 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
7832 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
7835 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
7838 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
7839 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
7840 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
7841 the ``current'' server for posting.
7843 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
7844 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
7846 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
7847 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
7852 @section Mail and Post
7854 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
7858 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
7859 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
7860 @cindex mailing lists
7862 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
7863 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
7864 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
7865 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
7866 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
7867 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
7868 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
7869 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
7870 still a pain, though.
7874 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
7875 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
7876 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
7879 @findex ispell-message
7881 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
7885 @node Archived Messages
7886 @section Archived Messages
7887 @cindex archived messages
7888 @cindex sent messages
7890 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
7891 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
7892 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
7893 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
7896 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
7897 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
7898 use to store sent messages. The default is:
7902 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive/"))
7905 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
7906 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
7907 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
7908 directory chosen, you could say something like:
7911 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
7912 '(nnfolder "archive"
7913 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
7914 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
7915 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
7918 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
7920 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
7921 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
7922 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
7924 This variable can be used to do the following:
7928 Messages will be saved in that group.
7929 @item a list of strings
7930 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
7931 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
7932 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
7934 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
7939 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
7941 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
7944 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
7946 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
7949 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
7951 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7952 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
7953 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
7954 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
7959 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7960 '((if (message-news-p)
7965 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
7966 messages in one file per month:
7969 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7970 '((if (message-news-p)
7972 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
7973 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
7976 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
7977 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
7979 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
7980 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
7981 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
7982 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
7983 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
7984 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
7985 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
7986 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
7987 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
7988 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
7990 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
7991 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
7992 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
7993 this will disable archiving.
7996 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
7997 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
7998 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
7999 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
8000 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
8003 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
8004 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
8005 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
8008 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
8009 but the latter is the preferred method.
8013 @c @node Posting Styles
8014 @c @section Posting Styles
8015 @c @cindex posting styles
8018 @c All them variables, they make my head swim.
8020 @c So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
8021 @c on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
8022 @c and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
8025 @c @vindex gnus-posting-styles
8026 @c One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
8027 @c variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
8028 @c came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
8029 @c a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
8034 @c (signature . "Peace and happiness")
8035 @c (organization . "What me?"))
8037 @c (signature . "Death to everybody"))
8038 @c ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
8039 @c (organization . "Emacs is it")))
8042 @c As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
8043 @c @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
8044 @c ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
8045 @c over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
8046 @c applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
8047 @c the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
8048 @c @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
8049 @c signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
8051 @c The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
8052 @c string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
8053 @c If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
8054 @c arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
8055 @c referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
8056 @c any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
8059 @c Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
8060 @c attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
8061 @c can be one of @code{signature}, @code{organization} or @code{from}. The
8062 @c attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
8063 @c a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
8066 @c The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
8067 @c return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
8068 @c list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
8070 @c So here's a new example:
8073 @c (setq gnus-posting-styles
8075 @c (signature . "~/.signature")
8076 @c (from . "user@@foo (user)")
8077 @c ("X-Home-Page" . (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
8078 @c (organization . "People's Front Against MWM"))
8080 @c (signature . my-funny-signature-randomizer))
8081 @c ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
8082 @c (signature . my-quote-randomizer))
8083 @c (posting-from-work-p
8084 @c (signature . "~/.work-signature")
8085 @c (from . "user@@bar.foo (user)")
8086 @c (organization . "Important Work, Inc"))
8088 @c (signature . "~/.mail-signature"))))
8095 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
8096 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
8097 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
8098 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
8099 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
8101 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
8102 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
8103 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
8104 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
8105 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
8109 @vindex nndraft-directory
8110 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
8111 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
8112 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
8113 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
8114 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
8115 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
8117 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
8118 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
8121 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
8122 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
8123 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
8124 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
8125 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
8126 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
8127 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
8128 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
8129 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
8130 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
8131 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
8132 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
8133 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
8134 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
8136 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
8137 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
8138 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
8140 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
8142 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
8143 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
8144 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
8146 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
8149 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
8150 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
8151 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
8152 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
8153 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
8154 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
8155 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
8158 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
8159 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
8160 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
8163 @node Rejected Articles
8164 @section Rejected Articles
8165 @cindex rejected articles
8167 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
8168 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
8169 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
8170 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
8172 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
8173 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
8174 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
8175 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
8176 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
8178 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
8179 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
8180 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
8183 @node Select Methods
8184 @chapter Select Methods
8185 @cindex foreign groups
8186 @cindex select methods
8188 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
8189 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
8190 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
8191 personal mail group.
8193 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
8194 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
8195 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
8196 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
8197 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
8198 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
8200 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
8201 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
8203 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
8206 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
8207 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
8208 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
8209 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
8210 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
8212 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
8215 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
8216 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
8217 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
8218 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
8219 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
8220 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
8224 @node The Server Buffer
8225 @section The Server Buffer
8227 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
8228 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
8229 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
8230 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
8231 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
8232 backend represents a virtual server.
8234 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
8235 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
8236 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
8237 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
8239 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
8240 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
8241 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
8242 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
8243 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
8244 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
8245 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
8247 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
8248 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
8251 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
8252 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
8253 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
8254 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
8255 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
8256 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
8257 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
8260 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
8261 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
8264 @node Server Buffer Format
8265 @subsection Server Buffer Format
8266 @cindex server buffer format
8268 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
8269 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
8270 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
8271 variable, with some simple extensions:
8276 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
8279 The name of this server.
8282 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
8285 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
8288 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
8289 The mode line can also be customized by using the
8290 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable. The following specs are
8301 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
8304 @node Server Commands
8305 @subsection Server Commands
8306 @cindex server commands
8312 @findex gnus-server-add-server
8313 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
8317 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
8318 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
8321 @kindex SPACE (Server)
8322 @findex gnus-server-read-server
8323 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
8327 @findex gnus-server-exit
8328 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
8332 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
8333 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
8337 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
8338 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
8342 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
8343 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
8347 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
8348 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
8352 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
8353 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
8354 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
8359 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
8360 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
8361 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
8362 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
8367 @node Example Methods
8368 @subsection Example Methods
8370 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
8373 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
8376 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
8382 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
8383 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
8386 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
8387 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
8389 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
8390 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
8394 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
8397 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
8398 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
8400 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
8401 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
8402 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
8406 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
8409 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
8412 Here's the method for a public spool:
8416 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
8417 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
8420 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
8421 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
8422 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
8423 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
8424 should probably look something like this:
8428 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
8429 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8430 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8431 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8432 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
8437 @node Creating a Virtual Server
8438 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
8440 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
8441 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
8443 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
8444 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
8445 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
8447 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
8449 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
8450 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
8451 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
8452 will contain the following:
8462 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
8463 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
8464 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
8467 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
8468 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
8469 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
8472 @node Server Variables
8473 @subsection Server Variables
8475 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
8476 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
8477 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
8478 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
8479 won't change the "derived" variables.
8481 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
8482 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
8483 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
8484 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
8485 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
8486 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
8487 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
8488 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
8489 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
8493 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
8494 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
8495 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
8499 @node Servers and Methods
8500 @subsection Servers and Methods
8502 Wherever you would normally use a select method
8503 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
8504 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
8505 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
8509 @node Unavailable Servers
8510 @subsection Unavailable Servers
8512 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
8513 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
8514 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
8515 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
8516 actually the case or not.
8518 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
8519 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
8520 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
8521 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
8522 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
8523 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
8524 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
8525 it will regard that server as ``down''.
8527 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
8528 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
8530 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
8531 with the following commands:
8537 @findex gnus-server-open-server
8538 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
8539 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
8543 @findex gnus-server-close-server
8544 Close the connection (if any) to the server
8545 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
8549 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
8550 Mark the current server as unreachable
8551 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
8554 @kindex M-o (Server)
8555 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
8556 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
8557 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
8560 @kindex M-c (Server)
8561 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
8562 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
8563 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
8567 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
8568 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
8569 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
8575 @section Getting News
8576 @cindex reading news
8577 @cindex news backends
8579 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
8580 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
8581 or it can read from a local spool.
8584 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
8585 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
8590 @subsection @sc{nntp}
8593 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
8594 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
8595 server as the, uhm, address.
8597 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
8598 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
8599 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
8600 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8602 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
8603 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
8604 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
8606 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
8611 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
8612 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
8613 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
8615 @cindex authentification
8616 @cindex nntp authentification
8617 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8618 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
8619 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
8620 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
8621 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
8622 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
8623 present in this hook.
8625 @item nntp-authinfo-function
8626 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
8627 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
8628 server. Available functions include:
8631 @item nntp-send-authinfo
8632 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8633 This function will use your current login name as the user name and will
8634 prompt you for the password. This is the default.
8636 @item nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8637 @findex nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8638 This function will prompt you for both user name and password.
8640 @item nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8641 @findex nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8642 This function will use your current login name as the user name and will
8643 read the @sc{nntp} password from @file{~/.nntp-authinfo}.
8646 @item nntp-server-action-alist
8647 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
8648 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
8649 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
8650 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
8653 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
8657 You probably don't want to do that, though.
8659 The default value is
8662 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
8663 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
8666 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
8667 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
8669 @item nntp-maximum-request
8670 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
8671 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
8672 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
8673 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
8674 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
8675 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
8676 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
8678 @item nntp-connection-timeout
8679 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
8680 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
8681 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
8682 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
8683 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
8684 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
8685 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
8686 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
8687 no timeouts are done.
8689 @item nntp-command-timeout
8690 @vindex nntp-command-timeout
8691 @cindex PPP connections
8692 @cindex dynamic IP addresses
8693 If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
8694 address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
8695 changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
8696 waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
8697 unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
8698 then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
8699 number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
8700 the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
8701 likely number is 30 seconds.
8703 @item nntp-retry-on-break
8704 @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
8705 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
8706 hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
8709 @item nntp-server-hook
8710 @vindex nntp-server-hook
8711 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
8714 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
8715 @findex nntp-open-telnet
8716 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
8717 @item nntp-open-connection-function
8718 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
8719 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Three pre-made
8720 functions are @code{nntp-open-network-stream}, which is the default, and
8721 simply connects to some port or other on the remote system. The other
8722 two are @code{nntp-open-rlogin}, which does an @samp{rlogin} on the
8723 remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet} to the @sc{nntp} server
8724 available there, and @code{nntp-open-telnet}, which does a @samp{telnet}
8725 to the remote system and then another @samp{telnet} to get to the
8728 @code{nntp-open-rlogin}-related variables:
8732 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
8733 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
8734 This list will be used as the parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
8736 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
8737 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
8738 User name on the remote system.
8742 @code{nntp-open-telnet}-related variables:
8745 @item nntp-telnet-command
8746 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
8747 Command used to start @code{telnet}.
8749 @item nntp-telnet-switches
8750 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
8751 List of strings to be used as the switches to the @code{telnet} command.
8753 @item nntp-telnet-user-name
8754 @vindex nntp-telnet-user-name
8755 User name for log in on the remote system.
8757 @item nntp-telnet-passwd
8758 @vindex nntp-telnet-passwd
8759 Password to use when logging in.
8761 @item nntp-telnet-parameters
8762 @vindex nntp-telnet-parameters
8763 A list of strings executed as a command after logging in
8768 @item nntp-end-of-line
8769 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
8770 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
8771 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
8772 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
8774 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
8775 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
8776 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
8780 @vindex nntp-address
8781 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
8783 @item nntp-port-number
8784 @vindex nntp-port-number
8785 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
8788 @item nntp-buggy-select
8789 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
8790 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
8792 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
8793 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
8794 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
8795 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
8798 @item nntp-xover-commands
8799 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
8802 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
8803 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
8807 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
8808 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
8809 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
8810 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
8811 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
8812 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
8813 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
8814 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
8815 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
8816 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
8817 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
8819 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
8820 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
8821 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
8823 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8824 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8825 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
8826 server closes connection.
8832 @subsection News Spool
8836 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
8837 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
8838 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
8841 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @samp{} (or
8842 anything else) as the address.
8844 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
8845 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
8846 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
8847 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
8851 @item nnspool-inews-program
8852 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
8853 Program used to post an article.
8855 @item nnspool-inews-switches
8856 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
8857 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
8859 @item nnspool-spool-directory
8860 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
8861 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
8862 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
8864 @item nnspool-nov-directory
8865 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
8866 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
8867 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
8869 @item nnspool-lib-dir
8870 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
8871 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
8873 @item nnspool-active-file
8874 @vindex nnspool-active-file
8875 The path to the active file.
8877 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
8878 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
8879 The path to the group descriptions file.
8881 @item nnspool-history-file
8882 @vindex nnspool-history-file
8883 The path to the news history file.
8885 @item nnspool-active-times-file
8886 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
8887 The path to the active date file.
8889 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
8890 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
8891 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
8894 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8895 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8897 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
8898 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
8899 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
8905 @section Getting Mail
8906 @cindex reading mail
8909 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
8913 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
8914 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
8915 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
8916 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
8917 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
8918 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
8919 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
8920 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
8921 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
8922 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
8923 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
8927 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
8928 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
8930 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
8931 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
8932 and things will happen automatically.
8934 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
8935 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
8938 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
8939 '((nnml "private")))
8942 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
8943 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
8944 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
8945 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
8946 like any other group.
8948 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
8951 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8952 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8953 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8957 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
8958 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
8959 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
8962 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
8963 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
8964 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
8967 @node Splitting Mail
8968 @subsection Splitting Mail
8969 @cindex splitting mail
8970 @cindex mail splitting
8972 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
8973 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
8974 to be split into groups.
8977 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8978 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8979 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8983 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
8984 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
8985 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
8986 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
8987 determine if it belongs in this mail group.
8989 If the first element is the special symbol @code{junk}, then messages
8990 that match the regexp will disappear into the aether. Use with
8993 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
8994 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
8995 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
8996 mail belongs in that group.
8998 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
8999 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
9000 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
9001 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
9002 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
9003 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
9005 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
9006 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
9007 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
9008 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
9009 thinks should carry this mail message.
9011 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
9012 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
9013 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
9014 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
9016 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
9017 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
9018 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
9019 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
9020 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
9022 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
9025 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
9026 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
9027 links. If that's the case for you, set
9028 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
9029 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
9031 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
9032 @kindex nnmail-split-history
9033 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
9034 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
9036 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
9037 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
9038 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
9039 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
9040 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
9041 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
9042 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
9043 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
9047 @node Mail Backend Variables
9048 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
9050 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
9054 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9055 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
9056 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
9057 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
9059 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
9060 @item nnmail-spool-file
9064 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
9065 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
9066 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
9067 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
9068 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
9069 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
9070 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
9071 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
9072 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
9073 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
9074 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
9075 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
9076 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
9077 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
9078 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
9080 @code{nnmail-spool-file} can also be a list of mailboxes.
9082 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
9083 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
9086 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
9087 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
9088 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
9089 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
9090 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
9091 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
9093 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
9094 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9095 @item nnmail-use-procmail
9096 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
9097 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
9098 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
9099 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
9102 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
9103 @item nnmail-crash-box
9104 When a mail backend reads a spool file, mail is first moved to this
9105 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
9106 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
9109 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9110 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9111 This is run in a buffer that holds all the new incoming mail, and can be
9112 used for, well, anything, really.
9114 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
9115 @item nnmail-split-hook
9116 @findex article-decode-rfc1522
9117 @findex RFC1522 decoding
9118 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
9119 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
9120 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
9121 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
9122 in the buffer will show up in any files. @code{gnus-article-decode-rfc1522}
9123 is one likely function to add to this hook.
9125 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9126 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9127 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9128 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
9129 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
9130 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
9131 starting to handle the new mail) and
9132 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
9133 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
9134 default file modes the new mail files get:
9137 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
9138 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
9140 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
9141 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
9144 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
9145 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
9146 This variable says where to move incoming mail to -- while processing
9147 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
9148 inhabits (e.g., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
9149 it will be used instead.
9151 @item nnmail-movemail-program
9152 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
9153 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
9154 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
9156 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
9157 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
9160 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
9161 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
9162 @cindex incoming mail files
9163 @cindex deleting incoming files
9164 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
9165 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{t} by
9168 @c This is @code{nil} by
9169 @c default for reasons of security.
9171 @c Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
9172 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
9173 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point. (Except certain versions
9174 of Red Gnus.)) By not deleting the Incoming* files, one can be sure not
9175 to lose mail -- if Gnus totally whacks out, one can always recover what
9178 You may delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
9180 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
9181 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
9182 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
9183 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
9184 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
9185 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
9186 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
9188 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
9189 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
9191 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
9193 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9194 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
9195 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
9196 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
9197 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
9202 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
9203 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
9204 @cindex mail splitting
9205 @cindex fancy mail splitting
9207 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
9208 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
9209 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
9210 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
9211 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
9212 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
9214 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
9217 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
9218 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
9219 ;; from real errors.
9220 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
9222 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
9223 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
9224 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
9225 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
9226 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
9227 ;; Other mailing lists...
9228 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
9229 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
9231 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
9232 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
9236 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
9237 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
9238 the five possible split syntaxes:
9243 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group name.
9246 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, the first element of
9247 which is a string, then store the message as specified by SPLIT, if
9248 header FIELD (a regexp) contains VALUE (also a regexp).
9251 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9252 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
9253 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
9254 be stored in one or more groups.
9257 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
9258 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
9261 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
9262 this message anywhere.
9265 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
9266 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
9267 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
9272 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
9273 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
9274 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
9275 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
9276 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
9278 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
9279 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
9280 are expanded as specified by the variable
9281 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
9282 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
9285 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
9286 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
9287 when all this splitting is performed.
9289 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
9290 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
9291 substitions in the group names), you can say things like:
9294 (any "debian-\(\\w*\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
9297 @node Mail and Procmail
9298 @subsection Mail and Procmail
9303 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
9304 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
9305 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
9306 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
9307 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
9309 This also means that you probably don't want to set
9310 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
9313 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
9314 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
9315 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends, except
9316 @code{nnmh}, actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
9317 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
9318 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
9320 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) by hand what
9323 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example:
9325 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
9326 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
9328 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
9329 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
9330 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
9331 to include all your mail groups.
9333 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
9334 method will be created automatically.
9336 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9337 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
9338 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
9339 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
9340 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
9341 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
9342 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
9343 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
9345 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
9346 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
9347 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
9348 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
9349 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
9351 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9352 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directly into an @code{nnmh}
9353 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
9354 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
9355 ever expiring the final article (i.e., the article with the highest
9356 article number) in a mail newsgroup. This is quite, quite important.
9358 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
9359 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i.e., the incoming
9360 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
9361 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
9362 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
9365 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
9366 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
9367 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
9368 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
9369 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
9373 @node Incorporating Old Mail
9374 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
9376 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
9377 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
9378 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
9381 Doing so can be quite easy.
9383 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
9384 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
9385 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
9386 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
9387 your @code{nnml} groups.
9393 Go to the group buffer.
9396 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
9397 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9400 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
9403 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
9404 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
9407 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
9408 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
9411 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
9412 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
9413 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
9414 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
9415 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
9417 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
9418 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
9419 using the new mail backend.
9423 @subsection Expiring Mail
9424 @cindex article expiry
9426 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
9427 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
9428 different approach to mail reading.
9430 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
9431 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
9432 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
9433 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
9434 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
9435 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
9438 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
9439 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
9440 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
9441 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
9442 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
9443 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
9444 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
9445 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
9447 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9448 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
9449 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
9450 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
9451 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
9452 column in the summary buffer.
9454 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
9455 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
9456 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
9457 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
9460 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
9462 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
9463 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
9464 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
9467 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
9468 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
9469 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
9470 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
9471 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
9473 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
9474 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
9477 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9478 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
9481 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
9482 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
9484 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
9485 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
9486 don't really mix very well.
9488 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
9489 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
9490 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
9491 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
9494 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
9495 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
9496 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
9497 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
9500 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9502 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9504 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
9506 ((string= group "mail.junk")
9508 ((string= group "important")
9514 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
9515 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
9517 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
9518 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
9519 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
9522 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
9523 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9525 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9526 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
9527 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
9528 easier for procmail users.
9530 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
9531 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
9532 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
9533 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
9534 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
9535 caution. Even more dangerous is the
9536 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
9537 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
9538 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
9539 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
9540 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
9541 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
9542 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
9545 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
9549 @subsection Washing Mail
9550 @cindex mail washing
9551 @cindex list server brain damage
9552 @cindex incoming mail treatment
9554 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
9555 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
9556 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
9557 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
9558 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
9559 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
9561 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
9562 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
9563 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
9566 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
9567 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
9568 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
9569 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
9572 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9573 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9574 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
9575 grand, sweeping gestures. Functions to be used include:
9578 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9579 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9580 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
9581 Emacs running on MS machines.
9585 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9586 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9587 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
9588 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
9591 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9592 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9593 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
9594 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
9596 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9597 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9598 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
9599 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
9600 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
9601 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
9602 also be a list of regexp.
9604 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
9605 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
9608 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
9609 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
9612 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
9613 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
9614 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
9618 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9619 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9620 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
9624 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
9625 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
9626 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
9633 @subsection Duplicates
9635 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
9636 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
9637 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
9638 @cindex duplicate mails
9639 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
9640 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
9641 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
9642 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
9643 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
9644 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
9645 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
9646 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
9647 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
9648 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
9649 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
9650 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
9651 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
9653 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
9654 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
9655 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
9656 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
9658 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
9661 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
9662 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
9666 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
9667 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
9668 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
9669 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
9670 (any mail "mail.misc")
9677 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9678 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
9683 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
9684 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
9685 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
9686 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
9687 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
9690 @node Not Reading Mail
9691 @subsection Not Reading Mail
9693 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
9694 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
9695 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
9697 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
9698 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
9700 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9701 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9702 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9703 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9704 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9705 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
9706 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
9707 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
9708 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
9709 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
9710 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
9712 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
9713 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
9717 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
9718 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
9720 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
9721 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
9722 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
9725 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
9726 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
9727 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
9728 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
9729 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
9734 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
9736 @cindex unix mail box
9738 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9739 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9740 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
9741 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
9742 which group it belongs in.
9744 Virtual server settings:
9747 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
9748 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9749 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
9751 @item nnmbox-active-file
9752 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9753 The name of the active file for the mail box.
9755 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
9756 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9757 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
9763 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
9767 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9768 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9769 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
9770 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
9771 article to say which group it belongs in.
9773 Virtual server settings:
9776 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
9777 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9778 The name of the rmail mbox file.
9780 @item nnbabyl-active-file
9781 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9782 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
9784 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9785 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9786 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
9791 @subsubsection Mail Spool
9793 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
9795 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
9796 format. It should be used with some caution.
9798 @vindex nnml-directory
9799 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
9800 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
9801 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
9802 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
9804 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
9807 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
9808 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
9809 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
9810 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
9811 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
9812 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
9813 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
9814 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
9816 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
9817 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
9818 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
9819 backend when it comes to reading mail.
9821 Virtual server settings:
9824 @item nnml-directory
9825 @vindex nnml-directory
9826 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
9828 @item nnml-active-file
9829 @vindex nnml-active-file
9830 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
9832 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
9833 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
9834 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
9837 @item nnml-get-new-mail
9838 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9839 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
9841 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
9842 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
9843 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
9845 @item nnml-nov-file-name
9846 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
9847 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
9849 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9850 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9851 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
9855 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
9856 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
9857 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
9858 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
9859 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
9860 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
9861 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
9866 @subsubsection MH Spool
9868 @cindex mh-e mail spool
9870 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
9871 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
9872 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
9873 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
9875 Virtual server settings:
9878 @item nnmh-directory
9879 @vindex nnmh-directory
9880 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
9882 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
9883 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9884 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
9887 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
9888 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
9889 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
9890 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
9891 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
9892 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
9893 to set this variable to @code{t}.
9898 @subsubsection Mail Folders
9900 @cindex mbox folders
9901 @cindex mail folders
9903 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
9904 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
9905 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
9908 Virtual server settings:
9911 @item nnfolder-directory
9912 @vindex nnfolder-directory
9913 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
9915 @item nnfolder-active-file
9916 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
9917 The name of the active file.
9919 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9920 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9921 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
9923 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
9924 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9925 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
9928 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
9929 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
9930 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
9931 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
9932 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
9933 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
9937 @section Other Sources
9939 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
9940 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
9944 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
9945 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
9946 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
9947 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
9948 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
9949 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
9953 @node Directory Groups
9954 @subsection Directory Groups
9956 @cindex directory groups
9958 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
9959 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
9962 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
9963 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
9964 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
9965 backend to read directories. Big deal.
9967 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
9968 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
9969 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
9970 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
9971 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
9973 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
9975 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
9976 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
9977 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
9978 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
9981 @node Anything Groups
9982 @subsection Anything Groups
9985 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
9986 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
9987 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
9990 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
9991 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
9992 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
9993 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
9994 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
9995 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
9996 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
9997 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
9998 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
9999 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
10002 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
10003 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
10004 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
10005 in the article buffer, just as usual.
10007 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
10008 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
10009 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
10010 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
10012 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
10013 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
10014 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
10015 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
10016 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
10017 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
10018 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
10019 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
10024 @item nneething-map-file-directory
10025 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
10026 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
10027 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
10029 @item nneething-exclude-files
10030 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
10031 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
10032 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
10034 @item nneething-map-file
10035 @vindex nneething-map-file
10036 Name of the map files.
10040 @node Document Groups
10041 @subsection Document Groups
10043 @cindex documentation group
10046 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
10047 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
10054 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
10059 The standard Unix mbox file.
10061 @cindex MMDF mail box
10063 The MMDF mail box format.
10066 Several news articles appended into a file.
10069 @cindex rnews batch files
10070 The rnews batch transport format.
10071 @cindex forwarded messages
10074 Forwarded articles.
10078 @cindex MIME digest
10079 @cindex 1153 digest
10080 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
10081 @cindex RFC 341 digest
10082 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
10084 @item standard-digest
10085 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
10088 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
10091 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
10092 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
10093 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
10096 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
10097 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
10098 group. And that's it.
10100 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
10101 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
10102 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
10103 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
10104 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
10105 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
10106 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
10107 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
10108 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
10109 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
10111 Virtual server variables:
10114 @item nndoc-article-type
10115 @vindex nndoc-article-type
10116 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
10117 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
10118 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-digest}, @code{standard-digest},
10119 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs} or @code{guess}.
10121 @item nndoc-post-type
10122 @vindex nndoc-post-type
10123 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
10124 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
10129 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
10133 @node Document Server Internals
10134 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
10136 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
10137 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
10138 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
10139 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
10141 First, here's an example document type definition:
10145 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
10146 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
10149 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
10150 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
10151 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
10152 types can be defined with very few settings:
10155 @item first-article
10156 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
10157 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
10160 @item article-begin
10161 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
10162 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
10164 @item head-begin-function
10165 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
10168 @item nndoc-head-begin
10169 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
10172 @item nndoc-head-end
10173 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
10174 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
10176 @item body-begin-function
10177 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
10181 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
10184 @item body-end-function
10185 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
10189 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
10192 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
10193 regexp will be totally ignored.
10197 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
10198 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
10199 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
10200 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
10201 something that's palatable for Gnus:
10204 @item prepare-body-function
10205 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
10206 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
10207 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
10209 @item article-transform-function
10210 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
10211 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
10212 body of the article.
10214 @item generate-head-function
10215 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
10216 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
10217 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
10218 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
10222 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
10227 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10228 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
10229 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
10230 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
10231 (head-end . "^ ?$")
10232 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
10233 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
10234 (subtype digest guess))
10237 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
10238 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
10239 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
10240 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
10241 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
10243 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
10244 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
10245 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
10246 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
10247 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
10248 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
10249 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
10250 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
10251 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
10252 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
10260 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
10261 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
10262 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
10264 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
10265 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
10266 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
10269 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
10270 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
10271 that interested in doing things properly.
10273 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
10274 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
10277 First some terminology:
10282 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
10283 get news and/or mail from.
10286 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
10287 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
10290 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
10294 @item message packets
10295 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
10296 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
10297 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10299 @item response packets
10300 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
10301 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
10302 default, where @var{X} is a number.
10312 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
10313 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
10314 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
10315 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
10318 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
10321 You put the packet in your home directory.
10324 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
10325 the native or secondary server.
10328 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
10329 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
10332 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
10336 You transfer this packet to the server.
10339 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
10342 You then repeat until you die.
10346 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
10347 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
10350 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
10351 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
10352 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
10356 @node SOUP Commands
10357 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
10359 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
10363 @kindex G s b (Group)
10364 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
10365 Pack all unread articles in the current group
10366 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
10367 process/prefix convention.
10370 @kindex G s w (Group)
10371 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
10372 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
10375 @kindex G s s (Group)
10376 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
10377 Send all replies from the replies packet
10378 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
10381 @kindex G s p (Group)
10382 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
10383 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
10386 @kindex G s r (Group)
10387 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
10388 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
10391 @kindex O s (Summary)
10392 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
10393 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
10394 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
10395 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10400 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
10405 @item gnus-soup-directory
10406 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
10407 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
10408 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
10410 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
10411 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
10412 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
10413 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
10415 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
10416 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
10417 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
10418 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
10420 @item gnus-soup-packer
10421 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
10422 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10423 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
10425 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
10426 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
10427 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10428 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10430 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
10431 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
10432 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
10434 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10435 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10436 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
10437 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
10443 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
10446 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
10447 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
10448 you can read them at leisure.
10450 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
10454 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
10455 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
10456 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
10457 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
10459 @item nnsoup-directory
10460 @vindex nnsoup-directory
10461 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
10462 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
10464 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
10465 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
10466 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
10467 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
10469 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
10470 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
10471 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
10472 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
10473 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
10475 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
10476 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
10477 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
10478 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
10480 @item nnsoup-active-file
10481 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
10482 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
10483 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
10484 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
10485 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
10487 @item nnsoup-packer
10488 @vindex nnsoup-packer
10489 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
10490 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
10492 @item nnsoup-unpacker
10493 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
10494 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
10495 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10497 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
10498 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
10499 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
10502 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
10503 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
10504 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
10511 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
10513 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
10514 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
10515 more for that to happen.
10517 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
10518 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
10519 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
10522 In specific, this is what it does:
10525 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
10526 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
10529 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
10530 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
10531 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
10535 @subsection Web Searches
10539 @cindex InReference
10540 @cindex Usenet searches
10541 @cindex searching the Usenet
10543 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
10544 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
10545 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
10546 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
10547 searches without having to use a browser.
10549 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
10550 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
10551 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
10552 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
10553 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
10555 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
10556 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
10557 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
10558 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
10559 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
10560 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
10561 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
10562 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
10563 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
10564 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
10567 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
10568 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
10569 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
10570 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
10571 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
10572 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
10574 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
10575 to use @code{nnweb}.
10577 Virtual server variables:
10582 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
10583 are @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
10586 @vindex nnweb-search
10587 The search string to feed to the search engine.
10589 @item nnweb-max-hits
10590 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
10591 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
10594 @item nnweb-type-definition
10595 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
10596 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
10597 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
10602 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
10606 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
10609 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
10612 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
10616 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
10623 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
10624 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
10625 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
10628 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
10629 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
10630 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
10632 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
10638 @item nngateway-address
10639 @vindex nngateway-address
10640 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
10642 @item nngateway-header-transformation
10643 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
10644 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
10645 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
10646 transformation should be called, and defaults to
10647 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
10648 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
10651 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
10652 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
10653 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
10656 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
10659 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
10662 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
10667 So, to use this, simply say something like:
10670 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
10674 @node Combined Groups
10675 @section Combined Groups
10677 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
10681 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
10682 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
10686 @node Virtual Groups
10687 @subsection Virtual Groups
10689 @cindex virtual groups
10691 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
10694 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
10695 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
10696 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
10698 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
10699 regexp to match component groups.
10701 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
10702 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
10703 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
10704 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
10705 the virtual group.)
10707 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
10708 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
10711 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
10714 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
10715 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
10717 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
10718 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
10719 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
10720 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
10723 "^nntp+some.server.jp:soc.motss$\\|^nntp+some.server.no:soc.motss$"
10726 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
10727 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
10728 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
10729 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
10730 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
10732 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
10733 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
10734 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
10736 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
10737 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
10738 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
10739 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
10740 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
10741 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
10742 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
10743 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
10744 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
10745 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
10746 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
10749 @node Kibozed Groups
10750 @subsection Kibozed Groups
10754 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
10755 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
10756 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
10757 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
10759 @kindex G k (Group)
10760 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
10763 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
10764 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
10765 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
10766 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
10768 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
10769 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
10770 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
10772 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
10773 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
10774 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
10775 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
10776 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
10777 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
10778 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
10779 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
10781 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
10782 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
10783 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
10784 Stranger things have happened.
10786 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
10787 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
10789 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
10790 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
10791 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
10792 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
10793 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
10794 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
10796 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
10797 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
10800 @node Gnus Unplugged
10801 @section Gnus Unplugged
10806 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
10808 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
10809 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
10810 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
10811 read news. Believe it or not.
10813 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
10814 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
10815 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
10816 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
10817 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
10819 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
10820 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
10821 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
10822 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
10823 reading news on a machine.
10825 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
10829 First, set ut Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
10830 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
10834 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
10835 @file{.gnus.el} file:
10842 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
10844 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
10847 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
10848 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
10849 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
10850 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
10851 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
10856 @subsection Agent Basics
10858 First, let's get some terminilogy out of the way.
10860 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
10861 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
10862 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
10863 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
10865 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
10866 connected to the net continously.
10868 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
10869 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
10871 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
10876 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
10877 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
10878 already fetched while in this mode.
10881 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
10882 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
10883 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged}.
10886 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
10887 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{J
10888 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
10889 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
10892 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
10893 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
10894 then you read the news offline.
10897 And then you go to step 2.
10900 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
10906 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
10907 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
10908 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
10909 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
10910 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
10911 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
10914 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}
10921 @node Agent Categories
10922 @subsection Agent Categories
10924 On of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
10925 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
10926 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
10927 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
10928 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
10929 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
10930 you're interested in the articles anyway.
10932 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
10933 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
10934 Gnus has its own buffer for creating and managing categories.
10937 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
10938 * The Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
10939 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
10943 @node Category Syntax
10944 @subsubsection Category Syntax
10946 A category consists of two things.
10950 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
10951 are eligible for downloading; and
10954 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
10955 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
10956 score} is wholly unrelated to normal scores.)
10959 A predicate consists of predicates with logical operators sprinkled in
10962 Perhaps some examples are in order.
10964 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
10965 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
10971 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
10972 short (for some value of ``short'').
10974 Here's a more complex predicate:
10983 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
10984 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
10987 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
10988 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
10989 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
10991 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
10992 you want to do, you can write your own.
10996 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
10997 lines; default 100.
11000 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
11001 lines; default 200.
11004 True iff the article has a download score less than
11005 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
11008 True iff the article has a download score greater than
11009 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
11012 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
11013 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
11014 checksum and see whether articles match.
11023 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
11024 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
11025 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
11028 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
11029 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
11030 seeing the article itself is verboten. This means that only the
11031 following headers can be scored on: @code{From}, @code{Subject},
11032 @code{Date}, @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars}, @code{Message-ID},
11033 and @code{References}.
11036 @node The Category Buffer
11037 @subsubsection The Category Buffer
11039 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
11040 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
11041 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
11043 The following commands are available in this buffer:
11047 @kindex q (Category)
11048 @findex gnus-category-exit
11049 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
11052 @kindex k (Category)
11053 @findex gnus-category-kill
11054 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
11057 @kindex c (Category)
11058 @findex gnus-category-copy
11059 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
11062 @kindex a (Category)
11063 @findex gnus-category-add
11064 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
11067 @kindex p (Category)
11068 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
11069 Edit the predicate of the current category
11070 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
11073 @kindex g (Category)
11074 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
11075 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
11076 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
11079 @kindex s (Category)
11080 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
11081 Edit the download score rule of the current category
11082 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
11085 @kindex l (Category)
11086 @findex gnus-category-list
11087 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
11091 @node Category Variables
11092 @subsubsection Category Variables
11095 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
11096 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
11097 Hook run in category buffers.
11099 @item gnus-category-line-format
11100 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
11101 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
11102 Variables}). Legal elements are:
11106 The name of the category.
11109 The number of groups in the category.
11112 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
11113 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
11114 Format of the category mode line.
11116 @item gnus-agent-short-article
11117 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
11118 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
11120 @item gnus-agent-long-article
11121 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
11122 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
11124 @item gnus-agent-low-score
11125 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
11126 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
11129 @item gnus-agent-high-score
11130 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
11131 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
11137 @node Agent Commands
11138 @subsection Agent Commands
11140 All the Gnus Agent commands is on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
11141 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
11142 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
11146 * Group Agent Commands::
11147 * Summary Agent Commands::
11148 * Server Agent Commands::
11152 @node Group Agent Commands
11153 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
11157 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
11158 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-group
11159 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
11160 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-group}).
11163 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
11164 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
11165 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
11168 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
11169 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
11170 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
11171 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
11174 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
11175 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
11176 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
11177 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}). @xref{Drafts}
11180 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
11181 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
11182 Add the current group to an Agent category
11183 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}).
11188 @node Summary Agent Commands
11189 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
11193 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
11194 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
11195 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
11198 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
11199 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
11200 Remove the downloading mark from the article
11201 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
11204 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
11205 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
11206 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
11209 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
11210 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
11211 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
11216 @node Server Agent Commands
11217 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
11221 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
11222 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
11223 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
11224 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
11227 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
11228 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
11229 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
11230 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
11235 @node Outgoing Messages
11236 @subsection Outgoing Messages
11238 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
11239 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
11240 after posting, and edit them at will.
11242 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
11243 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
11244 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
11245 messages in the draft group.
11249 @node Agent Variables
11250 @subsection Agent Variables
11253 @item gnus-agent-directory
11254 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
11255 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
11256 @file{~/News/agent/}.
11258 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11259 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
11260 Hook run when connecting to the network.
11262 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11263 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
11264 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
11273 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
11274 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
11275 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
11278 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
11279 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
11280 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
11281 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
11282 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
11284 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
11285 before generating the summary buffer.
11287 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
11288 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
11289 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
11291 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
11292 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
11293 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
11294 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
11297 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
11298 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
11299 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
11300 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
11301 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
11302 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
11303 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
11304 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
11305 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
11306 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
11307 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
11308 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
11309 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
11310 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
11311 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
11312 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
11316 @node Summary Score Commands
11317 @section Summary Score Commands
11318 @cindex score commands
11320 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
11321 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
11322 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
11323 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
11324 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
11326 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
11327 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
11328 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
11329 score file the current one.
11331 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
11336 @kindex V s (Summary)
11337 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
11338 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
11341 @kindex V S (Summary)
11342 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
11343 Display the score of the current article
11344 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
11347 @kindex V t (Summary)
11348 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
11349 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
11350 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
11353 @kindex V R (Summary)
11354 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
11355 Run the current summary through the scoring process
11356 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
11357 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
11358 effect you're having.
11361 @kindex V a (Summary)
11362 @findex gnus-summary-score-entry
11363 Add a new score entry, and allow specifying all elements
11364 (@code{gnus-summary-score-entry}).
11367 @kindex V c (Summary)
11368 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
11369 Make a different score file the current
11370 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
11373 @kindex V e (Summary)
11374 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
11375 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
11376 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
11380 @kindex V f (Summary)
11381 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
11382 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
11383 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
11386 @kindex V F (Summary)
11387 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
11388 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
11389 after editing score files.
11392 @kindex V C (Summary)
11393 @findex gnus-score-customize
11394 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
11395 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
11399 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
11404 @kindex V m (Summary)
11405 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
11406 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
11407 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
11410 @kindex V x (Summary)
11411 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
11412 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
11413 expunge all articles below this score
11414 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
11417 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
11418 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
11423 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
11424 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
11426 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
11427 keys are available:
11431 Score on the author name.
11434 Score on the subject line.
11437 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
11440 Score on thread---the References line.
11446 Score on the number of lines.
11449 Score on the Message-ID.
11452 Score on followups.
11462 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
11463 what headers you are scoring on.
11475 Substring matching.
11478 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
11507 Greater than number.
11512 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
11513 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
11514 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
11518 Temporary score entry.
11521 Permanent score entry.
11524 Immediately scoring.
11529 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
11530 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
11531 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
11532 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
11534 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
11535 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
11536 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
11537 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
11538 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
11540 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
11541 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
11542 pretend they are keymaps or not.
11545 @node Group Score Commands
11546 @section Group Score Commands
11547 @cindex group score commands
11549 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
11554 @kindex W f (Group)
11555 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
11556 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
11557 all the time. This command will flush the cache
11558 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
11563 @node Score Variables
11564 @section Score Variables
11565 @cindex score variables
11569 @item gnus-use-scoring
11570 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
11571 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
11572 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
11574 @item gnus-kill-killed
11575 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
11576 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
11577 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
11578 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
11579 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
11580 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
11581 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
11583 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
11584 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
11585 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
11586 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
11587 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
11589 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
11590 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
11591 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
11592 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
11594 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
11595 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
11596 @cindex score cache
11597 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
11598 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
11599 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
11600 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
11601 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
11602 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
11605 @item gnus-save-score
11606 @vindex gnus-save-score
11607 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
11608 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
11609 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
11611 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
11612 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
11613 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
11614 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
11615 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
11616 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
11617 manually entered data.
11619 @item gnus-summary-default-score
11620 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
11621 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
11623 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
11624 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
11625 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
11626 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
11627 articles will be hidden.
11629 @item gnus-score-over-mark
11630 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
11631 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
11632 default. Default is @samp{+}.
11634 @item gnus-score-below-mark
11635 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
11636 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
11637 default. Default is @samp{-}.
11639 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
11640 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
11641 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
11642 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
11644 Predefined functions available are:
11647 @item gnus-score-find-single
11648 @findex gnus-score-find-single
11649 Only apply the group's own score file.
11651 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
11652 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
11653 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
11654 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
11655 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
11656 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
11657 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
11658 then a regexp match is done.
11660 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
11661 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
11663 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
11664 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
11665 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
11666 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
11668 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
11669 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
11670 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
11671 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
11672 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
11675 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
11676 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
11677 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
11678 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
11679 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
11680 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
11683 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
11684 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
11685 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
11686 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
11687 are expired. It's 7 by default.
11689 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
11690 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
11691 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
11692 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
11693 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
11694 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
11695 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
11698 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
11699 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
11700 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
11705 @node Score File Format
11706 @section Score File Format
11707 @cindex score file format
11709 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
11710 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
11711 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
11713 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
11717 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
11719 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
11721 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
11723 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
11728 (mark-and-expunge -10)
11732 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
11733 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
11734 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
11735 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
11739 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
11740 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
11742 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
11743 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
11744 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
11746 Six keys are supported by this alist:
11751 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
11752 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
11753 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
11754 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
11755 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
11756 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
11757 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
11758 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
11759 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
11760 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
11761 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
11762 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
11763 to articles that matches these score entries.
11765 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
11766 score entry has one to four elements.
11770 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
11771 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
11775 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
11776 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
11777 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
11778 is successful. If this element is not present, the
11779 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
11780 instead. This is 1000 by default.
11783 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
11784 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
11785 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
11786 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
11787 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
11790 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
11791 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
11792 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
11793 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
11796 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
11797 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
11798 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
11799 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
11800 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
11801 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
11802 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
11803 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
11804 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
11805 instead, if you feel like.
11808 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
11809 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}. When matching on @code{Lines}, be
11810 careful because some backends (like @code{nndir}) do not generate
11811 @code{Lines} header, so every article ends up being marked as having 0
11812 lines. This can lead to strange results if you happen to lower score of
11813 the articles with few lines.
11816 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
11817 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
11818 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
11819 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
11820 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
11821 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
11822 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
11826 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
11827 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
11828 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
11829 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
11830 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
11831 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
11832 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
11833 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
11836 @item Head, Body, All
11837 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
11841 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
11842 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
11843 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
11844 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
11845 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
11846 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
11847 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
11851 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
11852 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
11853 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
11854 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
11855 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
11856 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
11857 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
11858 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
11859 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
11860 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
11864 @cindex Score File Atoms
11866 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11867 lower than this number will be marked as read.
11870 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11871 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
11873 @item mark-and-expunge
11874 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11875 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
11878 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
11879 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
11880 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
11881 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
11882 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
11885 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
11886 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
11889 @item exclude-files
11890 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
11891 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
11895 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
11896 ignored when handling global score files.
11899 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
11900 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}).
11903 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
11904 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
11905 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
11906 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
11908 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
11912 (mark-and-expunge -100)
11915 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
11916 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
11917 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
11918 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
11919 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
11921 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
11922 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
11923 ordinary scoring rules.
11926 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
11927 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
11928 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
11929 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
11930 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
11931 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
11932 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
11933 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
11934 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
11935 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
11936 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
11940 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
11941 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
11942 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
11943 file for a number of groups.
11946 @cindex local variables
11947 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
11948 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
11949 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
11950 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
11951 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
11955 @node Score File Editing
11956 @section Score File Editing
11958 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
11959 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
11960 with a mode for that.
11962 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
11963 additional commands:
11968 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
11969 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
11970 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
11971 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
11974 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
11975 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
11976 Insert the current date in numerical format
11977 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
11978 you were wondering.
11981 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
11982 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
11983 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
11984 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
11985 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
11990 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
11992 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
11993 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
11995 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
11996 e} to begin editing score files.
11999 @node Adaptive Scoring
12000 @section Adaptive Scoring
12001 @cindex adaptive scoring
12003 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
12004 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
12005 stupidity, to be precise.
12007 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
12008 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
12009 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
12010 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
12011 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
12012 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
12013 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
12014 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
12015 variable to @code{(word line)}.
12017 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12018 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
12019 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
12020 might look something like this:
12023 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
12024 '((gnus-unread-mark)
12025 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
12026 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
12027 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
12028 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
12029 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
12030 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
12031 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
12032 (gnus-ancient-mark)
12033 (gnus-low-score-mark)
12034 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
12037 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
12038 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
12039 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
12040 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
12041 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
12042 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
12045 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
12046 will be applied to each article.
12048 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
12049 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
12050 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
12051 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
12053 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
12054 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
12055 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
12056 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
12058 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
12059 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
12060 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
12061 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
12063 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
12064 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
12065 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
12066 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
12067 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
12068 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
12070 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
12071 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
12072 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
12073 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
12074 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
12075 aspirins afterwards.)
12077 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
12078 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
12079 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
12081 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
12082 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
12083 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
12085 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
12086 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
12087 let you use different rules in different groups.
12089 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
12090 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
12091 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
12094 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
12095 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
12096 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
12097 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
12098 the length of the match is less than
12099 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
12100 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
12103 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12104 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
12105 headers. If you adapt on words, the
12106 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
12107 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
12110 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
12111 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
12112 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
12113 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
12114 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
12117 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
12118 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
12119 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
12120 score with 30 points.
12122 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
12123 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
12124 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
12125 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
12126 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
12128 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
12129 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
12130 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
12131 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
12133 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
12134 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
12135 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
12137 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
12138 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
12139 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
12140 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
12143 @node Home Score File
12144 @section Home Score File
12146 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
12147 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
12148 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
12149 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
12151 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
12152 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
12153 could perhaps use the same home score file.
12155 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
12156 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
12161 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
12165 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
12166 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
12170 A list. The elements in this list can be:
12174 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
12175 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
12178 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
12179 the home score file.
12182 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
12185 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
12190 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
12193 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12194 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
12197 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
12198 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
12201 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12202 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
12205 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
12207 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
12208 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
12209 their own home score files:
12212 (setq gnus-home-score-file
12213 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
12214 '("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
12215 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
12216 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE"))
12219 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
12220 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
12221 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
12222 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
12223 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
12225 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
12226 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
12227 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
12228 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
12229 precedence over this variable.
12232 @node Followups To Yourself
12233 @section Followups To Yourself
12235 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
12236 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
12237 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
12238 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
12239 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
12240 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
12244 @item gnus-score-followup-article
12245 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
12246 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
12249 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
12250 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
12251 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
12255 @vindex message-sent-hook
12256 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
12257 @code{message-sent-hook}.
12259 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
12260 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
12264 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12265 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
12268 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
12269 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
12274 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore.no>"
12278 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
12279 is system-dependent.
12283 @section Scoring Tips
12284 @cindex scoring tips
12290 @cindex scoring crossposts
12291 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
12292 the @code{Xref} header.
12294 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
12297 @item Multiple crossposts
12298 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
12299 more than, say, 3 groups:
12301 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
12304 @item Matching on the body
12305 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
12306 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
12307 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
12308 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
12309 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
12310 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
12311 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
12314 @item Marking as read
12315 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
12316 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
12317 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
12321 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
12323 @item Negated character classes
12324 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
12325 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
12326 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
12330 @node Reverse Scoring
12331 @section Reverse Scoring
12332 @cindex reverse scoring
12334 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
12335 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
12336 like this in your score file:
12340 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
12345 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
12346 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
12349 @node Global Score Files
12350 @section Global Score Files
12351 @cindex global score files
12353 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
12354 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
12355 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
12357 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
12358 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
12359 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
12361 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
12362 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
12363 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
12364 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
12365 files are applicable to which group.
12367 Say you want to use the score file
12368 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
12369 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
12372 (setq gnus-global-score-files
12373 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
12374 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
12377 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
12378 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
12379 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
12380 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
12381 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
12383 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
12384 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
12386 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
12387 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
12388 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
12389 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
12390 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
12391 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
12393 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
12399 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
12401 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
12403 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
12405 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
12406 lowered out of existence.
12408 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
12409 articles completely.
12412 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
12413 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
12414 old articles for a long time.
12417 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
12418 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
12419 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
12420 holding our breath yet?
12424 @section Kill Files
12427 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
12428 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
12429 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
12431 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
12432 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
12433 files into score files.
12435 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
12436 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
12437 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
12438 that isn't a very good idea.
12440 Normal kill files look like this:
12443 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12444 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
12448 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
12449 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
12451 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
12452 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
12455 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
12460 @kindex M-k (Summary)
12461 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
12462 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
12465 @kindex M-K (Summary)
12466 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
12467 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
12470 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
12475 @kindex M-k (Group)
12476 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
12477 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
12480 @kindex M-K (Group)
12481 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
12482 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
12485 Kill file variables:
12488 @item gnus-kill-file-name
12489 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
12490 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
12491 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
12492 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
12493 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
12494 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
12496 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
12497 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
12498 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
12499 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
12502 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
12503 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
12504 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
12505 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
12506 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
12507 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
12508 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
12509 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
12510 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
12512 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
12513 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
12514 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
12519 @node Converting Kill Files
12520 @section Converting Kill Files
12522 @cindex converting kill files
12524 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
12525 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
12526 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
12529 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
12530 You can fetch it from
12531 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
12533 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
12534 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
12535 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
12543 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
12544 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
12545 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
12547 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
12548 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
12549 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
12550 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
12551 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
12552 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
12553 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
12554 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
12558 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
12559 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
12560 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
12561 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
12565 @node Using GroupLens
12566 @subsection Using GroupLens
12568 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
12570 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
12571 better bit in town at the moment.
12573 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
12577 @item gnus-use-grouplens
12578 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
12579 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
12580 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
12582 @item grouplens-pseudonym
12583 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
12584 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
12585 with the Better Bit Bureau.
12587 @item grouplens-newsgroups
12588 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
12589 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
12593 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
12594 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
12595 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
12596 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
12597 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
12598 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
12601 @node Rating Articles
12602 @subsection Rating Articles
12604 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
12605 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
12606 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
12607 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
12610 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
12615 @kindex r (GroupLens)
12616 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
12617 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
12620 @kindex k (GroupLens)
12621 @findex grouplens-score-thread
12622 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
12623 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
12624 threads in rec.humor.
12628 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
12629 the score of the article you're reading.
12634 @kindex n (GroupLens)
12635 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
12636 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
12639 @kindex , (GroupLens)
12640 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
12641 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
12645 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
12646 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
12649 @node Displaying Predictions
12650 @subsection Displaying Predictions
12652 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
12653 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
12654 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
12655 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
12656 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
12658 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
12659 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
12660 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
12661 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
12662 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
12663 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
12664 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
12665 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
12666 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
12667 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
12668 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
12669 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
12670 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
12672 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
12673 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
12674 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
12675 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
12677 The following are valid values for that variable.
12680 @item prediction-spot
12681 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
12684 @item confidence-interval
12685 A numeric confidence interval.
12687 @item prediction-bar
12688 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
12690 @item confidence-bar
12691 Numerical confidence.
12693 @item confidence-spot
12694 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
12696 @item prediction-num
12697 Plain-old numeric value.
12699 @item confidence-plus-minus
12700 Prediction +/- confidence.
12705 @node GroupLens Variables
12706 @subsection GroupLens Variables
12710 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
12711 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
12712 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
12713 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%)
12716 @item grouplens-bbb-host
12717 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
12720 @item grouplens-bbb-port
12721 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
12723 @item grouplens-score-offset
12724 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
12725 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
12728 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
12729 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
12730 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
12735 @node Advanced Scoring
12736 @section Advanced Scoring
12738 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
12739 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
12740 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
12741 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
12742 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
12744 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
12748 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
12749 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
12750 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
12754 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
12755 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
12757 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
12758 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
12759 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
12760 non-@code{nil} value.
12762 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
12763 operator, and various match operators.
12770 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
12771 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
12772 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
12777 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
12778 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
12779 then this operator will return @code{false}.
12784 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
12785 logical negation of the value of its argument.
12789 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
12790 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
12791 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
12792 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
12793 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
12794 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
12795 the ancestry you want to go.
12797 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
12798 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
12799 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
12800 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
12801 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
12804 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
12805 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
12807 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
12808 when he's talking about Gnus:
12812 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12813 ("subject" "Gnus"))
12819 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
12823 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12830 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
12831 really don't want to read what he's written:
12835 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12836 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
12840 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
12841 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
12842 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
12849 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
12850 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
12851 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
12852 ("body" "white.*socks"))
12856 The possibilities are endless.
12859 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
12860 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
12862 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
12863 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
12864 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
12865 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
12866 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
12867 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
12868 @samp{subject}) first.
12870 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
12871 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
12882 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
12883 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
12889 ("subject" "Gnus")))
12896 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
12897 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
12902 @section Score Decays
12903 @cindex score decays
12906 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
12907 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
12908 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
12909 use them in any sensible way.
12911 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
12912 @findex gnus-decay-score
12913 @vindex gnus-score-decay-function
12914 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
12915 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
12916 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
12917 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
12918 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-score-decay-function}
12919 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
12920 definition of that function:
12923 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
12924 "Decay SCORE according to `gnus-score-decay-constant' and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
12927 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
12929 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
12931 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
12934 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
12935 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
12936 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
12937 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
12941 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
12944 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
12947 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
12951 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
12952 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
12953 the new score, which should be an integer.
12955 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
12956 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
12963 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
12964 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
12965 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
12966 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
12967 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
12968 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
12969 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
12970 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
12971 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
12972 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
12973 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
12974 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
12975 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
12976 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
12977 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolited commercial email.
12978 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
12982 @node Process/Prefix
12983 @section Process/Prefix
12984 @cindex process/prefix convention
12986 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
12987 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
12989 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
12990 command to be performed on.
12994 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
12995 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
12996 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
12997 with the current one.
12999 @vindex transient-mark-mode
13000 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
13001 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
13003 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
13004 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
13007 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
13008 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
13010 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
13013 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
13014 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
13015 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
13016 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13018 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
13019 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
13020 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
13021 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
13022 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
13023 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
13024 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
13025 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
13029 @section Interactive
13030 @cindex interaction
13034 @item gnus-novice-user
13035 @vindex gnus-novice-user
13036 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
13037 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
13038 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
13039 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
13042 @item gnus-expert-user
13043 @vindex gnus-expert-user
13044 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will never ever be asked any
13045 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
13046 matter how strange.
13048 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
13049 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
13050 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
13051 is @code{t} by default.
13053 @item gnus-interactive-exit
13054 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
13055 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
13060 @node Formatting Variables
13061 @section Formatting Variables
13062 @cindex formatting variables
13064 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
13065 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
13066 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
13067 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
13070 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
13071 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
13072 lots of percentages everywhere.
13075 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
13076 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
13077 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
13078 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
13081 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
13082 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
13083 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
13084 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
13085 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
13086 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
13087 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
13088 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
13090 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
13091 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
13093 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
13094 @findex gnus-update-format
13095 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
13096 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
13097 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
13098 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
13102 @node Formatting Basics
13103 @subsection Formatting Basics
13105 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
13106 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
13107 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
13109 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
13110 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
13111 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
13112 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
13113 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
13116 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
13117 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
13118 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
13119 less than 4 characters wide.
13122 @node Advanced Formatting
13123 @subsection Advanced Formatting
13125 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
13126 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
13127 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
13128 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
13130 These are the valid modifiers:
13135 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
13139 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
13144 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
13147 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
13152 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
13155 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
13158 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
13161 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
13165 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
13166 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
13167 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
13168 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
13169 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
13170 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
13171 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
13173 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
13174 last operation, padding.
13176 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
13177 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
13178 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
13179 @xref{Compilation}.
13182 @node User-Defined Specs
13183 @subsection User-Defined Specs
13185 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
13186 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
13187 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
13188 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
13189 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
13190 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
13191 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
13192 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
13193 should protect against that.
13195 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
13196 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
13197 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
13198 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
13202 @node Formatting Fonts
13203 @subsection Formatting Fonts
13205 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
13206 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
13207 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
13208 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
13211 Text inside the @samp{%[} and @samp{%]} specifiers will have their
13212 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
13213 default. If you say @samp{%1[}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
13214 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
13215 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
13216 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
13218 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
13221 ;; Create three face types.
13222 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
13223 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
13225 ;; We want the article count to be in
13226 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
13227 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
13228 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
13230 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
13231 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
13233 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
13234 (setq gnus-group-line-format
13235 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
13238 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
13239 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
13241 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
13242 mode-line variables.
13245 @node Windows Configuration
13246 @section Windows Configuration
13247 @cindex windows configuration
13249 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
13251 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
13252 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
13253 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
13254 @code{t} by default.
13256 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
13257 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
13258 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
13261 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
13262 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
13263 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13267 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
13268 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
13269 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
13270 possible names is listed below.
13272 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
13273 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
13276 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
13280 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
13281 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
13282 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
13283 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
13284 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
13285 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
13286 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
13287 size spec per split.
13289 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
13292 Here's a more complicated example:
13295 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
13296 (summary 0.25 point)
13297 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
13301 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
13302 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
13303 occupy, not a percentage.
13305 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
13306 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
13307 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
13308 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
13309 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
13312 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
13315 (article (horizontal 1.0
13320 (summary 0.25 point)
13325 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
13326 @code{horizontal} thingie?
13328 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
13329 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
13330 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
13331 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
13332 the screen is to be given to this strip.
13334 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
13335 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
13336 lines from the splits.
13338 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
13342 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
13343 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
13344 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
13345 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
13346 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] ")"
13347 size = number | frame-params
13348 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
13351 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
13352 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
13353 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
13354 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
13356 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
13357 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
13358 @cindex window height
13359 @cindex window width
13360 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
13361 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
13362 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
13363 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
13364 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
13365 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
13367 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
13368 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
13369 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
13370 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
13372 @findex gnus-configure-frame
13373 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
13374 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
13375 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
13376 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
13377 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
13378 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
13379 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
13380 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
13381 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
13382 configuration list.
13385 (gnus-configure-frame
13389 (article 0.3 point))
13397 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
13398 @code{frame} split:
13401 (gnus-configure-frame
13404 (summary 0.25 point)
13406 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
13407 (user-position . t)
13408 (left . -1) (top . 1))
13413 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
13414 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
13415 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
13416 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
13417 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
13418 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
13419 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
13420 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
13423 Here's a list of all possible keys for
13424 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
13426 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
13427 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
13428 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
13429 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
13430 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft}, @code{pipe},
13431 @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}, and @code{score-trace}.
13433 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
13434 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
13435 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
13439 (message (horizontal 1.0
13440 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
13442 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
13447 @findex gnus-add-configuration
13448 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
13449 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
13450 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
13451 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
13454 (gnus-add-configuration
13455 '(article (vertical 1.0
13457 (summary .25 point)
13461 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
13462 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
13463 Gnus has been loaded.
13465 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
13466 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
13467 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
13468 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
13469 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
13473 @section Compilation
13474 @cindex compilation
13475 @cindex byte-compilation
13477 @findex gnus-compile
13479 Remember all those line format specification variables?
13480 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
13481 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
13482 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
13483 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
13484 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
13487 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
13488 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
13489 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
13490 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
13491 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
13492 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
13493 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
13497 @section Mode Lines
13500 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
13501 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
13502 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
13503 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
13504 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
13505 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
13506 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
13509 @cindex display-time
13511 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
13512 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
13513 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
13514 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
13515 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
13516 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
13517 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
13518 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
13521 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
13523 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
13524 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
13526 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
13527 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
13528 (length display-time-string)))))
13531 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
13532 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
13533 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
13534 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
13535 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
13538 @node Highlighting and Menus
13539 @section Highlighting and Menus
13541 @cindex highlighting
13544 @vindex gnus-visual
13545 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
13546 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
13547 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
13550 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
13551 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
13554 @item group-highlight
13555 Do highlights in the group buffer.
13556 @item summary-highlight
13557 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
13558 @item article-highlight
13559 Do highlights in the article buffer.
13561 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
13563 Create menus in the group buffer.
13565 Create menus in the summary buffers.
13567 Create menus in the article buffer.
13569 Create menus in the browse buffer.
13571 Create menus in the server buffer.
13573 Create menus in the score buffers.
13575 Create menus in all buffers.
13578 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
13579 buffers, you could say something like:
13582 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
13585 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
13588 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
13591 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
13592 in all Gnus buffers.
13594 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
13597 @item gnus-mouse-face
13598 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
13599 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
13600 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
13604 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
13608 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
13609 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
13610 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
13612 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
13613 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
13614 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
13616 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
13617 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
13618 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
13620 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
13621 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
13622 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
13624 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
13625 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
13626 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
13628 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
13629 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
13630 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
13641 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
13642 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
13643 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
13644 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
13645 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
13649 @vindex gnus-carpal
13650 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
13651 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
13652 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
13657 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
13658 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
13659 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
13661 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
13662 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
13663 Face used on buttons.
13665 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
13666 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
13667 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
13669 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
13670 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
13671 Buttons in the group buffer.
13673 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
13674 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
13675 Buttons in the summary buffer.
13677 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
13678 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
13679 Buttons in the server buffer.
13681 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
13682 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
13683 Buttons in the browse buffer.
13686 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
13687 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
13688 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
13696 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
13697 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
13698 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
13699 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
13700 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
13702 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
13703 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
13704 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
13706 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
13707 been idle for thirty minutes:
13710 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
13713 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
13717 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
13720 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
13721 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
13722 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
13724 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
13725 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
13726 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
13727 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
13729 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
13730 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
13731 @var{idle} minutes.
13733 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
13734 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
13737 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
13738 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
13739 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
13741 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
13742 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
13743 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
13744 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
13746 @vindex gnus-use-demon
13747 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
13748 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
13750 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
13751 your @file{.gnus} file:
13753 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
13755 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
13758 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
13759 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
13760 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
13761 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
13762 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
13763 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
13764 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
13765 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
13766 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
13767 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
13769 @findex gnus-demon-init
13770 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
13771 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
13772 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
13773 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
13774 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
13776 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you overdo it. Adding
13777 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
13778 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
13787 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
13788 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
13790 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
13791 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
13792 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
13793 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
13796 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
13797 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
13798 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
13799 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
13801 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
13802 this will make spam disappear.
13804 There are some variables to customize, of course:
13807 @item gnus-use-nocem
13808 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
13809 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
13812 @item gnus-nocem-groups
13813 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
13814 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
13815 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
13816 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
13818 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
13819 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
13820 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
13821 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
13822 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;" "jem@@xpat.com;" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
13823 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
13825 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
13828 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
13829 @cindex Chris Lewis
13830 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
13831 usenet abuse than anybody else.
13834 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
13835 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
13836 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
13838 @item jem@@xpat.com;
13840 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
13843 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
13844 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
13845 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
13848 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
13849 ones you want to listen to.
13851 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
13852 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
13854 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
13855 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
13856 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
13857 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
13859 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
13860 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
13863 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
13865 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
13873 This might be dangerous, though.
13875 @item gnus-nocem-directory
13876 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
13877 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
13878 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
13880 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
13881 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
13882 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
13883 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
13884 might then see old spam.
13888 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
13889 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
13890 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
13891 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
13898 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
13899 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
13900 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
13902 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
13903 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
13904 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
13905 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
13906 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
13907 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
13908 @code{undo} function.
13910 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
13911 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
13912 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
13913 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
13914 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
13915 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
13916 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
13917 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
13918 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
13919 never be totally undoable.
13921 @findex gnus-undo-mode
13922 @vindex gnus-use-undo
13924 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
13925 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
13926 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
13927 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
13932 @section Moderation
13935 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
13936 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
13937 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
13940 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
13944 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
13947 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
13949 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
13954 You split your incoming mail by matching on
13955 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
13956 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
13959 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
13960 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
13963 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
13964 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
13968 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
13971 (setq gnus-moderated-list
13972 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
13976 @node XEmacs Enhancements
13977 @section XEmacs Enhancements
13980 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
13984 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
13985 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
13986 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
13987 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
13996 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-att.ps}
13997 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-berkeley.ps}
13998 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-caltech.ps}
13999 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-canada.ps}
14000 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-cr.ps}
14001 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-cygnus.ps}
14002 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-gov.ps}
14003 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-mit.ps}
14004 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-nasa.ps}
14005 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-qmw.ps}
14006 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-rms.ps}
14007 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-ruu.ps}
14011 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
14012 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
14013 over your shoulder as you read news.
14016 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
14017 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
14018 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
14019 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
14020 * Picon Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
14025 @subsubsection Picon Basics
14027 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
14030 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
14031 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
14032 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
14033 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
14034 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
14035 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
14036 @code{GIF} formats.
14039 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases, point
14040 your Web browser at
14041 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
14043 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14044 Gnus expects picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
14045 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
14048 @node Picon Requirements
14049 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
14051 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
14052 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
14055 Additionally, you must have @code{xpm} support compiled into XEmacs.
14057 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14058 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you must have
14059 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
14060 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
14064 @subsubsection Easy Picons
14066 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
14067 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
14070 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
14071 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14072 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-prepare-hook 'gnus-group-display-picons t)
14073 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
14078 @subsubsection Hard Picons
14080 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
14081 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
14082 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
14083 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
14084 feature, you need to first decide where to display them.
14088 @item gnus-picons-display-where
14089 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14090 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
14091 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
14092 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
14093 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
14094 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
14095 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
14101 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-seuu.ps}
14102 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-stanford.ps}
14103 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-sun.ps}
14104 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-ubc.ps}
14105 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-ufl.ps}
14106 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-uio.ps}
14107 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-unit.ps}
14108 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-upenn.ps}
14109 \gnuspicon{tmp/picons-wesleyan.ps}
14113 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
14114 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
14116 Now that you've made that decision, you need to add the following
14117 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get
14118 displayed at the right time.
14120 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
14121 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
14123 @item gnus-article-display-picons
14124 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14125 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
14126 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to the
14127 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14129 @item gnus-group-display-picons
14130 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14131 Displays picons representing the current group. This function should
14132 be added to the @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook} or to the
14133 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} if @code{gnus-picons-display-where}
14134 is set to @code{article}.
14136 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
14137 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
14138 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
14139 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
14143 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
14144 for the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
14147 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
14151 @node Picon Configuration
14152 @subsubsection Picon Configuration
14154 The following variables offer further control over how things are
14155 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
14156 don't need to worry about.
14159 @item gnus-picons-database
14160 @vindex gnus-picons-database
14161 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
14162 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
14163 subdirectories. Defaults to @file{/usr/local/faces}.
14165 @item gnus-picons-news-directory
14166 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directory
14167 Sub-directory of the faces database containing the icons for
14170 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
14171 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
14172 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
14173 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
14175 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
14176 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
14177 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
14178 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
14179 want to add @samp{unknown} to this list.
14181 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14182 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
14183 The command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
14184 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
14185 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
14186 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
14188 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14189 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
14190 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
14191 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
14193 @item gnus-picons-buffer
14194 @vindex gnus-picons-buffer
14195 The name of the buffer that @code{picons} points to. Defaults to
14196 @samp{*Icon Buffer*}.
14201 @subsection Smileys
14204 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
14205 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
14207 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
14208 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14211 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-smiley-display t)
14214 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
14215 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
14216 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
14217 text and maps that to file names.
14219 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
14220 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
14221 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
14222 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
14223 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
14224 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
14226 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
14227 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
14229 Here's the default value of @code{smiley-smiley-regexp-alist}:
14232 (setq smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
14233 '(("\\(:-+[<«]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceAngry.xpm")
14234 ("\\(:-+\\]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceGoofy.xpm")
14235 ("\\(:-+D\\)\\W" 1 "FaceGrinning.xpm")
14236 ("\\(:-+[@}»]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceHappy.xpm")
14237 ("\\(:-*)+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceHappy.xpm")
14238 ("\\(:-+[/\\\"]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceIronic.xpm")
14239 ("\\([8|]-+[|Oo%]\\)\\W" 1 "FaceKOed.xpm")
14240 ("\\([:|]-+#+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceNyah.xpm")
14241 ("\\(:-+[(@{]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceSad.xpm")
14242 ("\\(:-+[Oo\*]\\)\\W" 1 "FaceStartled.xpm")
14243 ("\\(:-+|\\)\\W" 1 "FaceStraight.xpm")
14244 ("\\(:-+p\\)\\W" 1 "FaceTalking.xpm")
14245 ("\\(:-+d\\)\\W" 1 "FaceTasty.xpm")
14246 ("\\(;-+[>)@}»]+\\)\\W" 1 "FaceWinking.xpm")
14247 ("\\(:-+[Vvµ]\\)\\W" 1 "FaceWry.xpm")
14248 ("\\(][:8B]-[)>]\\)\\W" 1 "FaceDevilish.xpm")
14249 ("\\([:|]-+P\\)\\W" 1 "FaceYukky.xpm")))
14252 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
14253 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
14254 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
14256 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
14257 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
14261 @item smiley-data-directory
14262 @vindex smiley-data-directory
14263 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
14265 @item smiley-flesh-color
14266 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
14267 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
14269 @item smiley-features-color
14270 @vindex smiley-features-color
14271 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
14273 @item smiley-tongue-color
14274 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
14275 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
14277 @item smiley-circle-color
14278 @vindex smiley-circle-color
14279 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
14281 @item smiley-mouse-face
14282 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
14283 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
14289 @subsection Toolbar
14293 @item gnus-use-toolbar
14294 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
14295 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
14296 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
14297 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
14299 @item gnus-group-toolbar
14300 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
14301 The toolbar in the group buffer.
14303 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
14304 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
14305 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
14307 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
14308 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
14309 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
14315 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
14318 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
14319 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
14320 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
14321 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
14322 unusual directory structure.
14324 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
14325 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
14326 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
14327 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
14329 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
14330 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
14331 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
14332 Legal values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
14333 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
14334 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
14336 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
14337 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
14338 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
14346 @node Fuzzy Matching
14347 @section Fuzzy Matching
14348 @cindex fuzzy matching
14350 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
14351 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
14353 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
14354 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
14355 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
14357 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
14358 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
14359 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
14360 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
14361 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
14364 @node Thwarting Email Spam
14365 @section Thwarting Email Spam
14369 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
14371 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
14372 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
14373 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
14374 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
14375 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
14376 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
14377 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
14378 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
14381 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
14382 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
14383 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
14384 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
14385 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrouos hair on your toes!'')
14386 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
14390 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
14391 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
14393 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
14394 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
14395 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
14396 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
14397 sysadm whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
14398 part of the mail address.)
14401 (setq message-default-news-headers
14402 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
14405 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
14406 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
14411 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
14412 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
14413 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
14419 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
14420 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
14421 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
14422 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
14424 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
14425 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
14426 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
14427 twarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
14428 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
14429 your fancy split rule in this way:
14434 (to "larsi" "misc")
14438 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
14439 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
14440 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
14441 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
14442 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
14444 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
14445 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, availiable FOR FREE
14446 at @file{<URL:http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html>}.
14447 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
14448 cosmic balance somewhat.
14450 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
14451 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
14452 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
14453 to non-existant domains is yucky, in my opinion.
14456 @node Various Various
14457 @section Various Various
14463 @item gnus-home-directory
14464 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
14465 defaults to @file{~/}.
14467 @item gnus-directory
14468 @vindex gnus-directory
14469 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
14470 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
14471 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
14473 @item gnus-default-directory
14474 @vindex gnus-default-directory
14475 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
14476 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
14477 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
14478 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14479 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
14480 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
14483 @vindex gnus-verbose
14484 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
14485 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
14486 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
14487 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
14488 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
14490 @item gnus-verbose-backends
14491 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
14492 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
14493 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
14495 @item nnheader-max-head-length
14496 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
14497 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
14498 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
14499 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
14500 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
14501 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
14502 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
14503 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
14504 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
14506 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
14507 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
14508 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
14509 read when doing the operation described above.
14511 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
14512 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
14514 @cindex invalid characters in file names
14515 @cindex characters in file names
14516 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
14517 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
14518 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
14521 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
14525 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
14526 Windows (phooey) systems.
14528 @item gnus-hidden-properties
14529 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
14530 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
14531 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
14532 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
14534 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
14535 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
14536 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
14537 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
14538 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
14540 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
14541 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
14542 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
14551 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
14552 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
14554 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
14556 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
14562 Not because of victories @*
14565 but for the common sunshine,@*
14567 the largess of the spring.
14571 but for the day's work done@*
14572 as well as I was able;@*
14573 not for a seat upon the dais@*
14574 but at the common table.@*
14579 @chapter Appendices
14582 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
14583 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
14584 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
14585 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
14586 * A Programmers Guide to Gnus:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
14587 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
14588 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
14596 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
14597 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
14599 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
14600 can point your (feh!) web browser to
14601 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
14602 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
14603 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
14605 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
14606 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
14607 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
14608 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
14609 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
14610 appropriate name, don't you think?)
14612 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
14613 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
14614 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
14615 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
14617 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
14618 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
14619 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
14621 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
14622 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
14624 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
14625 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4''.
14627 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
14628 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
14629 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
14630 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
14631 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
14635 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
14636 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
14637 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
14638 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
14639 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
14640 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
14641 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
14648 What's the point of Gnus?
14650 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
14651 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
14652 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
14653 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
14654 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
14655 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
14656 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
14657 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
14658 keep track of millions of people who post?
14660 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
14661 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
14662 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
14663 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
14664 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
14665 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
14666 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
14667 every one of you to explore and invent.
14669 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
14670 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
14673 @node Compatibility
14674 @subsection Compatibility
14676 @cindex compatibility
14677 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
14678 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
14679 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
14684 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
14688 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
14691 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
14694 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
14695 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
14696 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
14697 important variables have their values copied into their global
14698 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
14699 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
14701 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
14702 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
14703 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
14704 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
14705 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
14709 @cindex highlighting
14710 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
14711 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
14712 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
14713 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
14714 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
14715 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
14718 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
14719 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
14720 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
14721 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
14723 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
14724 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
14725 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
14726 to stop doing it the old way.
14728 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
14730 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
14732 @cindex reporting bugs
14734 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
14735 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
14736 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
14740 @subsection Conformity
14742 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
14743 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
14750 There are no known breaches of this standard.
14754 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
14756 @item Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
14757 @cindex Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
14758 Gnus has been through the Seal process and failed. I think it'll pass
14759 the next inspection.
14761 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
14762 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
14763 We do have some breaches to this one.
14768 Gnus does no MIME handling, and this standard-to-be seems to think that
14769 MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
14772 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
14773 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
14774 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
14775 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
14776 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
14781 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
14782 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
14787 @subsection Emacsen
14793 Gnus should work on :
14798 Emacs 19.32 and up.
14801 XEmacs 19.14 and up.
14804 Mule versions based on Emacs 19.32 and up.
14808 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
14809 reliably, at least.
14811 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
14812 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
14813 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
14818 @subsection Contributors
14819 @cindex contributors
14821 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
14822 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
14823 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
14824 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
14825 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
14826 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
14827 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
14828 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
14829 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
14830 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
14832 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
14838 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
14841 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
14842 well as numerous other things).
14845 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
14848 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
14851 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
14852 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
14855 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
14858 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
14859 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
14862 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
14865 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
14868 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
14871 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
14874 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinsky---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
14875 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
14878 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
14881 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
14884 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
14887 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
14891 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
14894 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
14897 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
14900 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports.
14904 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
14905 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
14907 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
14916 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
14920 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
14935 Massimo Campostrini,
14940 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
14945 Michael Welsh Duggan,
14952 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
14957 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
14961 François Felix Ingrand,
14962 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
14969 Peter Skov Knudsen,
14970 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
14971 Thor Kristoffersen,
14986 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
14987 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
14993 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
14998 John McClary Prevost,
15006 Philippe Schnoebelen,
15007 Randal L. Schwartz,
15028 Katsumi Yamaoka. @c Yamaoka
15030 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
15031 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
15032 (550kB and counting).
15034 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
15037 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
15038 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
15042 @subsection New Features
15043 @cindex new features
15046 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
15047 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
15048 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
15051 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
15052 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
15053 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
15057 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
15059 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
15064 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
15065 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
15068 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
15069 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
15072 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
15075 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
15076 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
15077 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
15080 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
15081 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
15082 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
15083 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
15086 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
15087 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15090 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
15091 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
15092 (@pxref{The Active File}).
15095 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
15096 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
15099 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
15100 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
15101 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
15104 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
15105 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
15106 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
15109 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
15110 the @file{.emacs} file.
15113 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
15114 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15117 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
15118 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
15121 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
15122 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15125 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
15126 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
15129 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
15130 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
15133 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
15136 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
15137 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
15140 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
15141 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
15144 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
15145 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
15148 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
15151 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
15152 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
15155 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
15159 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
15163 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
15164 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
15167 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
15173 @node September Gnus
15174 @subsubsection September Gnus
15176 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
15181 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
15182 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
15186 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
15187 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
15191 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
15195 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
15196 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
15199 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
15203 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
15206 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
15209 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
15212 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
15216 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
15217 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
15220 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
15224 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
15228 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
15232 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
15236 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
15239 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
15240 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
15243 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
15247 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
15248 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
15251 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
15254 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
15255 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
15256 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
15259 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
15263 The Gnus cache is much faster.
15266 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
15270 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
15271 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
15274 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
15275 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
15278 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
15279 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
15282 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
15283 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
15284 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
15287 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
15288 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
15291 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
15294 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
15297 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
15298 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
15302 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
15305 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
15308 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
15309 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
15312 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
15316 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
15319 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
15322 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
15326 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
15329 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
15333 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
15336 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
15339 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
15340 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
15343 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
15344 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
15348 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
15349 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
15352 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
15356 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
15357 buffer to allow easier treatment.
15360 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
15363 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
15367 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
15371 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
15372 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
15375 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
15379 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
15380 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
15383 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
15384 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
15387 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
15391 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
15394 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
15395 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
15399 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
15402 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
15408 @subsubsection Red Gnus
15410 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
15415 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
15418 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
15419 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
15422 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
15423 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
15427 Article washing status can be displayed in the
15428 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
15431 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
15434 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
15435 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
15438 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
15442 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
15443 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
15447 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
15448 Server Internals}).
15451 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
15455 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
15458 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
15459 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
15462 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
15463 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
15464 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
15467 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
15468 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
15471 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
15472 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
15475 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
15479 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
15480 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
15483 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
15484 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
15487 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
15491 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
15494 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
15498 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
15499 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
15502 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
15503 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
15506 A new command for reading collections of documents
15507 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
15508 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
15511 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
15515 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
15516 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
15519 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
15520 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
15521 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
15524 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
15525 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
15529 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
15533 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
15537 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
15541 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
15545 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
15546 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
15549 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
15552 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-emphasize)
15558 @node Newest Features
15559 @subsection Newest Features
15562 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
15565 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
15569 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
15571 Really do unbinhexing.
15574 And much, much, much more. There is more to come than has already been
15575 implemented. (But that's always true, isn't it?)
15577 @file{<URL:http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/rgnus/todo>} is where the actual
15578 up-to-the-second todo list is located, so if you're really curious, you
15579 could point your Web browser over that-a-way.
15584 @section The Manual
15588 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
15589 either @code{texi2dvi}
15591 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
15592 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
15594 to get what you hold in your hands now.
15596 The following conventions have been used:
15601 This is a @samp{string}
15604 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
15607 This is a @file{file}
15610 This is a @code{symbol}
15614 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
15618 (setq flargnoze "yes")
15621 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
15624 (setq flumphel 'yes)
15627 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
15628 ever get them confused.
15632 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
15633 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
15634 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
15635 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
15636 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
15637 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
15638 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
15645 @section Terminology
15647 @cindex terminology
15652 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
15653 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
15654 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
15655 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
15656 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
15660 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
15661 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
15662 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
15663 not posting, and replying is not following up.
15667 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
15671 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
15676 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
15677 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
15678 is all done by the backends.
15682 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
15683 default, way of getting news.
15687 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
15688 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
15693 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
15694 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
15698 A message that has been posted as news.
15701 @cindex mail message
15702 A message that has been mailed.
15706 A mail message or news article
15710 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
15715 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
15720 A line from the head of an article.
15724 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
15725 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
15729 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
15730 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
15731 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
15732 normal @sc{head} format.
15736 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
15737 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
15738 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
15739 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
15740 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
15741 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
15743 @item killed groups
15744 @cindex killed groups
15745 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
15746 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
15748 @item zombie groups
15749 @cindex zombie groups
15750 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
15753 @cindex active file
15754 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
15755 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
15756 is rather large, as you might surmise.
15759 @cindex bogus groups
15760 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
15761 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
15762 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
15766 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
15768 @item select method
15769 @cindex select method
15770 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
15773 @item virtual server
15774 @cindex virtual server
15775 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
15776 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
15777 whole is a virtual server.
15781 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
15782 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
15785 @item ephemeral groups
15786 @cindex ephemeral groups
15787 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
15788 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
15789 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
15792 @cindex solid groups
15793 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
15794 group buffer are solid groups.
15796 @item sparse articles
15797 @cindex sparse articles
15798 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
15799 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
15803 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
15804 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
15808 @cindex thread root
15809 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
15810 articles in the thread.
15814 An article that has responses.
15818 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
15822 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
15823 specified by RFC1153.
15828 @node Customization
15829 @section Customization
15830 @cindex general customization
15832 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
15833 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
15834 for some quite common situations.
15837 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
15838 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
15839 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
15840 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
15844 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
15845 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
15847 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
15848 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
15849 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
15853 @item gnus-read-active-file
15854 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
15855 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
15856 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
15857 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
15858 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
15860 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
15861 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
15862 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
15863 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
15867 @node Slow Terminal Connection
15868 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
15870 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
15871 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
15872 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
15876 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
15877 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
15878 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
15879 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
15880 horizontal and vertical recentering.
15882 @item gnus-visible-headers
15883 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
15884 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
15885 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
15886 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
15888 @item gnus-article-display-hook
15889 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
15891 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
15892 '(gnus-article-hide-headers gnus-article-hide-signature
15893 gnus-article-hide-citation))
15896 @item gnus-use-full-window
15897 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
15898 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
15899 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
15900 want to read them anyway.
15902 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
15903 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
15906 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
15907 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
15908 lines, which might save some time.
15912 @node Little Disk Space
15913 @subsection Little Disk Space
15916 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
15917 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
15921 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
15922 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
15923 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
15924 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
15927 @item gnus-save-killed-list
15928 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
15929 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
15930 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
15931 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
15937 @subsection Slow Machine
15938 @cindex slow machine
15940 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
15941 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
15943 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
15944 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
15946 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
15947 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
15948 summary buffer faster.
15950 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
15951 processing a bit faster.
15954 @node Troubleshooting
15955 @section Troubleshooting
15956 @cindex troubleshooting
15958 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
15966 Make sure your computer is switched on.
15969 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
15970 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
15974 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
15975 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
15976 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
15977 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
15980 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
15984 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
15985 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
15986 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
15987 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
15988 something like that.
15991 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
15994 @cindex reporting bugs
15996 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
15998 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
15999 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
16000 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
16001 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
16003 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
16004 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
16005 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
16006 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
16009 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
16010 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
16011 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
16012 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
16013 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
16014 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
16016 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
16017 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
16018 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
16021 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
16022 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
16024 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
16025 @cindex ding mailing list
16026 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
16027 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
16030 @node A Programmers Guide to Gnus
16031 @section A Programmer@'s Guide to Gnus
16033 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
16034 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
16035 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
16036 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
16039 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
16040 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
16041 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
16042 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
16043 and general methods of operation.
16046 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
16047 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
16048 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
16049 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
16050 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
16051 * Group Info:: The group info format.
16052 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
16053 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
16057 @node Gnus Utility Functions
16058 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
16059 @cindex Gnus utility functions
16060 @cindex utility functions
16062 @cindex internal variables
16064 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
16065 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
16066 Below is a list of the most common ones.
16070 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
16071 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
16072 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
16074 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
16075 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
16076 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
16078 @item gnus-group-real-name
16079 @findex gnus-group-real-name
16080 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
16083 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
16084 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
16085 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
16086 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
16088 @item gnus-get-info
16089 @findex gnus-get-info
16090 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
16092 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
16093 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
16094 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
16097 @item gnus-continuum-version
16098 @findex gnus-continuum-version
16099 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
16100 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
16103 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
16104 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
16105 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
16107 @item gnus-news-group-p
16108 @findex gnus-news-group-p
16109 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
16111 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
16112 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
16113 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
16115 @item gnus-server-to-method
16116 @findex gnus-server-to-method
16117 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
16119 @item gnus-server-equal
16120 @findex gnus-server-equal
16121 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
16123 @item gnus-group-native-p
16124 @findex gnus-group-native-p
16125 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
16127 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
16128 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
16129 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
16131 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
16132 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
16133 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
16135 @item group-group-find-parameter
16136 @findex group-group-find-parameter
16137 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
16138 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
16140 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
16141 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
16142 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
16144 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
16145 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
16146 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
16148 @item gnus-check-backend-function
16149 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
16150 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
16151 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
16154 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
16158 @item gnus-read-method
16159 @findex gnus-read-method
16160 Prompts the user for a select method.
16165 @node Backend Interface
16166 @subsection Backend Interface
16168 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
16169 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
16170 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
16171 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
16172 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
16173 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
16175 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
16176 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
16177 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
16178 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
16179 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
16180 been opened, the function should fail.
16182 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
16183 name. Take this example:
16187 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
16188 (nntp-port-number 4324))
16191 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
16192 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
16194 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
16195 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
16196 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
16198 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
16199 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
16200 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
16202 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
16203 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
16204 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
16205 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
16206 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
16207 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
16210 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
16211 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
16212 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
16213 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
16216 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
16219 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
16222 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
16223 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
16224 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
16225 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
16226 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
16227 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
16231 @node Required Backend Functions
16232 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
16236 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
16238 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
16239 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
16240 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
16241 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
16243 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
16244 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
16245 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
16246 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
16248 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
16249 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
16250 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
16251 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
16252 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
16253 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
16254 number, do maximum fetches.
16256 Here's an example HEAD:
16259 221 1056 Article retrieved.
16260 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
16261 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
16262 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
16263 Subject: Re: Something very droll
16264 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
16265 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
16267 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
16268 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
16269 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
16273 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
16274 these in the data buffer.
16276 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
16280 head = error / valid-head
16281 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
16282 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
16283 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
16284 header = <text> eol
16287 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
16288 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
16292 nov-buffer = *nov-line
16293 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
16294 field = <text except TAB>
16297 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
16301 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
16303 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
16304 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
16306 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
16307 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
16308 server. In fact, it should do so.
16310 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
16311 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
16314 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
16316 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
16317 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
16320 There should be no data returned.
16323 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
16325 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
16326 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
16327 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
16328 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
16330 There should be no data returned.
16333 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
16335 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
16336 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
16337 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
16338 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
16340 There should be no data returned.
16343 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
16345 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
16347 There should be no data returned.
16350 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
16352 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
16353 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
16354 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
16355 it would be nice if that were possible.
16357 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
16358 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
16359 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
16360 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
16361 into its article buffer.
16363 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
16364 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
16365 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
16366 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
16367 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
16368 on successful article retrieval.
16371 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
16373 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
16374 making @var{group} the current group.
16376 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
16379 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
16382 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
16385 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
16386 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
16387 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
16388 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
16389 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
16390 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
16391 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
16392 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
16395 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
16396 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
16397 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
16401 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
16403 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
16404 a no-op on most backends.
16406 There should be no data returned.
16409 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
16411 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
16414 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
16417 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
16418 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
16421 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
16422 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
16425 active-file = *active-line
16426 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
16428 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
16431 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
16432 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
16433 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
16436 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
16438 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
16439 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
16440 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
16441 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
16442 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
16443 clear if the posting could not be completed.
16445 There should be no result data from this function.
16450 @node Optional Backend Functions
16451 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
16455 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
16457 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
16458 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
16459 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
16461 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
16462 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
16463 former is in the same format as the data from
16464 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
16465 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
16468 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
16472 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
16474 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
16475 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
16476 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
16477 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
16478 should return the (altered) group info.
16480 There should be no result data from this function.
16483 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
16485 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
16486 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
16487 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
16488 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
16489 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
16490 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
16491 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
16492 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
16494 There should be no result data from this function.
16497 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
16499 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
16500 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
16501 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
16502 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
16503 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
16505 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
16506 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
16507 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
16510 There should be no result data from this function.
16513 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
16515 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
16516 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
16517 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
16518 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
16519 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
16520 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
16521 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
16523 There should be no result data from this function.
16526 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
16528 The result data from this function should be a description of
16532 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
16534 description = <text>
16537 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
16539 The result data from this function should be the description of all
16540 groups available on the server.
16543 description-buffer = *description-line
16547 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
16549 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
16550 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
16551 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
16554 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
16556 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
16558 There should be no return data.
16561 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
16563 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
16564 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
16565 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
16566 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
16567 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
16570 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
16573 There should be no result data returned.
16576 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
16579 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
16580 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
16582 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
16583 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
16584 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
16585 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
16586 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
16587 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
16589 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
16590 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
16593 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
16594 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
16596 There should be no data returned.
16599 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
16601 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
16602 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
16603 this function in short order.
16605 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
16606 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
16608 There should be no data returned.
16611 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
16613 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
16614 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
16616 There should be no data returned.
16619 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
16621 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
16622 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
16623 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
16625 There should be no data returned.
16628 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
16630 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
16631 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
16633 There should be no data returned.
16638 @node Error Messaging
16639 @subsubsection Error Messaging
16641 @findex nnheader-report
16642 @findex nnheader-get-report
16643 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
16644 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
16645 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
16646 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
16647 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
16648 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
16651 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
16653 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
16656 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
16657 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
16658 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
16659 takes one argument---the server symbol.
16661 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
16662 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
16663 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
16666 @node Writing New Backends
16667 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
16669 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
16670 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
16671 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
16672 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
16673 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
16676 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
16677 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
16678 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
16680 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
16681 package called @code{nnoo}.
16683 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
16684 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
16690 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
16691 parameters. For instance:
16694 (nnoo-declare nndir
16698 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
16699 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
16702 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
16703 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
16704 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
16706 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
16707 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
16708 a function in those backends.
16711 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
16712 "Where nndir will look for groups."
16713 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
16716 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
16717 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
16718 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
16720 @item nnoo-define-basics
16721 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
16725 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
16729 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
16730 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
16731 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
16733 @item nnoo-map-functions
16734 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
16735 functions from the parent backends.
16738 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
16739 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
16740 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
16743 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
16744 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
16745 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
16746 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
16749 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
16750 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
16751 haven't already been defined.
16757 nnmh-request-newgroups)
16761 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
16762 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
16763 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
16768 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
16771 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
16772 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
16776 (require 'nnheader)
16780 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
16782 (nnoo-declare nndir
16785 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
16786 "Where nndir will look for groups."
16787 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
16789 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
16790 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
16793 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
16794 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
16795 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
16797 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
16798 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
16800 ;;; Interface functions.
16802 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
16804 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
16805 (setq nndir-directory
16806 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
16808 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
16809 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
16810 (push `(nndir-current-group
16811 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
16813 (push `(nndir-top-directory
16814 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
16816 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
16818 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
16819 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
16820 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
16821 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
16822 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
16826 nnmh-status-message
16828 nnmh-request-newgroups))
16834 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
16835 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
16837 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
16838 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
16839 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
16840 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
16842 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
16843 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
16848 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
16851 The abilities can be:
16855 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
16857 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
16859 This backend supports both mail and news.
16861 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
16864 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
16865 articles and groups.
16867 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
16868 true for almost all backends.
16869 @item prompt-address
16870 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
16871 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
16872 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
16876 @node Mail-like Backends
16877 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
16879 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
16880 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
16881 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
16882 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
16885 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
16886 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
16887 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
16890 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
16891 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
16894 This function takes four parameters.
16898 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
16901 @item exit-function
16902 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
16904 @item temp-directory
16905 Where the temporary files should be stored.
16908 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
16909 performed for one group only.
16912 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
16913 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
16914 find the article number assigned to this article.
16916 The function also uses the following variables:
16917 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
16918 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
16919 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
16920 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
16924 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
16925 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
16929 @node Score File Syntax
16930 @subsection Score File Syntax
16932 Score files are meant to be easily parsable, but yet extremely
16933 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
16934 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
16936 Here's a typical score file:
16940 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
16947 BNF definition of a score file:
16950 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
16951 element = rule / atom
16952 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
16953 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
16954 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
16955 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
16957 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
16958 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
16959 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
16960 date-header = "date"
16961 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
16962 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
16963 score = "nil" / <integer>
16964 date = "nil" / <natural number>
16965 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
16966 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
16967 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
16968 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
16969 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
16970 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
16971 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
16972 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
16973 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
16974 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
16975 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
16976 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
16977 exclude-files / read-only / touched
16978 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
16979 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
16980 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
16981 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
16982 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
16983 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
16984 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
16985 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
16986 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
16987 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
16988 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
16989 eval = "eval" space <form>
16990 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
16993 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
16996 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
16997 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
16998 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
16999 one looong line, then that's ok.
17001 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
17002 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
17006 @subsection Headers
17008 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
17009 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
17010 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
17011 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
17013 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
17014 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
17015 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
17016 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
17017 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
17018 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
17019 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
17021 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
17022 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
17023 @code{xref}. There are macros for accessing and setting these
17024 slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
17025 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
17027 The @code{xref} slot is really a @code{misc} slot. Any extra info will
17034 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
17035 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
17037 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
17038 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
17039 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
17040 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
17042 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
17046 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
17049 is transformed into
17052 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
17055 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
17056 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
17059 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
17062 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
17063 is slightly tricky:
17066 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
17072 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
17075 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
17081 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
17088 and is equal to the previous range.
17090 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
17091 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
17092 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
17096 range = simple-range / normal-range
17097 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
17098 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
17099 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
17100 number *[ " " contents ]
17103 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
17104 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
17105 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
17106 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
17107 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
17112 @subsection Group Info
17114 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
17115 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
17116 describes the group.
17118 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
17119 second is a more complex one:
17122 ("no.group" 5 (1 . 54324))
17124 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
17125 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
17127 (auto-expire (to-address "ding@@gnus.org")))
17130 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
17131 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
17132 normally is a small integer. The third element is a list of ranges of
17133 read articles. The fourth element is a list of lists of article marks
17134 of various kinds. The fifth element is the select method (or virtual
17135 server, if you like). The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group
17136 parameters}, which is what this section is about.
17138 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
17139 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
17140 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
17142 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
17145 info = "(" group space level space read
17146 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
17147 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
17148 group = quote <string> quote
17149 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
17151 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
17152 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
17153 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
17154 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
17157 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
17158 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
17161 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
17162 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
17165 @item gnus-info-group
17166 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
17167 @findex gnus-info-group
17168 @findex gnus-info-set-group
17169 Get/set the group name.
17171 @item gnus-info-rank
17172 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
17173 @findex gnus-info-rank
17174 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
17175 Get/set the group rank.
17177 @item gnus-info-level
17178 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
17179 @findex gnus-info-level
17180 @findex gnus-info-set-level
17181 Get/set the group level.
17183 @item gnus-info-score
17184 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
17185 @findex gnus-info-score
17186 @findex gnus-info-set-score
17187 Get/set the group score.
17189 @item gnus-info-read
17190 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
17191 @findex gnus-info-read
17192 @findex gnus-info-set-read
17193 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
17195 @item gnus-info-marks
17196 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
17197 @findex gnus-info-marks
17198 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
17199 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
17201 @item gnus-info-method
17202 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
17203 @findex gnus-info-method
17204 @findex gnus-info-set-method
17205 Get/set the group select method.
17207 @item gnus-info-params
17208 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
17209 @findex gnus-info-params
17210 @findex gnus-info-set-params
17211 Get/set the group parameters.
17214 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
17215 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
17217 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
17218 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
17219 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
17220 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
17223 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
17224 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
17228 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
17229 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
17230 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
17232 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
17233 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
17234 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
17235 Gnus, that's very useful.
17237 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
17238 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
17239 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
17240 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
17241 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
17242 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
17243 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
17244 following function:
17247 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
17251 (,function ,@@args))
17255 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
17256 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
17257 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
17260 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
17261 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
17262 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
17264 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
17265 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
17266 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
17269 @node Various File Formats
17270 @subsection Various File Formats
17273 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
17274 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
17278 @node Active File Format
17279 @subsubsection Active File Format
17281 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
17282 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
17285 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
17288 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
17289 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
17290 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
17291 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
17292 no.general 1000 900 y
17295 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
17298 active = *group-line
17299 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
17300 group = <non-white-space string>
17302 high-number = <non-negative integer>
17303 low-number = <positive integer>
17304 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
17308 @node Newsgroups File Format
17309 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
17311 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
17312 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
17313 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
17316 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
17317 Here's the definition:
17321 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
17322 group = <non-white-space string>
17324 description = <string>
17328 @node Emacs for Heathens
17329 @section Emacs for Heathens
17331 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
17332 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
17333 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
17334 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
17335 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
17336 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
17337 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
17341 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
17342 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
17347 @subsection Keystrokes
17351 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
17354 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
17357 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
17358 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
17359 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
17360 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
17361 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
17362 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
17364 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
17365 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
17366 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
17367 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
17368 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
17369 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
17370 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
17372 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
17373 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
17374 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
17375 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
17376 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
17377 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
17378 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
17380 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
17381 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
17382 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
17383 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
17384 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
17390 @subsection Emacs Lisp
17392 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
17393 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
17394 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
17395 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
17397 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
17398 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
17399 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
17400 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
17401 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
17402 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
17403 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
17406 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
17407 write the following:
17410 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
17413 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
17414 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
17415 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
17418 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
17419 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
17420 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
17421 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
17422 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
17424 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
17425 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
17426 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
17430 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
17434 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
17437 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
17438 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
17441 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
17444 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
17445 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
17448 @include gnus-faq.texi