10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
15 @setchapternewpage odd
19 \documentclass[twoside,a4paper,openright,11pt]{book}
20 \usepackage[latin1]{inputenc}
21 \usepackage{pagestyle}
24 \input{gnusconfig.tex}
26 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
28 \usepackage[pdftex,bookmarks,colorlinks=true]{hyperref}
36 \newcommand{\gnusversionname}{Oort Gnus v0.06}
37 \newcommand{\gnuschaptername}{}
38 \newcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
40 \newcommand{\gnusbackslash}{/}
42 \newcommand{\gnusref}[1]{``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
43 \ifx\pdfoutput\undefined
44 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
46 \newcommand{\gnusuref}[1]{\href{#1}{\gnustt{#1}}}
48 \newcommand{\gnusxref}[1]{See ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
49 \newcommand{\gnuspxref}[1]{see ``#1'' on page \pageref{#1}}
51 \newcommand{\gnuskindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
52 \newcommand{\gnusindex}[1]{\index{#1}}
54 \newcommand{\gnustt}[1]{{\gnusselectttfont{}#1}}
55 \newcommand{\gnuscode}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
56 \newcommand{\gnussamp}[1]{``{\fontencoding{OT1}\gnusselectttfont{}#1}''}
57 \newcommand{\gnuslisp}[1]{\gnustt{#1}}
58 \newcommand{\gnuskbd}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
59 \newcommand{\gnusfile}[1]{`\gnustt{#1}'}
60 \newcommand{\gnusdfn}[1]{\textit{#1}}
61 \newcommand{\gnusi}[1]{\textit{#1}}
62 \newcommand{\gnusstrong}[1]{\textbf{#1}}
63 \newcommand{\gnusemph}[1]{\textit{#1}}
64 \newcommand{\gnusvar}[1]{{\fontsize{10pt}{10}\selectfont\textsl{\textsf{#1}}}}
65 \newcommand{\gnussc}[1]{\textsc{#1}}
66 \newcommand{\gnustitle}[1]{{\huge\textbf{#1}}}
67 \newcommand{\gnusversion}[1]{{\small\textit{#1}}}
68 \newcommand{\gnusauthor}[1]{{\large\textbf{#1}}}
69 \newcommand{\gnusresult}[1]{\gnustt{=> #1}}
71 \newcommand{\gnusbullet}{{${\bullet}$}}
72 \newcommand{\gnusdollar}{\$}
73 \newcommand{\gnusampersand}{\&}
74 \newcommand{\gnuspercent}{\%}
75 \newcommand{\gnushash}{\#}
76 \newcommand{\gnushat}{\symbol{"5E}}
77 \newcommand{\gnusunderline}{\symbol{"5F}}
78 \newcommand{\gnusnot}{$\neg$}
79 \newcommand{\gnustilde}{\symbol{"7E}}
80 \newcommand{\gnusless}{{$<$}}
81 \newcommand{\gnusgreater}{{$>$}}
82 \newcommand{\gnusbraceleft}{{$>$}}
83 \newcommand{\gnusbraceright}{{$>$}}
85 \newcommand{\gnushead}{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-head,height=1cm}}}
86 \newcommand{\gnusinteresting}{
87 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\gnushead]{\gnushead}
90 \newcommand{\gnuscleardoublepage}{\ifodd\count0\mbox{}\clearpage\thispagestyle{empty}\mbox{}\clearpage\else\clearpage\fi}
92 \newcommand{\gnuspagechapter}[1]{
99 \newcommand{\gnuschapter}[2]{
101 \ifdim \gnusdimen = 0pt\setcounter{page}{1}\pagestyle{gnus}\pagenumbering{arabic} \gnusdimen 1pt\fi
103 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{}
104 \renewcommand{\gnuschaptername}{#2}
105 \thispagestyle{empty}
107 \begin{picture}(500,500)(0,0)
108 \put(480,350){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{#1}}
109 \put(40,300){\makebox(500,50)[bl]{{\Huge\bf{#2}}}}
114 \newcommand{\gnusfigure}[3]{
116 \mbox{}\ifodd\count0\hspace*{-0.8cm}\else\hspace*{-3cm}\fi\begin{picture}(440,#2)
123 \newcommand{\gnusicon}[1]{
124 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\raisebox{-1.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1.5cm}}]{\raisebox{-1cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/#1-up,height=1cm}}}
127 \newcommand{\gnuspicon}[1]{
128 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=2cm}}
131 \newcommand{\gnusxface}[2]{
132 \margindex{\epsfig{figure=#1,width=1cm}\epsfig{figure=#2,width=1cm}}
135 \newcommand{\gnussmiley}[2]{
136 \margindex{\makebox[2cm]{\hfill\epsfig{figure=#1,width=0.5cm}\hfill\epsfig{figure=#2,width=0.5cm}\hfill}}
139 \newcommand{\gnusitemx}[1]{\mbox{}\vspace*{-\itemsep}\vspace*{-\parsep}\item#1}
141 \newcommand{\gnussection}[1]{
142 \renewcommand{\gnussectionname}{#1}
146 \newenvironment{codelist}%
151 \newenvironment{kbdlist}%
157 \newenvironment{dfnlist}%
162 \newenvironment{stronglist}%
167 \newenvironment{samplist}%
172 \newenvironment{varlist}%
177 \newenvironment{emphlist}%
182 \newlength\gnusheadtextwidth
183 \setlength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{\headtextwidth}
184 \addtolength{\gnusheadtextwidth}{1cm}
186 \newpagestyle{gnuspreamble}%
191 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\mbox{}}\textbf{\hfill\roman{page}}}
195 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\roman{page}\hfill\mbox{}}}
204 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
206 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
211 \newpagestyle{gnusindex}%
216 \hspace*{-0.23cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\gnuschaptername\hfill\arabic{page}}}}
220 \hspace*{-3.25cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}
228 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
230 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
240 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{3.1cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{chapter}.\arabic{section}} \textbf{\gnussectionname\hfill\arabic{page}}}}}
244 \makebox[12cm]{\hspace*{-2.95cm}\underline{\makebox[\gnusheadtextwidth]{\textbf{\arabic{page}\hfill\gnuschaptername}}}}
252 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
254 \raisebox{-0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=1cm}}
259 \pagenumbering{roman}
260 \pagestyle{gnuspreamble}
270 %\addtolength{\oddsidemargin}{-5cm}
271 %\addtolength{\evensidemargin}{-5cm}
273 \addtolength{\textheight}{2cm}
275 \gnustitle{\gnustitlename}\hfill\gnusversion{\gnusversionname}\\
278 \hspace*{0cm}\epsfig{figure=ps/gnus-big-logo,height=15cm}
281 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
288 \thispagestyle{empty}
290 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
291 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
294 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
295 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
296 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
297 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
298 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
299 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
300 License'' in the Emacs manual.
302 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
303 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
304 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
306 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
307 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
308 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
309 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
317 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
319 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
320 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
322 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
323 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
324 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
325 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
326 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
327 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
328 License'' in the Emacs manual.
330 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
331 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
332 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
334 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
335 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
336 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
337 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
345 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
348 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
349 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002
350 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
352 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
353 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
354 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
355 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
356 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
357 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
358 License'' in the Emacs manual.
360 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
361 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
362 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
364 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
365 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
366 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
367 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
376 @top The Gnus Newsreader
380 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
381 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
382 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
385 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v0.06.
396 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
397 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
399 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
400 being accused of plagiarism:
402 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
403 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
404 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
405 can even read news with it!
407 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
408 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
409 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
410 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
411 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
417 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
418 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
419 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
420 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
421 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
422 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
423 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
424 * Various:: General purpose settings.
425 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
426 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
427 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
428 * Key Index:: Key Index.
431 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
435 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
436 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
437 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
438 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
439 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
440 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
441 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
442 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
443 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
444 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
445 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
449 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
450 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
451 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
455 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
456 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
457 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
458 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
459 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
460 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
461 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
462 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
463 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
464 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
465 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
466 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
467 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
468 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
469 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
470 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
471 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
475 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
476 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
477 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
481 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
482 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
483 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
484 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
485 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
489 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
490 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
491 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
492 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
493 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
497 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
498 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
499 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
500 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
501 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
503 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
504 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
505 * Threading:: How threads are made.
506 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
507 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
508 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
509 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
510 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
511 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
512 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
513 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
514 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
515 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
516 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
517 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
518 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
519 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
520 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
521 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
522 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
523 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
524 or reselecting the current group.
525 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
526 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
527 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
528 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
530 Summary Buffer Format
532 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
533 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
534 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
535 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
539 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
540 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
542 Reply, Followup and Post
544 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
545 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
546 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
547 * Canceling and Superseding::
551 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
552 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
553 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
555 * Generic Marking Commands::
556 * Setting Process Marks::
560 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
561 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
562 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
566 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
567 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
569 Customizing Threading
571 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
572 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
573 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
574 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
578 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
579 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
580 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
581 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
582 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
583 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
587 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
588 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
589 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
593 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
594 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
595 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
596 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
597 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
598 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
599 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
600 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
601 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
602 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
604 Alternative Approaches
606 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
607 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
609 Various Summary Stuff
611 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
612 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
613 * Summary Generation Commands::
614 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
618 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
619 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
620 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
621 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
622 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
626 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
627 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
628 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
629 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
630 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
631 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
632 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
633 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
637 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
638 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
639 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
640 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
641 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
642 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
643 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
644 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
648 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
649 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
650 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
651 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
652 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
653 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
654 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
658 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
659 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
663 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
664 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
665 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
669 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
670 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
671 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
672 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
673 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
674 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
675 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
676 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
677 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
678 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
679 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
680 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
681 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
685 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
686 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
687 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
689 Choosing a Mail Back End
691 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
692 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
693 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
694 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
695 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
696 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
701 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
702 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
703 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
704 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
705 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
706 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
710 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
711 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
712 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
716 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
717 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
718 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
719 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
720 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
724 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
728 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
729 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
730 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
734 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
735 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
739 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
740 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
741 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
742 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
743 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
744 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
745 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
746 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
747 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
748 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
752 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
753 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
754 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
758 * Group Agent Commands::
759 * Summary Agent Commands::
760 * Server Agent Commands::
764 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
765 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
766 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
767 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
768 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
769 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
770 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
771 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
772 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
773 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
774 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
775 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
776 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
777 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
778 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
779 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
780 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
784 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
785 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
786 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
787 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
791 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
792 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
793 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
797 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
798 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
799 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
800 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
801 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
802 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
803 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
804 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
805 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
806 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
807 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
808 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
809 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
810 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
811 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
812 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
813 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
814 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
815 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
819 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
820 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
821 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
822 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
823 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
824 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
825 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
826 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
830 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
831 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
832 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
833 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
834 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
838 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
839 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
840 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
841 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
842 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
846 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
847 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
848 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
852 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
853 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
854 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
855 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
856 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
857 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
858 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
859 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
860 * Frequently Asked Questions::
864 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
865 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
866 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
867 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
868 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
869 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
870 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
871 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
872 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
876 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
877 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
878 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
879 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
880 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
884 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
885 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
886 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
887 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
891 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
892 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
893 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
894 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
895 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
896 * Group Info:: The group info format.
897 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
898 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
899 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
903 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
904 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
905 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
906 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
907 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
908 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
912 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
913 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
917 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
918 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
924 @chapter Starting Gnus
929 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
930 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
933 @findex gnus-other-frame
934 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
935 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
936 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
938 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
939 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
940 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
942 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
943 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
946 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
947 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
948 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
949 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
950 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
951 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
952 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
953 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
954 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
955 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
956 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
960 @node Finding the News
961 @section Finding the News
964 @vindex gnus-select-method
966 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
967 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
968 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
969 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
972 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
973 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
976 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
979 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
982 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
985 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
986 certainly be much faster. But do not use the local spool if your
987 server is running Leafnode; in this case, use @code{(nntp "localhost")}.
989 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
991 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
992 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
993 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
994 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
995 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
996 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
998 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
999 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
1000 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
1001 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
1003 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
1004 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
1005 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
1006 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
1007 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
1008 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
1009 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
1010 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
1011 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
1014 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
1016 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
1017 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
1018 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
1019 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
1020 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
1021 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
1023 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
1025 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
1026 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
1027 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
1028 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
1029 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
1030 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
1033 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} back end to read your mail,
1034 you would typically set this variable to
1037 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
1041 @node The First Time
1042 @section The First Time
1043 @cindex first time usage
1045 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
1046 be subscribed by default.
1048 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1049 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1050 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1051 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1054 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1055 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1056 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1058 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1059 help you with most common problems.
1061 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1062 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1066 @node The Server is Down
1067 @section The Server is Down
1068 @cindex server errors
1070 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1071 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1072 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1074 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1075 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1076 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1077 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1078 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1079 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1080 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1082 @findex gnus-no-server
1083 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1085 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1086 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1087 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1088 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1089 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1090 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1091 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1095 @section Slave Gnusae
1098 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1099 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1100 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1101 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1103 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1104 @code{.newsrc} file.
1106 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1107 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1108 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1109 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1110 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1111 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1112 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1114 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1115 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1116 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1117 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1118 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1119 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1120 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1121 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1123 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1124 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1126 If the @code{.newsrc*} files have not been saved in the master when the
1127 slave starts, you may be prompted as to whether to read an auto-save
1128 file. If you answer "yes", the unsaved changes to the master will be
1129 incorporated into the slave. If you answer "no", the slave may see some
1130 messages as unread that have been read in the master.
1132 @node Fetching a Group
1133 @section Fetching a Group
1134 @cindex fetching a group
1136 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1137 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1138 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1139 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1140 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1141 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1147 @cindex subscription
1149 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1150 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1151 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1152 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1153 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1154 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1155 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1156 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the back ends for new groups even
1157 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1160 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1161 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1162 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1166 @node Checking New Groups
1167 @subsection Checking New Groups
1169 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1170 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1171 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1172 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1173 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1174 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1175 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1176 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1177 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1178 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1180 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1181 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1182 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1183 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1184 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1185 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1186 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1187 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1188 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1189 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1190 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1192 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1193 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1194 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1195 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1196 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1197 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1200 @node Subscription Methods
1201 @subsection Subscription Methods
1203 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1204 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1205 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1207 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1208 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1210 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1214 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1215 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1216 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1217 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1218 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1220 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1221 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1222 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1223 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1225 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1226 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1227 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1229 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1230 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1231 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1232 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1233 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1234 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1235 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1236 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1237 up. Or something like that.
1239 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1240 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1241 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1242 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1243 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1245 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1246 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1247 Kill all new groups.
1249 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1250 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1251 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1252 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1253 topic parameter that looks like
1259 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1262 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1267 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1268 A closely related variable is
1269 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1270 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1271 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1272 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1275 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1276 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1277 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1278 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1281 @node Filtering New Groups
1282 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1284 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1285 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1286 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1289 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1292 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1293 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1294 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1295 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1296 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1297 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1298 subscribing these groups.
1299 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1300 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1302 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1303 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1304 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1305 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1306 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1307 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1308 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1309 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1311 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1312 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1313 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1314 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1315 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1316 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1317 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1318 that come from mail back ends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1319 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, @code{nnmh}, and @code{nnmaildir})
1320 subscribed. If you don't like that, just set this variable to
1323 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1324 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1327 @node Changing Servers
1328 @section Changing Servers
1329 @cindex changing servers
1331 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1332 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1333 very flaky and you want to use another.
1335 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1336 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1340 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1341 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1342 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1343 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1346 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1347 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1348 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1349 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1351 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1352 @findex gnus-change-server
1353 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1354 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1355 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1356 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1357 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1359 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1360 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1361 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1362 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1363 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1365 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1366 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1367 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1368 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1369 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1370 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1372 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data
1373 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1374 Clear the data from the current group only---nix out marks and the
1375 list of read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1377 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1378 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1379 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1380 @code{gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} will ask you if you want
1381 to have it done automatically; for @code{gnus-group-clear-data}, you
1382 can use @kbd{M-x gnus-cache-move-cache} (but beware, it will move the
1383 cache for all groups).
1387 @section Startup Files
1388 @cindex startup files
1393 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1394 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1396 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1397 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1398 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1399 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1400 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1401 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1402 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1404 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1405 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1406 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1407 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1408 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1409 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1411 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1412 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1413 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1414 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1415 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1416 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1417 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1418 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1419 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1420 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1422 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1423 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1424 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1425 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1426 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1427 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1428 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1429 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1430 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1431 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1432 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1433 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1435 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1436 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1437 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1438 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1440 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1441 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1442 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1443 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1444 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1445 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1446 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1447 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1448 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1449 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1452 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1453 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1455 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1456 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1459 @vindex gnus-init-file
1460 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1461 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1462 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1463 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1464 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1465 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1466 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1467 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1468 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1474 @cindex dribble file
1477 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1478 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1479 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1480 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1481 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1484 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1485 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1488 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1489 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1490 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1492 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1493 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1494 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1495 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1496 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1497 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1499 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1500 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1501 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1504 @node The Active File
1505 @section The Active File
1507 @cindex ignored groups
1509 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1510 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1511 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1513 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1514 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1515 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1516 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1517 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1518 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1519 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1522 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1523 @c if you set it to anything else.
1525 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1527 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1528 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1529 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1531 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1532 you actually subscribe to.
1534 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1535 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1536 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1537 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1539 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1540 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1541 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1542 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1543 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1544 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1546 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1547 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1548 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1551 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1552 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1553 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1554 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1555 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1556 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1558 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1559 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1561 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1562 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1564 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1565 secondary select methods.
1568 @node Startup Variables
1569 @section Startup Variables
1573 @item gnus-load-hook
1574 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1575 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1576 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1577 times you start Gnus.
1579 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1580 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1581 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1583 @item gnus-startup-hook
1584 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1585 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1587 @item gnus-started-hook
1588 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1589 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1592 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1593 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1594 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1595 generating the group buffer.
1597 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1598 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1599 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1600 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1601 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1602 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1603 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1604 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1606 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1607 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1608 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1609 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1610 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1611 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1613 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1614 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1615 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1617 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1618 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1619 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1621 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1622 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1623 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1624 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1630 @chapter Group Buffer
1631 @cindex group buffer
1633 @c Alex Schroeder suggests to rearrange this as follows:
1635 @c <kensanata> ok, just save it for reference. I'll go to bed in a minute.
1636 @c 1. Selecting a Group, 2. (new) Finding a Group, 3. Group Levels,
1637 @c 4. Subscription Commands, 5. Group Maneuvering, 6. Group Data,
1638 @c 7. Group Score, 8. Group Buffer Format
1639 @c <kensanata> Group Levels should have more information on levels 5 to 9. I
1640 @c suggest to split the 4th paragraph ("Gnus considers groups...") as follows:
1641 @c <kensanata> First, "Gnus considers groups... (default 9)."
1642 @c <kensanata> New, a table summarizing what levels 1 to 9 mean.
1643 @c <kensanata> Third, "Gnus treats subscribed ... reasons of efficiency"
1644 @c <kensanata> Then expand the next paragraph or add some more to it.
1645 @c This short one sentence explains levels 1 and 2, therefore I understand
1646 @c that I should keep important news at 3 and boring news at 4.
1647 @c Say so! Then go on to explain why I should bother with levels 6 to 9.
1648 @c Maybe keep those that you don't want to read temporarily at 6,
1649 @c those that you never want to read at 8, those that offend your
1650 @c human rights at 9...
1653 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1654 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1655 long as Gnus is active.
1659 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1660 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group,height=9cm}}
1661 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1662 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1663 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1664 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1665 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1666 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1672 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1673 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1674 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1675 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1676 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1677 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1678 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1679 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1680 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1681 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1682 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1683 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1684 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1685 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1686 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1687 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1688 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1692 @node Group Buffer Format
1693 @section Group Buffer Format
1696 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1697 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1698 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1702 @node Group Line Specification
1703 @subsection Group Line Specification
1704 @cindex group buffer format
1706 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1707 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1709 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1712 25: news.announce.newusers
1713 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1718 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1719 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1720 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1721 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1723 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1724 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1725 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1726 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1727 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1728 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1730 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1732 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1733 the colon after performing an operation. @xref{Positioning
1734 Point}. Nothing else is required---not even the group name. All
1735 displayed text is just window dressing, and is never examined by Gnus.
1736 Gnus stores all real information it needs using text properties.
1738 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1739 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1740 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1742 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1747 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1750 Whether the group is subscribed.
1753 Level of subscribedness.
1756 Number of unread articles.
1759 Number of dormant articles.
1762 Number of ticked articles.
1765 Number of read articles.
1768 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1769 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1771 Gnus uses this estimation because the @sc{nntp} protocol provides
1772 efficient access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting
1773 the true unread message count is not possible efficiently. For
1774 hysterical raisins, even the mail back ends, where the true number of
1775 unread messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1776 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the back
1777 end interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1778 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1781 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1784 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1793 Newsgroup description.
1796 @samp{m} if moderated.
1799 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1808 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1812 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1815 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1816 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1817 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1818 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1819 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1822 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1824 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1828 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1831 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1835 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1836 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1837 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1838 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1839 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1840 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1845 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1846 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1847 group, or a bogus native group.
1850 @node Group Modeline Specification
1851 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1852 @cindex group modeline
1854 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1855 The mode line can be changed by setting
1856 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1857 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1861 The native news server.
1863 The native select method.
1867 @node Group Highlighting
1868 @subsection Group Highlighting
1869 @cindex highlighting
1870 @cindex group highlighting
1872 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1873 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1874 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1875 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1876 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1878 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1882 (cond (window-system
1883 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1884 (defface my-group-face-1
1885 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1886 (defface my-group-face-2
1887 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1888 (defface my-group-face-3
1889 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1890 (defface my-group-face-4
1891 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1892 (defface my-group-face-5
1893 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1895 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1896 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1897 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1898 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1899 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1900 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1903 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1905 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1912 The number of unread articles in the group.
1916 Whether the group is a mail group.
1918 The level of the group.
1920 The score of the group.
1922 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1924 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1925 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1927 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1928 topic being inserted.
1931 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1932 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1933 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1935 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1936 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1937 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1938 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1939 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1942 @node Group Maneuvering
1943 @section Group Maneuvering
1944 @cindex group movement
1946 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1947 expected, hopefully.
1953 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1954 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1955 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1961 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1962 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1963 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1967 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1968 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1972 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1973 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1977 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1978 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1979 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1983 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1984 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1985 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1988 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1994 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1995 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1996 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
2001 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
2002 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
2003 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
2007 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
2008 Jump to the first group with unread articles
2009 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
2012 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
2013 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
2014 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
2015 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
2019 @node Selecting a Group
2020 @section Selecting a Group
2021 @cindex group selection
2026 @kindex SPACE (Group)
2027 @findex gnus-group-read-group
2028 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
2029 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
2030 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
2031 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
2032 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
2033 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
2034 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
2035 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
2037 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
2038 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
2039 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
2041 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
2042 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
2047 @findex gnus-group-select-group
2048 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
2049 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
2050 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
2051 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
2055 @kindex M-RET (Group)
2056 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
2057 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
2058 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
2059 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
2060 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
2061 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
2062 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
2063 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
2064 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
2067 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
2068 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
2069 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
2070 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
2071 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
2074 @kindex C-M-RET (Group)
2075 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
2076 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
2077 doing any processing of its contents
2078 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
2079 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
2080 manner will have no permanent effects.
2084 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2085 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2086 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2087 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2088 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2089 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2090 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2091 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2094 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2095 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2096 If @code{gnus-auto-select-first} is non-@code{nil}, select an article
2097 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2098 Which article this is is controlled by the
2099 @code{gnus-auto-select-subject} variable. Valid values for this
2105 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article.
2108 Place point on the subject line of the first article.
2111 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article.
2113 @item unseen-or-unread
2114 Place point on the subject line of the first unseen article, and if
2115 there is no such article, place point on the subject line of the first
2119 Place point on the subject line of the highest-scored unread article.
2123 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function
2124 will be called to place point on a subject line.
2126 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2127 binary group with Huge articles) you can set the
2128 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} variable to @code{nil} in
2129 @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2133 @node Subscription Commands
2134 @section Subscription Commands
2135 @cindex subscription
2143 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2144 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2145 Toggle subscription to the current group
2146 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2152 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2153 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2154 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2155 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2161 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2162 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2163 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2169 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2170 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2173 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2174 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2175 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2176 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2177 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2183 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2184 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2188 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2189 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2192 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2193 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2194 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2195 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2196 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2197 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2198 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2199 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2200 @file{.newsrc} file.
2204 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2214 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2215 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2216 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2217 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2218 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2219 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2224 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2225 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2226 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2230 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2231 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2232 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2234 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2235 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2236 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2237 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2238 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2239 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2246 @section Group Levels
2250 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2251 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2252 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2253 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2254 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2256 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2262 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2263 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2264 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2265 prompted for a level.
2268 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2269 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2270 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2271 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2272 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2273 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2274 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2275 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2276 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2277 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2278 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2279 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2280 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2281 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2282 reasons of efficiency.
2284 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2285 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2287 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2288 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2289 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2290 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2291 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2292 groups are hidden, in a way.
2294 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2295 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2296 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2297 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2298 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2299 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2301 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2302 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2303 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2304 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2305 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2306 list of killed groups.)
2308 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2309 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2310 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2312 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2313 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2314 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2315 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2316 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2317 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2318 relevant valid ranges.
2320 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2321 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2322 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2323 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2324 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2325 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2328 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2329 one with the best level.
2331 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2332 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2333 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2336 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2337 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2338 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2339 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2342 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2343 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2344 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2345 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2347 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2348 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2349 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2350 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2351 to 5. The default is 6.
2355 @section Group Score
2360 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2361 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2362 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2365 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2366 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2367 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2368 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2369 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2370 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2371 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2372 least significant part.))
2374 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2375 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2376 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2377 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2378 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2379 action after each summary exit, you can add
2380 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2381 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2382 slow things down somewhat.
2385 @node Marking Groups
2386 @section Marking Groups
2387 @cindex marking groups
2389 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2390 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2391 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2392 bidding on those groups.
2394 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2395 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2396 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2404 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2405 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2411 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2412 Remove the mark from the current group
2413 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2417 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2418 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2422 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2423 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2427 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2428 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2432 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2433 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2434 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2437 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2439 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2440 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2441 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2442 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2443 the command to be executed.
2446 @node Foreign Groups
2447 @section Foreign Groups
2448 @cindex foreign groups
2450 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2451 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2452 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2453 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2460 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2461 @cindex making groups
2462 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2463 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2464 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2468 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2469 @cindex renaming groups
2470 Rename the current group to something else
2471 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2472 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2478 @findex gnus-group-customize
2479 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2483 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2484 @cindex renaming groups
2485 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2486 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2490 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2491 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2492 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2496 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2497 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2498 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2502 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2504 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2505 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2510 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2511 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2515 @cindex (ding) archive
2516 @cindex archive group
2517 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2518 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2519 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2520 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2521 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2522 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2523 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2527 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2529 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2530 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2531 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2532 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2536 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2538 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2539 @code{nneething} back end (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2540 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2544 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2545 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2547 Make a group based on some file or other
2548 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2549 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2550 Currently supported types are @code{mbox}, @code{babyl},
2551 @code{digest}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward},
2552 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts},
2553 @code{standard-digest}, @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs},
2554 @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook}, @code{oe-dbx}, and @code{mailman}. If
2555 you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2556 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2560 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2561 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2562 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2563 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2567 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2571 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2572 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2573 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2574 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2575 include @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}.
2576 @xref{Web Searches}.
2578 If you use the @code{google} search engine, you can limit the search
2579 to a particular group by using a match string like
2580 @samp{shaving group:alt.sysadmin.recovery}.
2583 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2584 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2585 This function will delete the current group
2586 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2587 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2588 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2589 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2590 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2594 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2595 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2596 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2600 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2601 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2602 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2605 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2608 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2609 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2610 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2611 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2612 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2613 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2617 @node Group Parameters
2618 @section Group Parameters
2619 @cindex group parameters
2621 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2622 Here's an example group parameter list:
2625 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2629 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2630 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2631 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2632 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2634 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2635 is an alist of regexps and values.
2637 The following group parameters can be used:
2642 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2645 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2648 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2649 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2650 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2651 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2652 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2654 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2655 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2656 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2657 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2658 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2659 list address instead.
2661 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2665 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2668 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2671 It is totally ignored
2672 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2673 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2675 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2676 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2677 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2678 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2679 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2681 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2682 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2683 sending the message.
2685 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2686 @cindex Mail List Groups
2687 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2688 entering summary buffer.
2690 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2695 If this parameter is set to @code{t}, Gnus will consider the
2696 to-address and to-list parameters for this group as addresses of
2697 mailing lists you are subscribed to. Giving Gnus this information is
2698 (only) a first step in getting it to generate correct Mail-Followup-To
2699 headers for your posts to these lists. Look here @pxref{(message)Mailing
2700 Lists} for a complete treatment of available MFT support.
2702 See also @code{gnus-find-subscribed-addresses}, the function that
2703 directly uses this group parameter.
2707 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2708 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2709 of whether it has any unread articles.
2711 @item broken-reply-to
2712 @cindex broken-reply-to
2713 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2714 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2715 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2716 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2717 broken behavior. So there!
2721 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2722 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2726 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2727 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2728 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2733 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2734 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2735 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2736 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2737 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2738 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2739 (@pxref{Archived Messages}). CAVEAT:: It yields an error putting
2740 @code{(gcc-self . t)} in groups of a @code{nntp} server or so, because
2741 a @code{nntp} server doesn't accept artciles.
2745 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2746 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2747 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2749 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2752 @cindex total-expire
2753 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2754 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2755 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2756 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2759 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2763 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2764 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2765 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2766 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2767 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2768 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2771 @cindex score file group parameter
2772 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2773 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2774 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2777 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2778 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2779 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2780 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2783 @cindex admin-address
2784 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2785 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2786 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2787 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2791 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2792 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2796 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2799 Display the last INTEGER articles in the group. This is the same as
2800 entering the group with C-u INTEGER.
2803 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2807 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2809 Here are some examples:
2813 Display only unread articles.
2816 Display everything except expirable articles.
2818 @item [and (not reply) (not expire)]
2819 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2823 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2824 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2825 @code{unread}, @code{dormant}, @code{expire}, @code{reply},
2826 @code{killed}, @code{bookmark}, @code{score}, @code{save},
2827 @code{cache}, @code{forward}, @code{unseen} and @code{recent}.
2831 The @code{display} parameter works by limiting the summary buffer to
2832 the subset specified. You can pop the limit by using the @kbd{/ w}
2833 command (@pxref{Limiting}).
2837 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2838 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2839 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2844 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2845 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2846 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2848 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2850 @item ignored-charsets
2851 @cindex ignored-charset
2852 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-unknown iso-8859-1)}
2853 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2854 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2856 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2859 @cindex posting-style
2860 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2861 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2862 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2863 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2864 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2866 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2867 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2868 like this in the group parameters:
2873 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2878 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2879 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2883 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2884 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2885 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2886 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2887 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2891 This parameter contains a Sieve test that should match incoming mail
2892 that should be placed in this group. From this group parameter, a
2893 Sieve @samp{IF} control structure is generated, having the test as the
2894 condition and @samp{fileinto "group.name";} as the body.
2896 For example, if the INBOX.list.sieve group has the @code{(sieve
2897 address "sender" "sieve-admin@@extundo.com")} group parameter, when
2898 translating the group parameter into a Sieve script (@pxref{Sieve
2899 Commands}) the following Sieve code is generated:
2902 if address \"sender\" \"sieve-admin@@extundo.com\" @{
2903 fileinto \"INBOX.list.sieve\";
2907 The Sieve language is described in RFC 3028. @xref{Top, , Top, sieve,
2910 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2911 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2912 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2913 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2914 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2915 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2916 @code{eval}ed there.
2918 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
2919 A use for this feature, is to remove a mailing list identifier tag in
2920 the subject fields of articles. E.g. if the news group
2921 @samp{nntp+news.gnus.org:gmane.text.docbook.apps} has the tag
2922 @samp{DOC-BOOK-APPS:} in the subject of all articles, this tag can be
2923 removed from the article subjects in the summary buffer for the group by
2924 putting @code{(gnus-list-identifiers "DOCBOOK-APPS:")} into the group
2925 parameters for the group.
2928 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2929 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2930 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2931 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2932 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2936 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2937 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2938 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2939 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2940 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2942 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2943 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2947 (setq gnus-parameters
2949 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2950 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2951 (gnus-summary-line-format
2952 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2956 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2960 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2964 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2967 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2968 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2971 @node Listing Groups
2972 @section Listing Groups
2973 @cindex group listing
2975 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2983 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2984 List all groups that have unread articles
2985 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2986 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2987 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2988 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2995 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2996 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2997 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2998 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2999 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
3000 unsubscribed groups).
3004 @findex gnus-group-list-level
3005 List all unread groups on a specific level
3006 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
3007 with no unread articles.
3011 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
3012 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
3013 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
3014 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
3019 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
3020 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
3024 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
3025 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
3026 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
3030 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
3031 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
3035 @findex gnus-group-list-active
3036 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
3037 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
3038 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
3039 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
3040 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
3041 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
3042 Take the output with some grains of salt.
3046 @findex gnus-group-apropos
3047 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
3048 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
3052 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
3053 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
3054 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
3058 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
3059 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
3063 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
3064 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
3068 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
3069 List groups limited within the current selection
3070 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
3074 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
3075 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
3079 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
3080 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
3084 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3085 @cindex visible group parameter
3086 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
3087 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
3088 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
3089 get the same effect.
3091 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
3092 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
3093 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
3094 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
3095 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
3098 @node Sorting Groups
3099 @section Sorting Groups
3100 @cindex sorting groups
3102 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
3103 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
3104 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
3105 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
3106 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
3107 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
3112 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3113 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
3114 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
3116 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3117 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
3118 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
3120 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
3121 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
3122 Sort by group level.
3124 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
3125 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
3126 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
3128 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3129 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
3130 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
3131 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
3133 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3134 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
3135 Sort by number of unread articles.
3137 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3138 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3139 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3141 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3142 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3143 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3148 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3149 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3153 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3154 some sorting criteria:
3158 @kindex G S a (Group)
3159 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3160 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3161 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3164 @kindex G S u (Group)
3165 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3166 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3167 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3170 @kindex G S l (Group)
3171 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3172 Sort the group buffer by group level
3173 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3176 @kindex G S v (Group)
3177 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3178 Sort the group buffer by group score
3179 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3182 @kindex G S r (Group)
3183 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3184 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3185 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3188 @kindex G S m (Group)
3189 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3190 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by back end name
3191 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3195 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3196 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3198 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3199 commands will sort in reverse order.
3201 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3205 @kindex G P a (Group)
3206 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3207 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3208 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3211 @kindex G P u (Group)
3212 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3213 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3214 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3217 @kindex G P l (Group)
3218 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3219 Sort the groups by group level
3220 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3223 @kindex G P v (Group)
3224 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3225 Sort the groups by group score
3226 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3229 @kindex G P r (Group)
3230 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3231 Sort the groups by group rank
3232 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3235 @kindex G P m (Group)
3236 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3237 Sort the groups alphabetically by back end name
3238 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3241 @kindex G P s (Group)
3242 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups
3243 Sort the groups according to @code{gnus-group-sort-function}.
3247 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3251 @node Group Maintenance
3252 @section Group Maintenance
3253 @cindex bogus groups
3258 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3259 Find bogus groups and delete them
3260 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3264 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3265 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3266 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3267 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3268 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3272 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3273 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3274 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3275 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3276 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3277 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3280 @kindex C-c C-M-x (Group)
3281 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3282 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3283 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3288 @node Browse Foreign Server
3289 @section Browse Foreign Server
3290 @cindex foreign servers
3291 @cindex browsing servers
3296 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3297 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3298 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3299 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3302 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3303 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3304 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3305 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3307 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3312 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3313 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3317 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3318 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3321 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3322 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3323 Enter the current group and display the first article
3324 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3327 @kindex RET (Browse)
3328 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3329 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3333 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3334 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3335 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3341 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3342 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3346 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3347 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3348 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3353 @section Exiting Gnus
3354 @cindex exiting Gnus
3356 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3361 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3362 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3363 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3364 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3368 @findex gnus-group-exit
3369 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3370 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3374 @findex gnus-group-quit
3375 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3376 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3379 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3380 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3381 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3382 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3383 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3388 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3389 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3390 trying to customize meta-variables.
3395 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3396 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3397 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3403 @section Group Topics
3406 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3407 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3408 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3409 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3410 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3411 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3415 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3416 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=ps/group-topic,height=9cm}}
3427 2: alt.religion.emacs
3430 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3432 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3433 13: comp.sources.unix
3436 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3438 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3439 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3440 is a toggling command.)
3442 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3443 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and
3444 now press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3445 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3448 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3449 the hook for the group mode. Put the following line in your
3450 @file{~/.gnus} file:
3453 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3457 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3458 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3459 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3460 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3461 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3465 @node Topic Commands
3466 @subsection Topic Commands
3467 @cindex topic commands
3469 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3470 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3471 definitions slightly.
3473 In general, the following kinds of operations are possible on topics.
3474 First of all, you want to create topics. Secondly, you want to put
3475 groups in topics and to move them around until you have an order you
3476 like. The third kind of operation is to show/hide parts of the whole
3477 shebang. You might want to hide a topic including its subtopics and
3478 groups, to get a better overview of the other groups.
3480 Here is a list of the basic keys that you might need to set up topics
3487 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3488 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3489 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3493 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3495 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3496 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3497 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3498 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3501 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3502 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3503 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3504 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3508 The following two keys can be used to move groups and topics around.
3509 They work like the well-known cut and paste. @kbd{C-k} is like cut and
3510 @kbd{C-y} is like paste. Of course, this being Emacs, we use the terms
3511 kill and yank rather than cut and paste.
3517 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3518 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3519 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3523 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3524 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3525 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3528 So, to move a topic to the beginning of the list of topics, just hit
3529 @kbd{C-k} on it. This is like the `cut' part of cut and paste. Then,
3530 move the cursor to the beginning of the buffer (just below the `Gnus'
3531 topic) and hit @kbd{C-y}. This is like the `paste' part of cut and
3532 paste. Like I said -- E-Z.
3534 You can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} on groups as well as on topics. So
3535 you can move topics around as well as groups.
3539 After setting up the topics the way you like them, you might wish to
3540 hide a topic, or to show it again. That's why we have the following
3547 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3549 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3550 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3551 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3552 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3553 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3554 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3558 Now for a list of other commands, in no particular order.
3564 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3565 Move the current group to some other topic
3566 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3567 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3571 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3572 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3576 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3577 Copy the current group to some other topic
3578 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3579 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3583 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3584 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3585 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3589 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3590 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3591 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3595 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3596 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3597 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3598 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3599 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3600 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3601 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3604 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3605 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3609 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3610 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3611 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3615 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3616 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3617 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3621 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3622 Toggle hiding empty topics
3623 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3627 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3628 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3629 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3632 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3633 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3634 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3635 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3638 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3639 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3640 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3641 expiry process (if any)
3642 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3646 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3647 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3650 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3651 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3652 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3656 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3657 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3658 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3661 @kindex T M-n (Topic)
3662 @findex gnus-topic-goto-next-topic
3663 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-next-topic}).
3666 @kindex T M-p (Topic)
3667 @findex gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic
3668 Go to the next topic (@code{gnus-topic-goto-previous-topic}).
3672 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3673 @cindex group parameters
3674 @cindex topic parameters
3676 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3677 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3682 @node Topic Variables
3683 @subsection Topic Variables
3684 @cindex topic variables
3686 The previous section told you how to tell Gnus which topics to display.
3687 This section explains how to tell Gnus what to display about each topic.
3689 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3690 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3691 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3704 Number of groups in the topic.
3706 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3708 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3711 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3712 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3713 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3716 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3717 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3719 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3720 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3721 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3725 @subsection Topic Sorting
3726 @cindex topic sorting
3728 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3734 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3735 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3736 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3737 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3740 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3741 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3742 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3743 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3746 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3747 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3748 Sort the current topic by group level
3749 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3752 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3753 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3754 Sort the current topic by group score
3755 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3758 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3759 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3760 Sort the current topic by group rank
3761 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3764 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3765 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3766 Sort the current topic alphabetically by back end name
3767 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3770 @kindex T S e (Topic)
3771 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server
3772 Sort the current topic alphabetically by server name
3773 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-server}).
3777 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups
3778 Sort the current topic according to the function(s) given by the
3779 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable
3780 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups}).
3784 When given a prefix argument, all these commands will sort in reverse
3785 order. @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group
3789 @node Topic Topology
3790 @subsection Topic Topology
3791 @cindex topic topology
3794 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3800 2: alt.religion.emacs
3803 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3805 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3806 13: comp.sources.unix
3809 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3810 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3811 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3816 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3817 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3821 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3822 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3823 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3824 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3825 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3826 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3828 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3829 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3830 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3833 @node Topic Parameters
3834 @subsection Topic Parameters
3835 @cindex topic parameters
3837 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3838 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3839 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3841 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3846 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3847 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3848 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3851 @item subscribe-level
3852 When subscribing new groups by topic (see the @code{subscribe} parameter),
3853 the group will be subscribed with the level specified in the
3854 @code{subscribe-level} instead of @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}.
3858 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3859 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3860 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3861 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3867 2: alt.religion.emacs
3871 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3873 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3874 13: comp.sources.unix
3878 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3879 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3880 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3881 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3882 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3883 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3885 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3886 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3887 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3888 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3889 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3891 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3892 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3893 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3894 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3895 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3896 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3897 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3898 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3901 @node Misc Group Stuff
3902 @section Misc Group Stuff
3905 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3906 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3907 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3908 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3909 * Sieve Commands:: Managing Sieve scripts.
3916 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3917 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3918 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3922 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3923 Start composing a message (a news by default)
3924 (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a prefix, post to the group
3925 under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
3926 Contrary to what the name of this function suggests, the prepared
3927 article might be a mail instead of a news, if a mail group is specified
3928 with the prefix argument. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3932 @findex gnus-group-mail
3933 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}). If given a prefix,
3934 use the posting style of the group under the point. If the prefix is 1,
3935 prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
3936 @xref{Composing Messages}.
3940 @findex gnus-group-news
3941 Start composing a news (@code{gnus-group-news}). If given a prefix,
3942 post to the group under the point. If the prefix is 1, prompt
3943 for group to post to. @xref{Composing Messages}.
3945 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
3946 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
3947 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
3948 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
3949 for this to work though.
3953 Variables for the group buffer:
3957 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3958 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3959 is called after the group buffer has been
3962 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3963 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3964 is called after the group buffer is
3965 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3968 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3969 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3970 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3971 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3973 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3974 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3975 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3976 whether they are empty or not.
3978 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3979 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3980 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3981 non-ASCII group names.
3985 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3986 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3989 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3990 @cindex UTF-8 group names
3991 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3992 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names. It
3993 is used to show non-ASCII group names. @code{((".*" utf-8))} is the
3994 default value if UTF-8 is supported, otherwise the default is nil.
3998 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3999 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
4004 @node Scanning New Messages
4005 @subsection Scanning New Messages
4006 @cindex new messages
4007 @cindex scanning new news
4013 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
4014 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
4015 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
4016 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
4017 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
4018 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
4023 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
4024 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
4025 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
4026 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
4027 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
4028 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
4029 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
4031 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
4032 @cindex activating groups
4034 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
4035 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
4040 @findex gnus-group-restart
4041 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
4042 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
4043 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
4047 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
4048 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
4050 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
4051 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
4055 @node Group Information
4056 @subsection Group Information
4057 @cindex group information
4058 @cindex information on groups
4065 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
4066 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
4069 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
4070 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
4071 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
4072 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
4073 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
4074 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
4075 for fetching the file.
4077 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
4078 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
4082 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
4084 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
4085 @cindex describing groups
4086 @cindex group description
4087 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
4088 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
4089 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
4093 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
4094 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
4095 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
4102 @findex gnus-version
4103 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
4107 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
4108 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
4111 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
4114 @findex gnus-info-find-node
4115 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
4119 @node Group Timestamp
4120 @subsection Group Timestamp
4122 @cindex group timestamps
4124 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
4125 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
4126 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
4129 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
4132 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
4134 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
4135 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
4138 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4139 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
4142 This will result in lines looking like:
4145 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
4146 0: custom 19961002T012713
4149 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
4150 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
4154 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4155 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
4158 If you would like greater control of the time format, you can use a
4159 user-defined format spec. Something like the following should do the
4163 (setq gnus-group-line-format
4164 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %ud\n")
4165 (defun gnus-user-format-function-d (headers)
4166 (let ((time (gnus-group-timestamp gnus-tmp-group)))
4168 (format-time-string "%b %d %H:%M" time)
4174 @subsection File Commands
4175 @cindex file commands
4181 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
4182 @vindex gnus-init-file
4183 @cindex reading init file
4184 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
4185 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
4189 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
4190 @cindex saving .newsrc
4191 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
4192 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
4193 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
4196 @c @kindex Z (Group)
4197 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
4198 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
4203 @node Sieve Commands
4204 @subsection Sieve Commands
4205 @cindex group sieve commands
4207 Sieve is a server-side mail filtering language. In Gnus you can use
4208 the @code{sieve} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to specify
4209 sieve rules that should apply to each group. Gnus provides two
4210 commands to translate all these group parameters into a proper Sieve
4211 script that can be transfered to the server somehow.
4213 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4214 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-start
4215 @vindex gnus-sieve-region-end
4216 The generated Sieve script is placed in @code{gnus-sieve-file} (by
4217 default @file{~/.sieve}). The Sieve code that Gnus generate is placed
4218 between two delimiters, @code{gnus-sieve-region-start} and
4219 @code{gnus-sieve-region-end}, so you may write additional Sieve code
4220 outside these delimiters that will not be removed the next time you
4221 regenerate the Sieve script.
4223 @vindex gnus-sieve-crosspost
4224 The variable @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} controls how the Sieve script
4225 is generated. If it is non-nil (the default) articles is placed in
4226 all groups that have matching rules, otherwise the article is only
4227 placed in the group with the first matching rule. For example, the
4228 group parameter @samp{(sieve address "sender"
4229 "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu")} will generate the following piece of Sieve
4230 code if @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is nil. (When
4231 @code{gnus-sieve-crosspost} is non-nil, it looks the same except that
4232 the line containing the call to @code{stop} is removed.)
4235 if address "sender" "owner-ding@@hpc.uh.edu" @{
4236 fileinto "INBOX.ding";
4241 @xref{Top, ,Top, sieve, Emacs Sieve}.
4247 @findex gnus-sieve-generate
4248 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4249 @cindex generating sieve script
4250 Regenerate a Sieve script from the @code{sieve} group parameters and
4251 put you into the @code{gnus-sieve-file} without saving it.
4255 @findex gnus-sieve-update
4256 @vindex gnus-sieve-file
4257 @cindex updating sieve script
4258 Regenerates the Gnus managed part of @code{gnus-sieve-file} using the
4259 @code{sieve} group parameters, save the file and upload it to the
4260 server using the @code{sieveshell} program.
4265 @node Summary Buffer
4266 @chapter Summary Buffer
4267 @cindex summary buffer
4269 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
4270 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
4272 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
4273 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
4275 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
4278 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
4279 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
4280 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
4281 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
4282 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
4283 * Delayed Articles::
4284 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
4285 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
4286 * Threading:: How threads are made.
4287 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
4288 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
4289 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
4290 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
4291 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
4292 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
4293 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
4294 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
4295 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
4296 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
4297 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
4298 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
4299 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
4300 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
4301 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
4302 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
4303 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
4304 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
4305 or reselecting the current group.
4306 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
4307 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
4308 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
4309 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
4313 @node Summary Buffer Format
4314 @section Summary Buffer Format
4315 @cindex summary buffer format
4319 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4320 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary,width=7.5cm}}
4321 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-article,width=7.5cm}}}
4327 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4328 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4329 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4330 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4333 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4334 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4335 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4336 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4337 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4338 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4339 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4340 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4341 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4342 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4343 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4346 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4347 'mail-extract-address-components)
4350 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4351 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4352 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4353 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4356 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4357 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4359 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4360 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4361 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4362 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4363 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4365 There should always be a colon or a point position marker on the line;
4366 the cursor always moves to the point position marker or the colon after
4367 performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be Gnus if it wasn't
4368 possible to change this. Just write a new function
4369 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4370 @xref{Positioning Point}.
4372 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n}.
4374 The following format specification characters and extended format
4375 specification(s) are understood:
4381 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4382 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4384 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4385 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4386 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4388 Full @code{From} header.
4390 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4392 The name, @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header (@pxref{To
4395 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4396 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4397 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4398 may be more thorough.
4400 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4403 Number of lines in the article.
4405 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported
4406 in some methods (like nnfolder).
4408 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4410 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace
4413 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4414 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4416 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4417 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4419 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4420 for adopted articles.
4422 One space for each thread level.
4424 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4426 Unread. @xref{Read Articles}.
4429 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4430 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4431 or has been saved. @xref{Other Marks}.
4434 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4436 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4437 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4438 default level. If the difference between
4439 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4440 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4448 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4450 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4456 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4457 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4459 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4460 article has any children.
4466 Age sensitive date format. Various date format is defined in
4467 @code{gnus-user-date-format-alist}.
4469 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4470 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4471 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4472 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4473 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4474 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4477 Text between @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} will be highlighted with
4478 @code{gnus-mouse-face} when the mouse point is placed inside the area.
4479 There can only be one such area.
4481 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4482 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4483 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4484 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4485 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4486 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4488 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4489 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4491 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4494 @node To From Newsgroups
4495 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4499 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4500 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4501 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4502 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4503 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4507 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4508 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4509 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4513 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4514 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4517 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4518 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4521 @findex gnus-extra-header
4522 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4523 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4524 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4527 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4531 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4532 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4533 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4534 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4535 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4536 headers are used instead.
4540 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4541 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4542 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4543 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4544 this variable, by entering the server buffer using `^', and then `g' on
4545 the appropriate mail server (e.g. nnml) to cause regeneration.
4547 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4548 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4549 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4550 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4552 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4556 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4558 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4559 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4560 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4561 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4565 (The values listed above are the default values in Gnus. Alter them
4568 A note for news server administrators, or for users who wish to try to
4569 convince their news server administrator to provide some additional
4572 The above is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4573 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4574 nntp admin to add (in the usual implementation, notably INN):
4580 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4581 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4584 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4585 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4587 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4588 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4589 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4590 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4592 Here are the elements you can play with:
4598 Unprefixed group name.
4600 Current article number.
4602 Current article score.
4606 Number of unread articles in this group.
4608 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4611 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4612 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4613 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4614 and no unselected ones.
4616 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4617 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4619 Subject of the current article.
4621 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4623 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4625 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4627 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4629 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4631 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4635 @node Summary Highlighting
4636 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4640 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4641 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4642 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4643 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4644 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4646 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4647 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4648 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4649 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4651 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4652 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4653 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4654 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4656 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4657 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4658 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4659 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4660 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4661 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4664 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4665 ((> score default) . bold))
4667 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4668 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4672 @node Summary Maneuvering
4673 @section Summary Maneuvering
4674 @cindex summary movement
4676 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4677 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4679 None of these commands select articles.
4684 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4685 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4686 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4687 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4688 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4692 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4693 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4694 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4695 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4696 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4699 @kindex G g (Summary)
4700 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4701 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4702 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4705 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4706 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4707 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4708 to the group buffer.
4710 Variables related to summary movement:
4714 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4715 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4716 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4717 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4718 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4719 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4720 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4721 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4722 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4723 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4724 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4725 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4726 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4727 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4729 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4730 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4731 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4732 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4733 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4734 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4735 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4737 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4739 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4740 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4741 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4742 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4743 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4745 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4746 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4747 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4748 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4749 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4750 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4751 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4752 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4755 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4756 the given number of lines from the top.
4761 @node Choosing Articles
4762 @section Choosing Articles
4763 @cindex selecting articles
4766 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4767 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4771 @node Choosing Commands
4772 @subsection Choosing Commands
4774 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4775 and they all select and display an article.
4777 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4778 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4782 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4783 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4784 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4785 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4790 @kindex G n (Summary)
4791 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4792 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4793 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4798 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4799 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4800 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4805 @kindex G N (Summary)
4806 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4807 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4812 @kindex G P (Summary)
4813 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4814 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4817 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4818 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4819 Go to the next article with the same subject
4820 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4823 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4824 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4825 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4826 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4830 @kindex G f (Summary)
4832 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4833 Go to the first unread article
4834 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4838 @kindex G b (Summary)
4840 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4841 Go to the unread article with the highest score
4842 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}). If given a prefix argument,
4843 go to the first unread article that has a score over the default score.
4848 @kindex G l (Summary)
4849 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4850 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4853 @kindex G o (Summary)
4854 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4856 @cindex article history
4857 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4858 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4859 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4860 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4861 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4862 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4867 @kindex G j (Summary)
4868 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4869 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4870 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4875 @node Choosing Variables
4876 @subsection Choosing Variables
4878 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4881 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4882 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4883 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4884 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4885 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4886 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4888 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4889 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4890 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4891 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4893 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4894 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4895 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4896 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4897 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4898 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4899 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4900 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4901 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4902 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4903 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4904 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4905 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4906 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4911 @node Paging the Article
4912 @section Scrolling the Article
4913 @cindex article scrolling
4918 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4919 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4920 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4921 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4922 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4925 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4926 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4927 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4930 @kindex RET (Summary)
4931 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4932 Scroll the current article one line forward
4933 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4936 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4937 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4938 Scroll the current article one line backward
4939 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4943 @kindex A g (Summary)
4945 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4946 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4947 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4948 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4949 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4950 the way it came from the server.
4952 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4953 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4954 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4957 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4962 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4967 @kindex A < (Summary)
4968 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4969 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4970 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4975 @kindex A > (Summary)
4976 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4977 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4981 @kindex A s (Summary)
4983 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4984 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4985 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4989 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4990 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4995 @node Reply Followup and Post
4996 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4999 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
5000 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
5001 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
5002 * Canceling and Superseding::
5006 @node Summary Mail Commands
5007 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
5009 @cindex composing mail
5011 Commands for composing a mail message:
5017 @kindex S r (Summary)
5019 @findex gnus-summary-reply
5020 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
5021 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
5022 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
5023 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
5028 @kindex S R (Summary)
5029 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
5030 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
5031 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
5032 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
5033 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5036 @kindex S w (Summary)
5037 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
5038 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
5039 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
5040 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5041 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
5044 @kindex S W (Summary)
5045 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
5046 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
5047 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
5048 the process/prefix convention.
5051 @kindex S v (Summary)
5052 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
5053 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
5054 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
5055 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
5056 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
5057 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
5060 @kindex S V (Summary)
5061 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original
5062 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article and include the
5063 original message (@code{gnus-summary-very-wide-reply-with-original}). This
5064 command uses the process/prefix convention.
5068 @kindex S o m (Summary)
5069 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
5070 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
5071 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
5072 Forward the current article to some other person
5073 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
5074 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
5075 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5076 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5077 as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5078 forward as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5079 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5080 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5081 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @sc{mime}
5087 @kindex S m (Summary)
5088 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
5089 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
5090 Prepare a mail (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}). By default, use
5091 the posting style of the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5092 If the prefix is 1, prompt for a group name to find the posting style.
5097 @kindex S i (Summary)
5098 @findex gnus-summary-news-other-window
5099 Prepare a news (@code{gnus-summary-news-other-window}). By default,
5100 post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that. If the
5101 prefix is 1, prompt for a group to post to.
5103 This function actually prepares a news even when using mail groups.
5104 This is useful for "posting" messages to mail groups without actually
5105 sending them over the network: they're just saved directly to the group
5106 in question. The corresponding back end must have a request-post method
5107 for this to work though.
5110 @kindex S D b (Summary)
5111 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
5112 @cindex bouncing mail
5113 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
5114 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
5115 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
5116 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
5117 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
5118 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
5119 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
5120 very well fail, though.
5123 @kindex S D r (Summary)
5124 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
5125 Not to be confused with the previous command,
5126 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
5127 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
5128 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
5129 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
5130 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
5131 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
5132 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
5134 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
5135 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
5136 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
5137 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
5138 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muss sein!
5140 This command understands the process/prefix convention
5141 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5144 @kindex S O m (Summary)
5145 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
5146 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
5147 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
5148 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5151 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
5152 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
5153 @cindex crossposting
5154 @cindex excessive crossposting
5155 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
5156 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
5158 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
5159 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
5160 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
5161 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
5162 command understands the process/prefix convention
5163 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
5167 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5168 Manual}, for more information.
5171 @node Summary Post Commands
5172 @subsection Summary Post Commands
5174 @cindex composing news
5176 Commands for posting a news article:
5182 @kindex S p (Summary)
5183 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
5184 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
5185 Prepare for posting an article (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}). By
5186 default, post to the current group. If given a prefix, disable that.
5187 If the prefix is 1, prompt for another group instead.
5192 @kindex S f (Summary)
5193 @findex gnus-summary-followup
5194 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
5195 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
5199 @kindex S F (Summary)
5201 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
5202 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
5203 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
5204 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
5205 process/prefix convention.
5208 @kindex S n (Summary)
5209 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
5210 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5211 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
5214 @kindex S N (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
5216 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
5217 message through mail and include the original message
5218 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
5219 the process/prefix convention.
5222 @kindex S o p (Summary)
5223 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
5224 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
5225 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
5226 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
5227 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
5228 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
5229 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
5230 as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
5231 forward as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
5232 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
5233 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
5234 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 @sc{mime} section.
5237 @kindex S O p (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
5240 @cindex making digests
5241 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
5242 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
5243 process/prefix convention.
5246 @kindex S u (Summary)
5247 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
5248 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
5249 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
5250 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
5253 Also @xref{Header Commands, ,Header Commands, message, The Message
5254 Manual}, for more information.
5257 @node Summary Message Commands
5258 @subsection Summary Message Commands
5262 @kindex S y (Summary)
5263 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
5264 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
5265 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
5266 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
5267 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5272 @node Canceling and Superseding
5273 @subsection Canceling Articles
5274 @cindex canceling articles
5275 @cindex superseding articles
5277 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
5278 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
5280 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
5282 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
5284 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
5285 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
5286 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
5287 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
5288 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
5289 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5291 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
5292 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
5295 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
5296 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
5297 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
5299 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
5300 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
5301 your original article.
5303 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
5305 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
5306 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
5307 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
5310 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
5311 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
5312 have posted almost the same article twice.
5314 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
5315 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
5316 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
5317 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
5318 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
5319 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
5320 header by substituting one of those words for the word
5321 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
5322 you would do normally. The previous article will be
5323 canceled/superseded.
5325 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
5327 @node Delayed Articles
5328 @section Delayed Articles
5329 @cindex delayed sending
5330 @cindex send delayed
5332 Sometimes, you might wish to delay the sending of a message. For
5333 example, you might wish to arrange for a message to turn up just in time
5334 to remind your about the birthday of your Significant Other. For this,
5335 there is the @code{gnus-delay} package. Setup is simple:
5338 (gnus-delay-initialize)
5341 @findex gnus-delay-article
5342 Normally, to send a message you use the @kbd{C-c C-c} command from
5343 Message mode. To delay a message, use @kbd{C-c C-j}
5344 (@code{gnus-delay-article}) instead. This will ask you for how long the
5345 message should be delayed. Possible answers are:
5349 A time span. Consists of an integer and a letter. For example,
5350 @code{42d} means to delay for 42 days. Available letters are @code{m}
5351 (minutes), @code{h} (hours), @code{d} (days), @code{w} (weeks), @code{M}
5352 (months) and @code{Y} (years).
5355 A specific date. Looks like @code{YYYYY-MM-DD}. The message will be
5356 delayed until that day, at a specific time (eight o'clock by default).
5357 See also @code{gnus-delay-default-hour}.
5360 A specific time of day. Given in @code{hh:mm} format, 24h, no am/pm
5361 stuff. The deadline will be at that time today, except if that time has
5362 already passed, then it's at the given time tomorrow. So if it's ten
5363 o'clock in the morning and you specify @code{11:15}, then the deadline
5364 is one hour and fifteen minutes hence. But if you specify @code{9:20},
5365 that means a time tomorrow.
5368 The action of the @code{gnus-delay-article} command is influenced by a
5369 couple of variables:
5372 @item gnus-delay-default-hour
5373 @vindex gnus-delay-default-hour
5374 When you specify a specific date, the message will be due on that hour
5375 on the given date. Possible values are integers 0 through 23.
5377 @item gnus-delay-default-delay
5378 @vindex gnus-delay-default-delay
5379 This is a string and gives the default delay. It can be of any of the
5380 formats described above.
5382 @item gnus-delay-group
5383 @vindex gnus-delay-group
5384 Delayed articles will be kept in this group on the drafts server until
5385 they are due. You probably don't need to change this. The default
5386 value is @code{"delayed"}.
5388 @item gnus-delay-header
5389 @vindex gnus-delay-header
5390 The deadline for each article will be stored in a header. This variable
5391 is a string and gives the header name. You probably don't need to
5392 change this. The default value is @code{"X-Gnus-Delayed"}.
5395 The way delaying works is like this: when you use the
5396 @code{gnus-delay-article} command, you give a certain delay. Gnus
5397 calculates the deadline of the message and stores it in the
5398 @code{X-Gnus-Delayed} header and puts the message in the
5399 @code{nndraft:delayed} group.
5401 And whenever you get new news, Gnus looks through the group for articles
5402 which are due and sends them. It uses the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue}
5403 function for this. By default, this function is added to the hook
5404 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But of course, you can change this.
5405 Maybe you want to use the demon to send drafts? Just tell the demon to
5406 execute the @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} function.
5409 @item gnus-delay-initialize
5410 @findex gnus-delay-initialize
5411 By default, this function installs the @kbd{C-c C-j} key binding in
5412 Message mode and @code{gnus-delay-send-queue} in
5413 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. But it accepts two optional arguments,
5414 @code{no-keymap} and @code{no-check}. If @code{no-keymap} is non-nil,
5415 the @kbd{C-c C-j} binding is not intalled. If @code{no-check} is
5416 non-nil, @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is not changed.
5418 For example, @code{(gnus-delay-initialize nil t)} means to change the
5419 keymap but not to change @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook}. Presumably, you
5420 want to use the demon for sending due delayed articles. Just don't
5421 forget to set that up :-)
5425 @node Marking Articles
5426 @section Marking Articles
5427 @cindex article marking
5428 @cindex article ticking
5431 There are several marks you can set on an article.
5433 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
5434 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
5435 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
5437 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
5440 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
5441 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
5442 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
5446 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
5450 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
5451 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
5452 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
5456 @node Unread Articles
5457 @subsection Unread Articles
5459 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5464 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5465 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5467 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5468 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5469 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5470 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5471 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5472 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5473 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5476 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5477 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5479 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5480 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5481 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5482 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5486 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5487 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5489 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5494 @subsection Read Articles
5495 @cindex expirable mark
5497 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5502 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5503 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5504 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5507 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5508 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5511 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5512 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5513 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5516 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5517 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5520 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5521 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5524 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5525 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5528 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5529 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5532 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5533 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5536 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5537 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5540 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5541 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5545 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5546 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5547 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5551 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5552 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5554 One more special mark, though:
5558 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5559 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5561 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5562 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5563 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5564 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5570 @subsection Other Marks
5571 @cindex process mark
5574 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5580 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5581 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5582 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5583 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5584 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5587 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5588 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5589 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5590 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5593 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5594 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5595 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5598 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5599 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5600 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5603 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5604 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5605 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5606 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5609 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5610 Articles that according to the back end haven't been seen by the user
5611 before are marked with a @samp{N} in the second column
5612 (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Note that not all back ends support this
5613 mark, in which case it simply never appears.
5616 @vindex gnus-unseen-mark
5617 Articles that haven't been seen by the user before are marked with a
5618 @samp{.} in the second column (@code{gnus-unseen-mark}).
5621 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5622 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5623 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5624 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5625 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5628 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5629 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5630 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5631 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5632 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5633 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5637 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5638 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5639 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5641 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5642 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5643 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5647 @subsection Setting Marks
5648 @cindex setting marks
5650 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5655 @kindex M c (Summary)
5656 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5657 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5658 @cindex mark as unread
5659 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5660 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5666 @kindex M t (Summary)
5667 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5668 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5669 @xref{Article Caching}.
5674 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5675 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5676 Mark the current article as dormant
5677 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5681 @kindex M d (Summary)
5683 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5684 Mark the current article as read
5685 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5689 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5690 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5691 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5696 @kindex M k (Summary)
5697 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5698 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5699 and then select the next unread article
5700 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5704 @kindex M K (Summary)
5705 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5706 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5707 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5708 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5711 @kindex M C (Summary)
5712 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5713 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5714 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5717 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5718 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5719 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5720 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5723 @kindex M H (Summary)
5724 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5725 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5726 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5729 @kindex M h (Summary)
5730 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5731 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5732 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5735 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5736 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5737 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5738 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5741 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5742 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5743 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5744 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5748 @kindex M e (Summary)
5750 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5751 Mark the current article as expirable
5752 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5755 @kindex M b (Summary)
5756 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5757 Set a bookmark in the current article
5758 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5761 @kindex M B (Summary)
5762 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5763 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5764 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5767 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5768 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5769 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5770 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5773 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5774 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5775 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5776 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5779 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5780 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5781 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5782 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5783 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5786 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5787 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5788 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5789 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5790 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5791 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5792 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5793 The default is @code{t}.
5796 @node Generic Marking Commands
5797 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5799 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5800 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5801 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5802 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5803 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5806 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5807 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5810 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5811 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5812 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5813 to list in this manual.
5815 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5816 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5817 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5818 article, you could say something like:
5821 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5822 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5823 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5829 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5830 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5834 @node Setting Process Marks
5835 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5836 @cindex setting process marks
5843 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5844 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5845 Mark the current article with the process mark
5846 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5847 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5851 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5852 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5853 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5854 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5857 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5858 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5859 Remove the process mark from all articles
5860 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5863 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5864 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5865 Invert the list of process marked articles
5866 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5869 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5870 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5871 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5872 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5875 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5876 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5877 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5878 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5881 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5882 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5883 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5886 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5887 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5888 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5889 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5892 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5893 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5894 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5895 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5898 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5899 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5900 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5901 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5904 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5905 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5906 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5909 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5910 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5911 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5912 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5915 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5916 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5917 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5920 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5921 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5922 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5923 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5926 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5927 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5928 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5929 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5932 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5933 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5934 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5935 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5938 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5939 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5940 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5941 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5945 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5946 set process marks based on article body contents.
5953 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5954 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5955 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5958 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5959 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5960 additional articles.
5966 @kindex / / (Summary)
5967 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5968 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5969 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}). If given a prefix, exclude
5973 @kindex / a (Summary)
5974 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5975 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5976 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}). If given a prefix, exclude
5980 @kindex / x (Summary)
5981 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5982 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5983 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5984 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}). If given a prefix, exclude
5989 @kindex / u (Summary)
5991 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5992 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5993 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5994 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5995 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5998 @kindex / m (Summary)
5999 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
6000 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
6001 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
6004 @kindex / t (Summary)
6005 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
6006 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
6007 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
6008 articles younger than that number of days.
6011 @kindex / n (Summary)
6012 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
6013 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
6014 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
6015 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6018 @kindex / w (Summary)
6019 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
6020 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
6021 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
6025 @kindex / v (Summary)
6026 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
6027 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
6028 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
6031 @kindex / p (Summary)
6032 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate
6033 Limit the summary buffer to articles that satisfy the @code{display}
6034 group parameter predicate
6035 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-display-predicate}). See @pxref{Group
6036 Parameters} for more on this predicate.
6040 @kindex M S (Summary)
6041 @kindex / E (Summary)
6042 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
6043 Include all expunged articles in the limit
6044 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
6047 @kindex / D (Summary)
6048 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
6049 Include all dormant articles in the limit
6050 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
6053 @kindex / * (Summary)
6054 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
6055 Include all cached articles in the limit
6056 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
6059 @kindex / d (Summary)
6060 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
6061 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
6062 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
6065 @kindex / M (Summary)
6066 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
6067 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
6070 @kindex / T (Summary)
6071 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
6072 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
6075 @kindex / c (Summary)
6076 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
6077 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
6078 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
6081 @kindex / C (Summary)
6082 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
6083 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
6084 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
6085 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
6088 @kindex / N (Summary)
6089 @findex gnus-summary-insert-new-articles
6090 Insert all new articles in the summary buffer. It scans for new emails
6091 if @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} is non-@code{nil}.
6094 @kindex / o (Summary)
6095 @findex gnus-summary-insert-old-articles
6096 Insert all old articles in the summary buffer. If given a numbered
6097 prefix, fetch this number of articles.
6105 @cindex article threading
6107 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
6108 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
6109 hierarchical fashion.
6111 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
6112 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
6113 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
6114 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
6115 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
6116 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
6117 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
6119 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
6123 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
6126 A tree-like article structure.
6129 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
6132 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
6133 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
6134 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
6135 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
6136 called loose threads.
6138 @item thread gathering
6139 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
6141 @item sparse threads
6142 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
6143 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
6149 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
6150 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
6154 @node Customizing Threading
6155 @subsection Customizing Threading
6156 @cindex customizing threading
6159 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
6160 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
6161 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
6162 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
6167 @subsubsection Loose Threads
6170 @cindex loose threads
6173 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
6174 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
6175 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
6176 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
6177 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
6178 read or killed the root in a previous session.
6180 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
6181 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
6182 There are four possible values:
6186 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
6187 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-adopt,width=7.5cm}}
6188 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-empty,width=7.5cm}}}
6189 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-none,width=7.5cm}}}
6190 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=ps/summary-dummy,width=7.5cm}}}
6195 @cindex adopting articles
6200 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
6201 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
6202 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
6203 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
6206 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
6207 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
6208 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
6209 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
6210 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
6211 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
6212 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6215 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
6216 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
6217 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
6221 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
6222 display them after one another.
6225 Don't gather loose threads.
6228 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6229 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
6230 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
6231 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
6232 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
6233 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
6234 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
6235 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
6236 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
6237 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
6238 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
6240 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
6241 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
6242 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
6245 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6246 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
6247 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
6248 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
6249 simplification is used.
6251 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6252 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6253 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
6254 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
6256 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
6258 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
6264 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
6265 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
6266 "answer" "reference" "announce"
6267 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
6272 (mapconcat 'identity
6273 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
6275 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
6278 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
6281 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6282 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
6283 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
6284 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
6285 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
6286 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
6288 Useful functions to put in this list include:
6291 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
6292 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
6293 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
6295 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6296 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
6299 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
6300 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
6301 Remove excessive whitespace.
6303 @item gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6304 @findex gnus-simplify-all-whitespace
6305 Remove all whitespace.
6308 You may also write your own functions, of course.
6311 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6312 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
6313 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
6314 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
6315 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
6316 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
6317 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
6318 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
6320 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6321 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6322 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
6323 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
6324 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
6325 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
6326 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
6327 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
6328 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
6332 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6333 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
6334 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
6335 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
6337 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6338 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
6339 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
6342 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
6346 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
6347 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
6353 @node Filling In Threads
6354 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
6357 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
6358 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
6359 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
6360 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
6361 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
6362 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
6363 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
6364 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
6365 fetching old headers only works if the back end you are using carries
6366 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool},
6367 @code{nnml}, and @code{nnmaildir}. Also remember that if the root of
6368 the thread has been expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do
6371 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
6372 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
6373 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
6375 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
6376 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
6377 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
6378 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
6379 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
6380 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
6381 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
6382 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
6383 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
6384 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
6385 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
6386 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
6387 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
6388 @code{nil} by default.
6390 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
6391 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
6392 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
6393 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the back end has to fetch
6394 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
6395 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
6396 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
6398 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
6399 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
6400 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
6405 @node More Threading
6406 @subsubsection More Threading
6409 @item gnus-show-threads
6410 @vindex gnus-show-threads
6411 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
6412 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
6413 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
6414 slower and more awkward.
6416 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6417 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6418 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
6421 This can also be a predicate specifier (@pxref{Predicate Specifiers}).
6422 Avaliable predicates are @code{gnus-article-unread-p} and
6423 @code{gnus-article-unseen-p}).
6428 (setq gnus-thread-hide-subtree
6429 '(or gnus-article-unread-p
6430 gnus-article-unseen-p))
6433 (It's a pretty nonsensical example, since all unseen articles are also
6434 unread, but you get my drift.)
6437 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
6438 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
6439 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
6440 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
6441 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
6442 threads are expunged.
6444 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
6445 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
6446 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
6449 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6450 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
6451 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
6452 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
6453 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
6454 result in a new thread.
6456 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
6457 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
6458 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
6461 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6462 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
6463 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
6464 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
6465 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
6466 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
6467 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
6468 Setting this variable to an alternate value
6469 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
6470 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
6471 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
6476 @node Low-Level Threading
6477 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
6481 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
6482 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
6483 Hook run before parsing any headers.
6485 @item gnus-alter-header-function
6486 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
6487 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
6488 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
6489 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
6490 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
6491 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
6492 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
6493 meaningful. Here's one example:
6496 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
6498 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
6499 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
6501 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
6503 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
6510 @node Thread Commands
6511 @subsection Thread Commands
6512 @cindex thread commands
6518 @kindex T k (Summary)
6519 @kindex C-M-k (Summary)
6520 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6521 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6522 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6523 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6528 @kindex T l (Summary)
6529 @kindex C-M-l (Summary)
6530 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6531 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6532 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6535 @kindex T i (Summary)
6536 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6537 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6538 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6541 @kindex T # (Summary)
6542 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6543 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6544 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6547 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6548 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6549 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6550 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6553 @kindex T T (Summary)
6554 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6555 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6558 @kindex T s (Summary)
6559 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6560 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6561 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6564 @kindex T h (Summary)
6565 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6566 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6569 @kindex T S (Summary)
6570 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6571 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6574 @kindex T H (Summary)
6575 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6576 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6579 @kindex T t (Summary)
6580 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6581 Re-thread the current article's thread
6582 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6583 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6586 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6587 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6588 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6589 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6593 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6594 understand the numeric prefix.
6599 @kindex T n (Summary)
6601 @kindex C-M-n (Summary)
6603 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6604 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6605 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6608 @kindex T p (Summary)
6610 @kindex C-M-p (Summary)
6612 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6613 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6614 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6617 @kindex T d (Summary)
6618 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6619 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6622 @kindex T u (Summary)
6623 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6624 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6627 @kindex T o (Summary)
6628 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6629 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6632 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6633 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6634 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6635 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6636 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6637 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6638 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6639 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6640 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6641 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6642 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6643 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6647 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6648 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6650 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6651 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6652 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6653 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6654 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6655 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6656 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-random
6657 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6658 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-thread
6659 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6660 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6661 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6662 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6664 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6665 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6666 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6667 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score},
6668 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-number},
6669 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-most-recent-date},
6670 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-random} and
6671 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6673 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6674 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6675 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6677 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6678 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6679 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6680 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6681 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6682 ascending article order.
6684 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6685 by number, you could do something like:
6688 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6689 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6690 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6691 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6694 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6695 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6696 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6697 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6698 which the articles arrived.
6700 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6704 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6706 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6707 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6710 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6711 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6712 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6713 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6716 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6717 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6718 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6719 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6720 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6721 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-random
6722 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6723 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or
6724 other, you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions}
6725 variable. It is very similar to the
6726 @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that it uses slightly
6727 different functions for article comparison. Available sorting
6728 predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6729 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author},
6730 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date},
6731 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-random}, and
6732 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6734 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6738 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6739 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6740 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6745 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6746 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6747 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6748 @cindex article pre-fetch
6751 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6752 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6753 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6754 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6755 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6757 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6758 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6760 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6761 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6762 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6763 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6764 connection is blocked.
6766 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6767 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6768 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6769 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6771 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6772 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6773 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6774 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6777 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6780 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6781 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6782 happen automatically.
6784 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6785 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6786 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6787 that when you read an article in the group, the back end will pre-fetch
6788 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the back end will
6789 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6790 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6792 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6793 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6794 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6795 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6796 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6797 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6798 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6799 data structure as the only parameter.
6801 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6804 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6805 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6806 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6807 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6810 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6813 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6814 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6815 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6817 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6818 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6819 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6820 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6824 Remove articles when they are read.
6827 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6830 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6832 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6833 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6834 @c from the next group.
6837 @node Article Caching
6838 @section Article Caching
6839 @cindex article caching
6842 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6843 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6844 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6845 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6846 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6848 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6850 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6851 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6852 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6853 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6854 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6855 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6856 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6857 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6859 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6860 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6861 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6862 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6863 as dormant, and don't worry.
6865 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6867 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6868 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6869 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6870 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6871 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6872 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6873 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6874 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6875 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6876 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6878 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6879 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6880 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6881 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6882 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6883 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6884 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6885 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6886 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6887 not then be downloaded by this command.
6889 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6890 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6891 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6892 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6893 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6894 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6896 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6897 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6898 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6899 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6900 variables, the group is not cached.
6902 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6903 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6904 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6905 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6906 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6907 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6908 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6909 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6910 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6913 @findex gnus-cache-move-cache
6914 @code{gnus-cache-move-cache} will move your whole
6915 @code{gnus-cache-directory} to some other location. You get asked to
6916 where, isn't that cool?
6918 @node Persistent Articles
6919 @section Persistent Articles
6920 @cindex persistent articles
6922 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6923 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6924 useful in my opinion.
6926 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6927 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6928 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6929 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6930 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6931 the expiry going on at the news server.
6933 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6934 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6935 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6941 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6942 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6945 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6946 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6947 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6948 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6952 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6954 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6955 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6956 interested in persistent articles:
6959 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6963 @node Article Backlog
6964 @section Article Backlog
6966 @cindex article backlog
6968 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6969 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6970 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6971 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6972 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6973 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6974 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6975 increase memory usage some.
6977 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6978 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6979 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6980 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6981 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6982 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6983 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6985 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6988 @node Saving Articles
6989 @section Saving Articles
6990 @cindex saving articles
6992 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6993 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6994 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6995 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6996 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6998 For the commands listed here, the target is a file. If you want to
6999 save to a group, see the @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article})
7000 command (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
7002 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
7003 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
7004 unwanted headers before saving the article.
7006 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
7007 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
7008 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
7009 deleted before saving.
7015 @kindex O o (Summary)
7017 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
7018 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
7019 Save the current article using the default article saver
7020 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
7023 @kindex O m (Summary)
7024 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
7025 Save the current article in mail format
7026 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
7029 @kindex O r (Summary)
7030 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
7031 Save the current article in rmail format
7032 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
7035 @kindex O f (Summary)
7036 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
7037 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
7038 Save the current article in plain file format
7039 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
7042 @kindex O F (Summary)
7043 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
7044 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
7045 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
7048 @kindex O b (Summary)
7049 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
7050 Save the current article body in plain file format
7051 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
7054 @kindex O h (Summary)
7055 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
7056 Save the current article in mh folder format
7057 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
7060 @kindex O v (Summary)
7061 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
7062 Save the current article in a VM folder
7063 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
7067 @kindex O p (Summary)
7069 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
7070 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
7071 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
7074 @kindex O P (Summary)
7075 @findex gnus-summary-muttprint
7076 @vindex gnus-summary-muttprint-program
7077 Save the current article into muttprint. That is, print it using the
7078 external program Muttprint (see
7079 @uref{http://muttprint.sourceforge.net/}). The program name and
7080 options to use is controlled by the variable
7081 @code{gnus-summary-muttprint-program}. (@code{gnus-summary-muttprint}).
7085 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
7086 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
7087 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
7088 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
7089 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
7090 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
7091 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
7092 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
7093 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
7094 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
7095 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
7096 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
7100 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
7101 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
7102 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
7103 functions below, or you can create your own.
7107 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7108 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
7109 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
7110 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7111 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
7112 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7113 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7115 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7116 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
7117 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
7118 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
7119 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7120 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
7122 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
7123 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
7124 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
7125 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7126 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
7127 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7128 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7130 @item gnus-summary-write-to-file
7131 @findex gnus-summary-write-to-file
7132 Write the article straight to an ordinary file. The file is
7133 overwritten if it exists. Uses the function in the
7134 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7135 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7137 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7138 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
7139 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
7140 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
7141 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
7143 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7144 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
7145 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
7146 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
7147 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
7150 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
7151 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
7152 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
7153 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
7154 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
7156 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7157 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
7158 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
7159 reader to use this setting.
7162 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
7163 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
7164 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
7165 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
7168 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
7169 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
7170 available functions that generate names:
7174 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
7175 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
7176 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7178 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
7179 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
7180 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
7182 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
7183 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
7184 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7186 @item gnus-plain-save-name
7187 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
7188 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
7190 @item gnus-sender-save-name
7191 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
7192 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
7195 @vindex gnus-split-methods
7196 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
7197 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
7198 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
7199 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
7203 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
7204 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
7205 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
7206 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
7209 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
7210 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
7211 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
7212 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
7213 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
7214 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
7215 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
7216 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
7217 called returns a string or a list of strings.
7219 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
7220 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
7221 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
7222 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
7224 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
7225 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
7226 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
7229 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
7230 lots of mail groups called things like
7231 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
7232 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
7233 following will do just that:
7236 (defun my-save-name (group)
7237 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
7238 (substring group (match-end 0))))
7240 (setq gnus-split-methods
7241 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
7246 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
7247 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
7248 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
7249 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
7250 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
7251 all the files in the top level directory
7252 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
7253 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
7254 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
7255 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
7257 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
7258 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
7259 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
7260 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
7261 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
7264 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
7268 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
7269 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
7270 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
7273 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
7274 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
7275 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
7276 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
7279 @node Decoding Articles
7280 @section Decoding Articles
7281 @cindex decoding articles
7283 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
7284 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
7287 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
7288 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
7289 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
7290 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
7291 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
7292 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
7296 @cindex article series
7297 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
7298 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
7299 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
7300 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
7301 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
7303 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
7304 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
7305 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
7307 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
7308 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
7309 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
7311 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
7312 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
7313 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
7316 @node Uuencoded Articles
7317 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
7319 @cindex uuencoded articles
7324 @kindex X u (Summary)
7325 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
7326 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
7327 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
7330 @kindex X U (Summary)
7331 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
7332 Uudecodes and saves the current series
7333 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7336 @kindex X v u (Summary)
7337 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
7338 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
7341 @kindex X v U (Summary)
7342 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
7343 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
7344 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
7348 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
7349 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
7350 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
7351 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
7352 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
7354 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
7355 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
7356 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
7357 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
7360 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
7361 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
7362 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
7363 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
7364 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
7365 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
7369 @node Shell Archives
7370 @subsection Shell Archives
7372 @cindex shell archives
7373 @cindex shared articles
7375 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
7376 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
7377 some commands to deal with these:
7382 @kindex X s (Summary)
7383 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
7384 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
7387 @kindex X S (Summary)
7388 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
7389 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
7392 @kindex X v s (Summary)
7393 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
7394 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
7397 @kindex X v S (Summary)
7398 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
7399 Unshars, views and saves the current series
7400 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
7404 @node PostScript Files
7405 @subsection PostScript Files
7411 @kindex X p (Summary)
7412 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
7413 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
7416 @kindex X P (Summary)
7417 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
7418 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
7419 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
7422 @kindex X v p (Summary)
7423 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
7424 View the current PostScript series
7425 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
7428 @kindex X v P (Summary)
7429 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
7430 View and save the current PostScript series
7431 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
7436 @subsection Other Files
7440 @kindex X o (Summary)
7441 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
7442 Save the current series
7443 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
7446 @kindex X b (Summary)
7447 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
7448 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
7449 doesn't really work yet.
7453 @node Decoding Variables
7454 @subsection Decoding Variables
7456 Adjective, not verb.
7459 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
7460 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
7461 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
7465 @node Rule Variables
7466 @subsubsection Rule Variables
7467 @cindex rule variables
7469 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
7470 variables are of the form
7473 (list '(regexp1 command2)
7480 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7481 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7483 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
7484 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
7487 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
7488 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
7491 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7492 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
7493 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
7494 user and default view rules.
7496 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7497 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
7498 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
7503 @node Other Decode Variables
7504 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
7507 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7509 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
7510 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
7511 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
7512 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
7513 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
7517 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
7518 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
7521 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
7522 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
7523 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
7526 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7527 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
7528 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
7529 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
7530 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
7533 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7534 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
7535 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
7537 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7538 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
7539 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
7540 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
7541 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
7544 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7545 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
7546 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7548 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7549 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7550 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7551 looking for files to display.
7553 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7554 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7555 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7558 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7559 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7560 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7563 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7564 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7565 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7568 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7569 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7570 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7573 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7574 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7575 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7576 decoded articles as unread.
7578 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7579 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7580 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7581 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7583 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7584 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7585 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7587 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7588 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7590 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7591 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7592 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7593 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7595 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7596 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7597 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7598 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7599 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7600 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7601 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7602 simply dropped them.
7607 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7608 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7612 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7613 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7614 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7615 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7616 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7617 for you when you post the article.
7619 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7620 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7621 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7622 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7624 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7625 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7626 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7627 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7628 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7629 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7630 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7632 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7633 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7634 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7635 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7636 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7637 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7638 Default is @code{t}.
7644 @subsection Viewing Files
7645 @cindex viewing files
7646 @cindex pseudo-articles
7648 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7649 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7650 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7651 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7652 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7653 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7654 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7656 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7657 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7658 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7659 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7661 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7662 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7663 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7665 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7666 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7667 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7668 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7669 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7671 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7672 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7673 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7674 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7675 a list of parameters to that command.
7677 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7678 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7679 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7681 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7682 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7683 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7686 @node Article Treatment
7687 @section Article Treatment
7689 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7690 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7691 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7692 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7693 these articles easier.
7696 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7697 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7698 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7699 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7700 * Article Header:: Doing various header transformations.
7701 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7702 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7703 * Article Display:: Display various stuff---X-Face, Picons, Smileys
7704 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7705 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7709 @node Article Highlighting
7710 @subsection Article Highlighting
7711 @cindex highlighting
7713 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7714 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7719 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7720 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7721 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7722 Do much highlighting of the current article
7723 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7724 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7727 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7728 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7729 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7730 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7731 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7732 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7733 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7734 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7735 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7736 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7737 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7738 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7741 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7742 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7743 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7745 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7748 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7750 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7751 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7752 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7754 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7755 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7756 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7758 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7759 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7760 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7761 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7762 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7763 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7765 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7766 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7767 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7769 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7770 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7771 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7773 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7774 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7775 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7776 that it's a citation.
7778 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7779 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7780 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7782 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7783 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7784 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7786 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7787 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7788 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7789 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7795 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7796 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7797 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7798 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7799 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7800 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7801 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7802 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7807 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7810 @node Article Fontisizing
7811 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7813 @cindex article emphasis
7815 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7816 @kindex W e (Summary)
7817 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7818 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7819 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7820 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7822 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7823 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7824 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7825 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7826 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7827 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7828 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7829 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7833 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7834 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7835 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7844 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7845 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7846 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7847 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7848 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7849 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7850 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7851 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7852 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7853 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7854 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7855 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7856 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7858 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7859 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7860 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7864 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7867 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7869 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7870 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7871 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7872 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7874 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7877 @node Article Hiding
7878 @subsection Article Hiding
7879 @cindex article hiding
7881 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7882 too much cruft in most articles.
7887 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7888 @findex gnus-article-hide
7889 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7890 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7891 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7894 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7895 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7896 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7900 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7901 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7902 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7903 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7906 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7907 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7908 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7912 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7913 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7914 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7915 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7916 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7917 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7918 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7919 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7923 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7924 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7925 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7926 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7931 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7932 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7933 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7934 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7935 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7936 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7937 articles that have signatures in them do:
7939 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7941 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7943 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7944 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7946 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7949 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7954 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7955 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7956 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7957 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7960 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7961 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7964 @cindex stripping advertisements
7965 @cindex advertisements
7966 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7967 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7968 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7969 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7970 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7971 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7972 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7973 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7974 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7975 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7979 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7980 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7981 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7982 customizing the hiding:
7986 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7987 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7988 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7989 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7990 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7991 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7992 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7997 Starting point of the hidden text.
7999 Ending point of the hidden text.
8001 Number of characters in the hidden region.
8003 Number of lines of hidden text.
8006 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
8007 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
8008 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
8009 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
8010 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
8015 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
8016 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
8018 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
8019 following two variables:
8022 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8023 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
8024 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
8025 50), hide the cited text.
8027 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8028 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
8029 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
8034 @kindex W W C (Summary)
8035 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
8036 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
8037 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
8038 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
8039 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
8043 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
8044 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
8045 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
8047 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
8048 citation customization.
8050 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
8054 @node Article Washing
8055 @subsection Article Washing
8057 @cindex article washing
8059 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
8060 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
8062 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
8063 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
8066 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
8067 articles by default.
8072 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
8073 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
8077 @kindex W l (Summary)
8078 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
8079 Remove page breaks from the current article
8080 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
8084 @kindex W r (Summary)
8085 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
8086 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
8087 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
8088 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
8089 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
8090 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
8092 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
8093 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
8094 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
8095 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
8099 @kindex W t (Summary)
8101 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
8102 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
8103 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
8106 @kindex W v (Summary)
8107 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-headers
8108 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
8109 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-headers}).
8112 @kindex W o (Summary)
8113 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
8114 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
8117 @kindex W d (Summary)
8118 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
8119 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
8121 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
8123 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
8124 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
8125 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
8126 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
8129 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
8130 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
8131 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
8132 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
8135 @kindex W k (Summary)
8136 @findex gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article
8137 @cindex Outlook Express
8138 Deuglify broken Outlook (Express) articles and redisplay
8139 (@code{gnus-article-outlook-deuglify-article}).
8142 @kindex W w (Summary)
8143 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
8144 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
8146 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
8150 @kindex W Q (Summary)
8151 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
8152 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
8155 @kindex W C (Summary)
8156 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
8157 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
8158 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
8161 @kindex W c (Summary)
8162 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
8163 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
8164 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
8165 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
8166 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
8169 @kindex W q (Summary)
8170 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
8171 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
8172 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
8173 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
8174 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
8175 readable to me. Note that this is usually done automatically by
8176 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
8177 header that says that this encoding has been done.
8178 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8181 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
8182 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
8183 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
8184 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
8185 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that this is usually done
8186 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8187 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
8189 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8192 @kindex W Z (Summary)
8193 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
8194 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
8195 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
8196 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
8199 @kindex W u (Summary)
8200 @findex gnus-article-unsplit-urls
8201 Remove newlines from within URLs. Some mailers insert newlines into
8202 outgoing email messages to keep lines short. This reformatting can
8203 split long URLs onto multiple lines. Repair those URLs by removing
8204 the newlines (@code{gnus-article-unsplit-urls}).
8207 @kindex W h (Summary)
8208 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
8209 Treat @sc{html} (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}). Note that this is
8210 usually done automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
8211 @code{Content-Type} header that says that the message is @sc{html}.
8213 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
8215 @vindex gnus-article-wash-function
8216 The default is to use the function specified by
8217 @code{mm-inline-text-html-renderer} (@pxref{Customization, , , emacs-mime})
8218 to convert the @sc{html}, but this is controlled by the
8219 @code{gnus-article-wash-function} variable. Pre-defined functions you
8227 Use emacs-w3m (see @uref{http://emacs-w3m.namazu.org/} for more
8231 Use Links (see @uref{http://artax.karlin.mff.cuni.cz/~mikulas/links/}).
8234 Use Lynx (see @uref{http://lynx.browser.org/}).
8237 Use html2text -- a simple @sc{html} converter included with Gnus.
8242 @kindex W b (Summary)
8243 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
8244 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
8245 @xref{Article Buttons}.
8248 @kindex W B (Summary)
8249 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
8250 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
8251 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
8254 @kindex W p (Summary)
8255 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
8256 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
8257 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
8258 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
8259 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
8260 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
8261 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
8264 @kindex W s (Summary)
8265 @findex gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt
8266 Verify a signed (PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}) message
8267 (@code{gnus-summary-force-verify-and-decrypt}). @xref{Security}.
8270 @kindex W a (Summary)
8271 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body
8272 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
8273 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-in-body}).
8276 @kindex W E l (Summary)
8277 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
8278 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
8279 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
8282 @kindex W E m (Summary)
8283 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
8284 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
8285 lines with a single empty line.
8286 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
8289 @kindex W E t (Summary)
8290 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
8291 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
8292 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
8295 @kindex W E a (Summary)
8296 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
8297 Do all the three commands above
8298 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
8301 @kindex W E A (Summary)
8302 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
8303 Remove all blank lines
8304 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
8307 @kindex W E s (Summary)
8308 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
8309 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
8310 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
8313 @kindex W E e (Summary)
8314 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
8315 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
8316 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
8320 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
8323 @node Article Header
8324 @subsection Article Header
8326 These commands perform various transformations of article header.
8331 @kindex W G u (Summary)
8332 @findex gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers
8333 Unfold folded header lines (@code{gnus-article-treat-unfold-headers}).
8336 @kindex W G n (Summary)
8337 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups
8338 Fold the @code{Newsgroups} and @code{Followup-To} headers
8339 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-newsgroups}).
8342 @kindex W G f (Summary)
8343 @findex gnus-article-treat-fold-header
8344 Fold all the message headers
8345 (@code{gnus-article-treat-fold-headers}).
8349 @findex gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace
8350 Remove excessive whitespace from all headers
8351 (@code{gnus-article-remove-leading-whitespace}).
8356 @node Article Buttons
8357 @subsection Article Buttons
8360 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
8361 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
8362 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
8363 button on these references.
8365 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
8366 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
8367 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
8372 @item gnus-button-alist
8373 @vindex gnus-button-alist
8374 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
8377 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8383 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
8384 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
8385 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}. This can also be a variable containing a
8386 regexp, useful variables to use include @code{gnus-button-url-regexp}.
8389 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
8390 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
8391 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
8394 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
8395 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
8396 avoid false matches.
8399 This function will be called when you click on this button.
8402 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
8403 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
8407 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
8410 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
8413 @item gnus-header-button-alist
8414 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
8415 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
8416 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
8417 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
8420 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
8423 @var{header} is a regular expression.
8425 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
8426 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
8427 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
8428 default values of the variables above.
8430 @item gnus-article-button-face
8431 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
8432 Face used on buttons.
8434 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
8435 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
8436 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
8440 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
8444 @subsection Article Date
8446 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
8447 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
8448 when the article was sent.
8453 @kindex W T u (Summary)
8454 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
8455 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
8456 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
8459 @kindex W T i (Summary)
8460 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
8462 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
8463 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
8466 @kindex W T l (Summary)
8467 @findex gnus-article-date-local
8468 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
8471 @kindex W T p (Summary)
8472 @findex gnus-article-date-english
8473 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
8474 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
8477 @kindex W T s (Summary)
8478 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
8479 @findex gnus-article-date-user
8480 @findex format-time-string
8481 Display the date using a user-defined format
8482 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
8483 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
8484 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
8485 for a list of possible format specs.
8488 @kindex W T e (Summary)
8489 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
8490 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
8491 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
8492 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
8493 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
8496 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
8499 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
8500 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
8503 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
8504 into wonderful absurdities.
8506 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
8509 (gnus-start-date-timer)
8512 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
8513 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
8517 @kindex W T o (Summary)
8518 @findex gnus-article-date-original
8519 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
8520 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
8521 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
8522 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
8523 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
8527 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
8528 preferred format automatically.
8531 @node Article Display
8532 @subsection Article Display
8537 These commands add various frivolous display gimmics to the article
8538 buffer in Emacs versions that support them.
8540 @code{X-Face} headers are small black-and-white images supplied by the
8541 message headers (@pxref{X-Face}).
8543 Picons, on the other hand, reside on your own system, and Gnus will
8544 try to match the headers to what you have (@pxref{Picons}).
8546 Smileys are those little @samp{:-)} symbols that people like to litter
8547 their messages with (@pxref{Smileys}).
8549 All these functions are toggles--if the elements already exist,
8554 @kindex W D x (Summary)
8555 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
8556 Display an @code{X-Face} in the @code{From} header.
8557 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}).
8560 @kindex W D s (Summary)
8561 @findex gnus-treat-smiley
8562 Display smileys (@code{gnus-treat-smiley}).
8565 @kindex W D f (Summary)
8566 @findex gnus-treat-from-picon
8567 Piconify the @code{From} header (@code{gnus-treat-from-picon}).
8570 @kindex W D m (Summary)
8571 @findex gnus-treat-mail-picon
8572 Piconify all mail headers (i. e., @code{Cc}, @code{To})
8573 (@code{gnus-treat-mail-picon}).
8576 @kindex W D n (Summary)
8577 @findex gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon
8578 Piconify all news headers (i. e., @code{Newsgroups} and
8579 @code{Followup-To}) (@code{gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon}).
8582 @kindex W D D (Summary)
8583 @findex gnus-article-remove-images
8584 Remove all images from the article buffer
8585 (@code{gnus-article-remove-images}).
8591 @node Article Signature
8592 @subsection Article Signature
8594 @cindex article signature
8596 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
8597 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
8598 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
8599 that says what is to be considered a signature is
8600 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
8601 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
8602 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
8603 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
8604 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
8607 (setq gnus-signature-separator
8608 '("^-- $" ; The standard
8609 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
8610 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
8611 ; line of dashes. Shame!
8612 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
8613 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
8614 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
8617 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
8620 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
8621 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
8622 signature when displaying articles.
8626 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
8629 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
8632 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
8633 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
8635 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
8636 in question is not a signature.
8639 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
8640 listed above. Here's an example:
8643 (setq gnus-signature-limit
8644 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
8647 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
8648 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
8649 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
8650 signature after all.
8653 @node Article Miscellania
8654 @subsection Article Miscellania
8658 @kindex A t (Summary)
8659 @findex gnus-article-babel
8660 Translate the article from one language to another
8661 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8667 @section MIME Commands
8668 @cindex MIME decoding
8670 @cindex viewing attachments
8672 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8673 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8679 @kindex K v (Summary)
8680 View the @sc{mime} part.
8683 @kindex K o (Summary)
8684 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8687 @kindex K c (Summary)
8688 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8691 @kindex K e (Summary)
8692 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8695 @kindex K i (Summary)
8696 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8699 @kindex K | (Summary)
8700 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8703 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8708 @kindex K b (Summary)
8709 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8710 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8714 @kindex K m (Summary)
8715 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8716 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8717 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8718 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8719 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8722 @kindex X m (Summary)
8723 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8724 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8725 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8726 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8729 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8730 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8731 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8732 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8735 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8736 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8737 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8740 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8741 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8742 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8744 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8745 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8746 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8747 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not
8748 include @sc{mime} headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic
8749 parameter to the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8752 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8753 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8754 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8761 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8762 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8763 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8764 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8767 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8770 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8774 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8775 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8776 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8777 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8778 displayed or this variable is overriden by
8779 @code{gnus-buttonized-mime-types}. The default value is
8782 @item gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8783 @vindex gnus-buttonized-mime-types
8784 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8785 this list will have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8786 displayed. This variable overrides
8787 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types}. The default value is @code{nil}.
8789 To see e.g. security buttons but no other buttons, you could set this
8790 variable to @code{("multipart/signed")} and leave
8791 @code{gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types} to the default value.
8793 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8794 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8795 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8796 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8797 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8798 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8799 save all jpegs into some directory).
8801 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8804 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8805 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8807 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8808 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8809 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8810 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8811 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8814 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8815 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8816 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8818 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8819 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8820 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8821 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8823 Ready-made functions include@*
8824 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8825 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8826 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8827 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8828 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8829 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8830 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8831 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8832 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8833 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8834 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8835 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8837 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8838 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8840 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8841 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8842 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8845 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8846 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8847 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8848 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8852 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8861 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8862 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8863 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8864 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8865 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8866 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8867 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8869 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8870 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8871 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8872 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8874 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8875 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1}
8876 even if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8877 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8878 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be
8879 set on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8880 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit x-unknown)},
8881 which includes values some agents insist on having in there.
8883 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8884 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8885 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8886 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8887 quoted-printable header encoding.
8889 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8890 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8891 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8895 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8898 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8899 means encode all charsets),
8901 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8902 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8903 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8910 @cindex coding system aliases
8911 @cindex preferred charset
8913 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8915 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8916 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8919 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8920 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8923 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8924 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8926 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8929 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8932 This will almost do the right thing.
8934 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8938 (codepage-setup 1251)
8939 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8943 @node Article Commands
8944 @section Article Commands
8951 @kindex A P (Summary)
8952 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8953 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8954 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8955 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will
8956 be run just before printing the buffer. An alternative way to print
8957 article is to use Muttprint (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
8962 @node Summary Sorting
8963 @section Summary Sorting
8964 @cindex summary sorting
8966 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8967 can't really see why you'd want that.
8972 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8973 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8974 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8977 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8978 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8979 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8982 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8983 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8984 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8987 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8988 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8989 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8992 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8993 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8994 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8997 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8998 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8999 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
9002 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
9003 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
9004 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
9007 @kindex C-c C-s C-r (Summary)
9008 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-random
9009 Randomize (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-random}).
9012 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
9013 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
9014 Sort using the default sorting method
9015 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
9018 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
9019 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
9020 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
9021 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
9022 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
9026 @node Finding the Parent
9027 @section Finding the Parent
9028 @cindex parent articles
9029 @cindex referring articles
9034 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
9035 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
9036 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
9037 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
9038 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
9039 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
9040 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
9041 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
9042 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
9044 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
9045 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
9046 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
9047 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
9048 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
9052 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
9053 @kindex A R (Summary)
9054 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
9055 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
9058 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
9059 @kindex A T (Summary)
9060 Display the full thread where the current article appears
9061 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
9062 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
9063 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
9064 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
9065 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
9066 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
9068 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
9069 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
9070 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
9071 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
9072 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
9073 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
9076 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
9077 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
9079 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
9080 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
9081 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
9082 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
9083 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
9084 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
9085 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
9088 The current select method will be used when fetching by
9089 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
9090 by giving this command a prefix.
9092 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
9093 If the group you are reading is located on a back end that does not
9094 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
9095 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
9096 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
9097 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
9100 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
9101 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
9102 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
9105 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
9106 then ask Google if that fails:
9109 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
9111 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type google))))
9114 Most of the mail back ends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but
9115 do not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox},
9116 @code{nnbabyl}, and @code{nnmaildir} are able to locate articles from
9117 any groups, while @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and @code{nnimap} are
9118 only able to locate articles that have been posted to the current group.
9119 (Anything else would be too time consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not
9120 support this at all.
9123 @node Alternative Approaches
9124 @section Alternative Approaches
9126 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
9127 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
9130 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
9131 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
9136 @subsection Pick and Read
9137 @cindex pick and read
9139 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
9140 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
9141 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
9142 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
9144 @findex gnus-pick-mode
9145 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
9146 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
9147 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
9148 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
9149 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
9151 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
9156 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
9157 Pick the article or thread on the current line
9158 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9159 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
9160 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
9161 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
9162 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
9163 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
9166 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
9167 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
9168 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
9169 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
9173 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
9174 Unpick the thread or article
9175 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
9176 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
9177 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
9178 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
9179 the thread or article at that line.
9183 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
9184 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
9185 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
9186 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
9187 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
9188 will still be visible when you are reading.
9192 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
9193 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
9194 which is mapped to the same function
9195 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
9197 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
9200 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
9203 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
9204 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
9206 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
9207 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
9208 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
9210 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
9211 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
9212 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
9213 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
9214 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
9215 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
9216 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
9220 @subsection Binary Groups
9221 @cindex binary groups
9223 @findex gnus-binary-mode
9224 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
9225 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
9226 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
9227 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
9228 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
9229 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
9232 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
9233 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
9234 command, when you have turned on this mode
9235 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
9237 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
9238 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
9242 @section Tree Display
9245 @vindex gnus-use-trees
9246 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
9247 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
9248 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
9251 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
9254 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
9255 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
9256 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
9258 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9259 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
9260 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
9261 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
9262 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
9264 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
9265 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
9266 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
9267 default is @code{modeline}.
9269 @item gnus-tree-line-format
9270 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
9271 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
9272 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
9273 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
9274 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
9275 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
9281 The name of the poster.
9283 The @code{From} header.
9285 The number of the article.
9287 The opening bracket.
9289 The closing bracket.
9294 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
9296 Variables related to the display are:
9299 @item gnus-tree-brackets
9300 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
9301 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
9302 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
9303 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
9304 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
9306 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9307 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
9308 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
9309 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
9313 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
9314 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
9315 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
9316 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
9317 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
9318 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
9319 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
9320 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
9321 other windows displayed next to it.
9323 You may also wish to add the following hook to keep the window minimized
9327 (add-hook 'gnus-configure-windows-hook
9328 'gnus-tree-perhaps-minimize)
9331 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
9332 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
9333 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9334 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
9335 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
9336 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
9337 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
9341 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
9344 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
9354 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
9358 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
9359 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
9361 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
9363 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
9368 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
9369 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
9370 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
9373 (setq gnus-use-trees t
9374 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
9375 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
9376 (gnus-add-configuration
9380 (summary 0.75 point)
9385 @xref{Window Layout}.
9388 @node Mail Group Commands
9389 @section Mail Group Commands
9390 @cindex mail group commands
9392 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
9393 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
9395 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
9396 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9401 @kindex B e (Summary)
9402 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
9403 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
9404 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
9405 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
9406 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
9409 @kindex B C-M-e (Summary)
9410 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
9411 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
9412 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
9413 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
9414 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
9417 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
9418 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
9419 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
9420 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
9421 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
9422 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
9425 @kindex B m (Summary)
9427 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
9428 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
9429 Move the article from one mail group to another
9430 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9431 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9434 @kindex B c (Summary)
9436 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
9437 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
9438 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
9439 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
9440 @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
9443 @kindex B B (Summary)
9444 @cindex crosspost mail
9445 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
9446 Crosspost the current article to some other group
9447 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
9448 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
9449 be properly updated.
9452 @kindex B i (Summary)
9453 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
9454 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
9455 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
9456 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9459 @kindex B I (Summary)
9460 @findex gnus-summary-create-article
9461 Create an empty article in the current mail newsgroups
9462 (@code{gnus-summary-create-article}). You will be prompted for a
9463 @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
9466 @kindex B r (Summary)
9467 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
9468 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
9469 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
9470 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
9471 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
9472 Marks will be preserved if @code{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
9473 (which is the default).
9477 @kindex B w (Summary)
9479 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
9480 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
9481 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article-done
9482 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
9483 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
9484 (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
9485 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
9488 @kindex B q (Summary)
9489 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
9490 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
9491 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
9492 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
9495 @kindex B t (Summary)
9496 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
9497 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
9498 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
9501 @kindex B p (Summary)
9502 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
9503 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
9504 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
9505 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
9506 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
9507 article from your news server (or rather, from
9508 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
9509 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
9510 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
9511 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
9512 just not have arrived yet.
9515 @kindex K E (Summary)
9516 @findex gnus-article-encrypt-body
9517 @vindex gnus-article-encrypt-protocol
9518 Encrypt the body of an article (@code{gnus-article-encrypt-body}).
9519 The body is encrypted with the encryption protocol specified by the
9520 variable @code{gnus-article-encrypt-protocol}.
9524 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
9525 @cindex moving articles
9526 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
9527 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
9528 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
9529 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
9530 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
9531 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
9532 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
9535 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
9536 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
9537 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
9538 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
9542 @node Various Summary Stuff
9543 @section Various Summary Stuff
9546 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
9547 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
9548 * Summary Generation Commands::
9549 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
9553 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
9554 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
9555 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
9557 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
9558 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
9559 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
9560 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
9561 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
9562 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
9565 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9566 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
9567 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
9568 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
9569 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
9571 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9572 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
9573 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
9576 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9577 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
9578 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
9579 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
9580 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
9581 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
9582 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
9583 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
9584 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
9585 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
9587 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9588 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
9589 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
9590 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
9591 list of articles to be selected.
9593 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
9594 the list in one particular group:
9597 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
9598 (if (string= group "some.group")
9599 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
9603 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-variables
9604 @item gnus-newsgroup-variables
9605 A list of newsgroup (summary buffer) local variables, or cons of
9606 variables and their default values (when the default values are not
9607 nil), that should be made global while the summary buffer is active.
9608 These variables can be used to set variables in the group parameters
9609 while still allowing them to affect operations done in other
9610 buffers. For example:
9613 (setq gnus-newsgroup-variables
9614 '(message-use-followup-to
9615 (gnus-visible-headers .
9616 "^From:\\|^Newsgroups:\\|^Subject:\\|^Date:\\|^To:")))
9622 @node Summary Group Information
9623 @subsection Summary Group Information
9628 @kindex H f (Summary)
9629 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
9630 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
9631 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
9632 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
9633 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
9634 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
9635 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
9636 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
9637 be used for fetching the file.
9640 @kindex H d (Summary)
9641 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
9642 Give a brief description of the current group
9643 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
9644 rereading the description from the server.
9647 @kindex H h (Summary)
9648 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
9649 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
9650 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
9653 @kindex H i (Summary)
9654 @findex gnus-info-find-node
9655 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
9659 @node Searching for Articles
9660 @subsection Searching for Articles
9665 @kindex M-s (Summary)
9666 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
9667 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
9668 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
9671 @kindex M-r (Summary)
9672 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
9673 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
9674 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
9678 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
9679 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
9680 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
9681 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
9682 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
9683 search backward instead.
9685 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
9686 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
9689 @kindex M-& (Summary)
9690 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
9691 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
9692 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
9695 @node Summary Generation Commands
9696 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
9701 @kindex Y g (Summary)
9702 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
9703 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
9706 @kindex Y c (Summary)
9707 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
9708 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
9709 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
9714 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9715 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9721 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9722 @kindex A D (Summary)
9723 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9724 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9725 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9726 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9727 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9728 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9729 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9730 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9734 @kindex C-M-d (Summary)
9735 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9736 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9737 several documents into one biiig group
9738 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9739 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9740 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9741 command understands the process/prefix convention
9742 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9745 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9746 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9747 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9748 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9749 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9750 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9754 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9755 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9756 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9759 @kindex C-M-e (Summary)
9760 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9761 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9762 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9765 @kindex C-M-a (Summary)
9766 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9767 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9768 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9773 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9774 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9775 @cindex summary exit
9776 @cindex exiting groups
9778 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9779 group and return you to the group buffer.
9785 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9787 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9788 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9789 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9790 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9791 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9792 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9793 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9794 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9795 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9796 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9797 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9801 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9803 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9804 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9805 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9809 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9811 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9812 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9813 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9814 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9817 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9818 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9819 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9820 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9823 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9824 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9825 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9826 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9829 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9830 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9831 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9832 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9833 all articles, both read and unread.
9837 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9838 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9839 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9840 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9841 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9842 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9843 articles, both read and unread.
9846 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9847 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9848 Exit the group and go to the next group
9849 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9852 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9853 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9854 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9855 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9858 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9859 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9860 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9861 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9862 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9863 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9866 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9867 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9868 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9869 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9871 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9872 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9873 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9874 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9875 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9876 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9877 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9878 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9879 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9880 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9881 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9882 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9884 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9886 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9887 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9888 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9889 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9890 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9891 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9892 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9893 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9894 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9897 @node Crosspost Handling
9898 @section Crosspost Handling
9902 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9903 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9904 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9905 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9906 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9907 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9910 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9911 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9912 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9913 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9914 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9916 @cindex cross-posting
9919 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9920 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9921 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9922 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9923 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9924 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9925 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9926 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9927 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9928 the cross reference mechanism.
9930 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9931 @cindex overview.fmt
9932 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9933 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9934 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9935 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9936 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9937 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9940 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9941 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9942 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9947 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9950 @node Duplicate Suppression
9951 @section Duplicate Suppression
9953 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9954 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9955 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9956 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9961 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9962 is evil and not very common.
9965 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9966 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9969 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9970 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9973 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9976 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9977 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9979 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9980 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9981 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9982 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9983 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9984 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9985 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9988 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9989 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9990 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9991 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9992 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9996 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9997 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9998 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
10000 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
10001 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
10002 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
10003 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
10004 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
10005 session are suppressed.
10007 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
10008 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
10009 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
10010 suppression list. The default is 10000.
10012 @item gnus-duplicate-file
10013 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
10014 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
10015 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
10018 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
10019 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
10020 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
10021 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
10022 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
10023 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
10024 to you to figure out, I think.
10029 Gnus is able to verify signed messages or decrypt encrypted messages.
10030 The formats that are supported are PGP, @sc{pgp/mime} and @sc{s/mime},
10031 however you need some external programs to get things to work:
10035 To handle PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or gpg.el as
10036 well as a OpenPGP implementation (such as GnuPG).
10039 To handle @sc{s/mime} message, you need to install OpenSSL. OpenSSL 0.9.6
10040 or newer is recommended.
10044 More information on how to set things up can be found in the message
10045 manual (@pxref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}).
10048 @item mm-verify-option
10049 @vindex mm-verify-option
10050 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
10051 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
10052 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10054 @item mm-decrypt-option
10055 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
10056 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
10057 @code{always}, always decrypt; @code{known}, only decrypt known
10058 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
10063 @section Mailing List
10065 @kindex A M (summary)
10066 @findex gnus-mailing-list-insinuate
10067 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369. To enable it,
10068 either add a `to-list' group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}),
10069 possibly using @kbd{A M} (@code{gnus-mailing-list-insinuate}) in the
10070 summary buffer, or say:
10073 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'turn-on-gnus-mailing-list-mode)
10076 That enables the following commands to the summary buffer:
10081 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
10082 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
10083 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
10086 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
10087 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
10088 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
10091 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
10092 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
10093 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
10097 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
10098 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
10099 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
10102 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
10103 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10104 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
10107 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
10108 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
10109 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
10113 @node Article Buffer
10114 @chapter Article Buffer
10115 @cindex article buffer
10117 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
10118 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
10119 tell Gnus otherwise.
10122 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
10123 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
10124 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
10125 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
10126 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
10130 @node Hiding Headers
10131 @section Hiding Headers
10132 @cindex hiding headers
10133 @cindex deleting headers
10135 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
10136 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
10138 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
10139 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
10140 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
10141 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
10142 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
10143 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
10144 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
10145 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
10146 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
10148 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
10152 @item gnus-visible-headers
10153 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
10154 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
10155 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
10156 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
10158 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
10159 the article and the subject, you'd say:
10162 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
10165 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10168 @item gnus-ignored-headers
10169 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
10170 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
10171 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
10172 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
10173 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
10175 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
10176 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
10179 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
10182 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
10185 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
10186 variable will have no effect.
10190 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
10191 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
10192 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
10193 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
10194 the headers are to be displayed.
10196 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
10197 and then the subject, you might say something like:
10200 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
10203 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
10204 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
10206 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
10207 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
10208 You can hide further boring headers by setting
10209 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
10210 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
10211 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
10212 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
10215 These conditions are:
10218 Remove all empty headers.
10220 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
10221 @code{Newsgroups} header.
10223 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
10224 @code{From} header.
10226 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
10229 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
10230 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
10232 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
10235 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
10237 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
10240 To include these three elements, you could say something like:
10243 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
10244 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
10247 This is also the default value for this variable.
10251 @section Using MIME
10254 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
10255 while people stand around yawning.
10257 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
10258 while all newsreaders die of fear.
10260 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
10261 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
10262 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
10264 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
10265 @findex gnus-display-mime
10266 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
10267 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
10268 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
10269 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
10271 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
10275 @findex gnus-article-press-button
10276 @item RET (Article)
10277 @kindex RET (Article)
10278 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
10279 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
10280 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}). If builtin viewers can not display
10281 the object, Gnus resorts to external viewers in the @file{mailcap}
10282 files. If a viewer has the @samp{copiousoutput} specification, the
10283 object is displayed inline.
10285 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
10286 @item M-RET (Article)
10287 @kindex M-RET (Article)
10289 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10290 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
10292 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
10294 @kindex t (Article)
10295 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
10296 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
10298 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
10300 @kindex C (Article)
10301 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
10302 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
10304 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
10306 @kindex o (Article)
10307 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
10308 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
10310 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
10311 @item C-o (Article)
10312 @kindex C-o (Article)
10313 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
10314 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
10315 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
10316 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
10317 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
10318 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
10320 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
10322 @kindex c (Article)
10323 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
10324 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
10326 @findex gnus-mime-print-part
10328 @kindex p (Article)
10329 Print the @sc{mime} object (@code{gnus-mime-print-part}). This
10330 command respects the @samp{print=} specifications in the
10331 @file{.mailcap} file.
10333 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
10335 @kindex i (Article)
10336 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
10337 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
10338 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
10339 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
10340 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
10343 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-internally
10345 @kindex E (Article)
10346 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
10347 viewer is available, use an external viewer
10348 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-internally}).
10350 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-externally
10352 @kindex e (Article)
10353 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
10354 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-externally}).
10356 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
10358 @kindex | (Article)
10359 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
10361 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
10363 @kindex . (Article)
10364 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
10365 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
10369 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
10370 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs
10373 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
10374 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
10375 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
10376 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
10377 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
10378 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
10379 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
10380 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
10381 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
10383 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
10385 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
10388 @node Customizing Articles
10389 @section Customizing Articles
10390 @cindex article customization
10392 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
10393 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
10394 called automatically when you select the articles.
10396 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
10397 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
10398 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
10399 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
10401 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
10402 for sensible values.
10406 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
10409 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
10412 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
10415 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
10418 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
10422 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
10423 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
10424 regexps in the list.
10427 A list where the first element is not a string:
10429 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
10430 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
10431 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
10435 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
10440 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
10441 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
10442 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
10443 considered to contain just a single part.
10445 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
10446 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
10447 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
10448 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
10449 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
10450 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
10451 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
10453 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
10454 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
10455 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
10456 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
10459 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
10460 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
10462 @xref{Article Buttons}.
10464 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
10465 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
10466 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
10467 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
10468 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
10469 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
10470 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
10471 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
10472 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
10473 @item gnus-treat-unsplit-urls (t, integer)
10475 @xref{Article Washing}.
10477 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
10478 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
10479 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
10480 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
10481 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
10482 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
10483 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
10485 @xref{Article Date}.
10487 @item gnus-treat-from-picon (head)
10488 @item gnus-treat-mail-picon (head)
10489 @item gnus-treat-newsgroups-picon (head)
10493 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
10495 @item gnus-treat-body-boundary (head)
10497 @vindex gnus-body-boundary-delimiter
10498 Adds a delimiter between header and body, the string used as delimiter
10499 is controlled by @code{gnus-body-boundary-delimiter}.
10503 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
10507 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
10508 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
10509 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
10510 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
10511 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
10512 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
10513 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
10514 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
10516 @xref{Article Hiding}.
10518 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
10519 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
10520 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
10522 @xref{Article Highlighting}.
10524 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
10525 @item gnus-treat-translate
10526 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
10528 @item gnus-treat-unfold-headers (head)
10529 @item gnus-treat-fold-headers (head)
10530 @item gnus-treat-fold-newsgroups (head)
10531 @item gnus-treat-leading-whitespace (head)
10533 @xref{Article Header}.
10538 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
10539 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
10540 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
10541 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
10542 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
10546 @node Article Keymap
10547 @section Article Keymap
10549 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
10550 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
10551 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
10552 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
10555 A few additional keystrokes are available:
10560 @kindex SPACE (Article)
10561 @findex gnus-article-next-page
10562 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
10565 @kindex DEL (Article)
10566 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
10567 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
10570 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
10571 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
10572 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
10573 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
10574 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
10577 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
10578 @findex gnus-article-mail
10579 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
10580 given a prefix, include the mail.
10583 @kindex s (Article)
10584 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
10585 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
10586 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
10589 @kindex ? (Article)
10590 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
10591 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
10592 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
10595 @kindex TAB (Article)
10596 @findex gnus-article-next-button
10597 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
10598 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
10601 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
10602 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
10603 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
10606 @kindex R (Article)
10607 @findex gnus-article-reply-with-original
10608 Send a reply to the current article and yank the current article
10609 (@code{gnus-article-reply-with-original}). If given a prefix, make a
10610 wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10614 @kindex F (Article)
10615 @findex gnus-article-followup-with-original
10616 Send a followup to the current article and yank the current article
10617 (@code{gnus-article-followup-with-original}). If given a prefix, make
10618 a wide reply. If the region is active, only yank the text in the
10626 @section Misc Article
10630 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
10631 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
10632 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
10633 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
10636 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
10637 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
10639 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
10640 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
10642 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
10643 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
10644 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
10645 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
10646 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
10647 the contents of the article buffer.
10649 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
10650 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
10651 Hook called in article mode buffers.
10653 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10654 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
10655 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
10656 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
10658 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
10659 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
10660 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
10661 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
10662 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
10668 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
10669 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
10670 performed. The characters and their meaning:
10675 Displayed when cited text may be hidden in the article buffer.
10678 Displayed when headers are hidden in the article buffer.
10681 Displayed when article is digitally signed or encrypted, and Gnus has
10682 hidden the security headers. (N.B. does not tell anything about
10683 security status, i.e. good or bad signature.)
10686 Displayed when the signature has been hidden in the Article buffer.
10689 Displayed when Gnus has treated overstrike characters in the article buffer.
10692 Displayed when Gnus has treated emphasised strings in the article buffer.
10697 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
10701 @vindex gnus-break-pages
10703 @item gnus-break-pages
10704 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
10705 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
10706 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
10707 paging will not be done.
10709 @item gnus-page-delimiter
10710 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
10711 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
10716 @node Composing Messages
10717 @chapter Composing Messages
10718 @cindex composing messages
10721 @cindex sending mail
10726 @cindex using s/mime
10727 @cindex using smime
10729 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
10730 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
10731 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
10732 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Overview, message,
10733 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
10734 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
10737 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
10738 * Posting Server:: What server should you post and mail via?
10739 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
10740 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
10741 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
10742 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
10743 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
10744 * Signing and encrypting:: How to compose secure messages.
10747 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
10748 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
10754 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
10757 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
10758 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
10759 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
10760 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
10762 @item gnus-add-to-list
10763 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
10764 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
10765 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
10767 @item gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
10768 @vindex gnus-confirm-mail-reply-to-news
10769 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus requests confirmation when replying to news.
10770 If you find yourself never wanting to reply to mail, but occasionally
10771 press R anyway, this variable might be for you.
10776 @node Posting Server
10777 @section Posting Server
10779 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
10780 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
10782 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
10784 It can be quite complicated.
10786 @vindex gnus-post-method
10787 When posting news, Message usually invokes @code{message-send-news}
10788 (@pxref{News Variables, , News Variables, message, Message Manual}).
10789 Normally, Gnus will post using the same select method as you're
10790 reading from (which might be convenient if you're reading lots of
10791 groups from different private servers). However. If the server
10792 you're reading from doesn't allow posting, just reading, you probably
10793 want to use some other server to post your (extremely intelligent and
10794 fabulously interesting) articles. You can then set the
10795 @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
10798 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
10801 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
10802 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
10803 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
10804 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
10806 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
10807 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
10809 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
10810 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
10813 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
10814 you can set this variable to @code{native}.
10816 When sending mail, Message invokes @code{message-send-mail-function}.
10817 The default function, @code{message-send-mail-with-sendmail}, pipes
10818 your article to the @code{sendmail} binary for further queuing and
10819 sending. When your local system is not configured for sending mail
10820 using @code{sendmail}, and you have access to a remote @sc{smtp}
10821 server, you can set @code{message-send-mail-function} to
10822 @code{smtpmail-send-it} and make sure to setup the @code{smtpmail}
10823 package correctly. An example:
10826 (setq message-send-mail-function 'smtpmail-send-it
10827 smtpmail-default-smtp-server "YOUR SMTP HOST")
10830 Other possible choises for @code{message-send-mail-function} includes
10831 @code{message-send-mail-with-mh}, @code{message-send-mail-with-qmail},
10832 and @code{feedmail-send-it}.
10834 @node Mail and Post
10835 @section Mail and Post
10837 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
10841 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
10842 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
10843 @cindex mailing lists
10845 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
10846 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
10847 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
10848 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
10849 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
10850 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
10851 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
10852 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
10853 still a pain, though.
10857 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
10858 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
10859 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
10862 @findex ispell-message
10864 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
10867 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
10868 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10871 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10875 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10876 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10878 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10881 Modify to suit your needs.
10884 @node Archived Messages
10885 @section Archived Messages
10886 @cindex archived messages
10887 @cindex sent messages
10889 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10890 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10891 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10892 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10895 For archiving interesting messages in a group you read, see the
10896 @kbd{B c} (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}) command (@pxref{Mail
10899 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10900 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10901 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10904 (nnfolder "archive"
10905 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10906 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10907 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10908 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10911 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10912 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10913 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10914 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10917 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10918 '(nnfolder "archive"
10919 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10920 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10921 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10924 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10926 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10927 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10928 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10930 This variable can be used to do the following:
10935 Messages will be saved in that group.
10937 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10938 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10939 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10940 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10941 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10942 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10943 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10944 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10948 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10950 an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10951 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10954 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10959 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10961 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10964 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10966 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10969 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10971 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10972 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10973 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10974 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10977 More complex stuff:
10979 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10980 '((if (message-news-p)
10985 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10986 messages in one file per month:
10989 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10990 '((if (message-news-p)
10992 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10995 @c (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10996 @c use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10998 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10999 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
11000 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
11001 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
11002 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
11003 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
11004 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
11005 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
11006 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
11007 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
11009 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
11010 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
11011 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
11012 this will disable archiving.
11015 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
11016 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
11017 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
11018 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
11019 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
11022 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
11023 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
11024 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
11027 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
11028 but the latter is the preferred method.
11030 @item gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11031 @vindex gnus-gcc-mark-as-read
11032 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
11034 @item gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11035 @vindex gnus-gcc-externalize-attachments
11036 If @code{nil}, attach files as normal parts in Gcc copies; if a regexp
11037 and matches the Gcc group name, attach files as external parts; if it is
11038 @code{all}, attach local files as external parts; if it is other
11039 non-@code{nil}, the behavior is the same as @code{all}, but it may be
11040 changed in the future.
11045 @node Posting Styles
11046 @section Posting Styles
11047 @cindex posting styles
11050 All them variables, they make my head swim.
11052 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
11053 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
11054 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
11057 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
11058 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
11059 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
11060 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
11061 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
11066 (signature "Peace and happiness")
11067 (organization "What me?"))
11069 (signature "Death to everybody"))
11070 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
11071 (organization "Emacs is it")))
11074 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
11075 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
11076 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
11077 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
11078 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
11079 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
11080 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
11081 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
11083 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
11084 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
11085 If it is the form @code{(header MATCH REGEXP)}, then Gnus will look in
11086 the original article for a header whose name is MATCH and compare that
11087 REGEXP. MATCH and REGEXP are strings. If it's a function symbol, that
11088 function will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol,
11089 then the variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list
11090 will be @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil}
11091 value, then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
11093 Each style may contain an arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
11094 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
11095 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
11096 @code{x-face-file}, @code{address} (overriding
11097 @code{user-mail-address}), @code{name} (overriding
11098 @code{(user-full-name)}) or @code{body}. The attribute name can also
11099 be a string or a symbol. In that case, this will be used as a header
11100 name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the article; if
11101 the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed. If the
11102 attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the result
11105 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
11106 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
11107 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
11108 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
11109 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
11110 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable, which
11111 is a vector of the following headers: number subject from date id
11112 references chars lines xref extra.
11114 @vindex message-reply-headers
11116 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
11117 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
11118 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
11120 @findex message-mail-p
11121 @findex message-news-p
11123 So here's a new example:
11126 (setq gnus-posting-styles
11128 (signature-file "~/.signature")
11130 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
11131 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
11133 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
11134 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly") ;; A form
11135 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
11136 (message-news-p ;; A function symbol
11137 (signature my-news-signature))
11138 (window-system ;; A value symbol
11139 ("X-Window-System" (format "%s" window-system)))
11140 ;; If I'm replying to Larsi, set the Organization header.
11141 ((header "from" "larsi.*org")
11142 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
11143 ((posting-from-work-p) ;; A user defined function
11144 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
11145 (address "user@@bar.foo")
11146 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
11147 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
11149 (From (save-excursion
11150 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
11151 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
11153 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
11156 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
11157 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
11158 if you fill many roles.
11165 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
11166 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
11167 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
11168 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
11169 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
11171 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
11172 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
11173 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
11174 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
11175 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
11179 @vindex nndraft-directory
11180 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
11181 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
11182 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
11183 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
11184 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
11185 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
11187 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
11188 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
11191 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
11192 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
11193 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
11194 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
11195 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
11196 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
11197 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
11198 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
11199 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
11200 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
11201 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
11202 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
11203 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
11204 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
11206 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
11207 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
11208 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
11210 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
11211 @kindex D e (Draft)
11212 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
11213 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
11214 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
11216 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
11219 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
11220 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
11221 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
11222 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
11223 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
11224 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
11225 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
11228 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
11229 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
11230 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
11233 @node Rejected Articles
11234 @section Rejected Articles
11235 @cindex rejected articles
11237 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
11238 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
11239 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
11240 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
11242 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
11243 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
11244 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
11245 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
11246 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
11248 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
11249 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
11250 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
11252 @node Signing and encrypting
11253 @section Signing and encrypting
11255 @cindex using s/mime
11256 @cindex using smime
11258 Gnus can digitally sign and encrypt your messages, using vanilla PGP
11259 format or @sc{pgp/mime} or @sc{s/mime}. For decoding such messages,
11260 see the @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} options
11261 (@pxref{Security}).
11263 For PGP, Gnus supports two external libraries, @sc{gpg.el} and
11264 @sc{Mailcrypt}, you need to install at least one of them. The
11265 @sc{s/mime} support in Gnus requires the external program OpenSSL.
11267 Often, you would like to sign replies to people who send you signed
11268 messages. Even more often, you might want to encrypt messages which
11269 are in reply to encrypted messages. Gnus offers
11270 @code{gnus-message-replysign} to enable the former, and
11271 @code{gnus-message-replyencrypt} for the latter. In addition, setting
11272 @code{gnus-message-replysignencrypted} (on by default) will sign
11273 automatically encrypted messages.
11275 Instructing MML to perform security operations on a @sc{mime} part is
11276 done using the @kbd{C-c C-m s} key map for signing and the @kbd{C-c
11277 C-m c} key map for encryption, as follows.
11282 @kindex C-c C-m s s
11283 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-smime
11285 Digitally sign current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11288 @kindex C-c C-m s o
11289 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11291 Digitally sign current message using PGP.
11294 @kindex C-c C-m s p
11295 @findex mml-secure-message-sign-pgp
11297 Digitally sign current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11300 @kindex C-c C-m c s
11301 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-smime
11303 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{s/mime}.
11306 @kindex C-c C-m c o
11307 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgp
11309 Digitally encrypt current message using PGP.
11312 @kindex C-c C-m c p
11313 @findex mml-secure-message-encrypt-pgpmime
11315 Digitally encrypt current message using @sc{pgp/mime}.
11318 @kindex C-c C-m C-n
11319 @findex mml-unsecure-message
11320 Remove security related MML tags from message.
11324 Also @xref{Security, ,Security, message, Message Manual}.
11326 @node Select Methods
11327 @chapter Select Methods
11328 @cindex foreign groups
11329 @cindex select methods
11331 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
11332 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
11333 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
11334 personal mail group.
11336 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
11337 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
11338 list where the first element says what back end to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
11339 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
11340 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
11341 value may have special meaning for the back end in question.
11343 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
11344 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
11346 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the back end will recognize the
11349 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
11350 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
11351 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
11352 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
11353 back end just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
11355 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
11358 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
11359 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
11360 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
11361 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
11362 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
11363 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
11364 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
11365 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
11369 @node Server Buffer
11370 @section Server Buffer
11372 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
11373 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
11374 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
11375 one back end or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
11376 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
11377 back end represents a virtual server.
11379 For instance, the @code{nntp} back end may be used to connect to several
11380 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
11381 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which back end to
11382 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
11384 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
11385 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
11386 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
11387 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
11388 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
11389 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
11390 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
11392 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
11393 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
11396 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
11397 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
11398 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
11399 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
11400 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
11401 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
11402 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
11405 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
11406 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
11409 @node Server Buffer Format
11410 @subsection Server Buffer Format
11411 @cindex server buffer format
11413 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
11414 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
11415 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
11416 variable, with some simple extensions:
11421 How the news is fetched---the back end name.
11424 The name of this server.
11427 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
11430 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
11433 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
11434 The mode line can also be customized by using the
11435 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
11436 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
11446 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
11449 @node Server Commands
11450 @subsection Server Commands
11451 @cindex server commands
11457 @findex gnus-server-add-server
11458 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
11462 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
11463 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
11466 @kindex SPACE (Server)
11467 @findex gnus-server-read-server
11468 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
11472 @findex gnus-server-exit
11473 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
11477 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
11478 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
11482 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
11483 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
11487 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
11488 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
11492 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
11493 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
11497 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
11498 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
11499 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
11504 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
11505 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
11506 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
11507 a mail back end that has gotten out of sync.
11512 @node Example Methods
11513 @subsection Example Methods
11515 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
11518 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
11521 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
11527 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
11528 back end, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
11531 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
11532 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
11534 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
11535 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
11539 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
11542 You should read the documentation to each back end to find out what
11543 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
11545 @code{nnmh} is a mail back end that reads a spool-like structure. Say
11546 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
11547 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
11551 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
11554 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
11557 Here's the method for a public spool:
11561 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
11562 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
11568 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
11569 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
11570 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
11571 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
11572 should probably look something like this:
11576 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
11577 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
11578 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
11579 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11582 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
11583 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
11584 configuration to the example above:
11587 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
11590 See also @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches}.
11592 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
11593 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
11594 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
11598 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11599 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
11600 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
11601 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
11604 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
11605 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
11606 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
11607 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
11610 @node Creating a Virtual Server
11611 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
11613 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
11614 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
11616 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
11617 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
11618 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
11620 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
11622 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
11623 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
11624 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
11625 will contain the following:
11635 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
11636 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
11637 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
11640 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
11641 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
11642 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
11645 @node Server Variables
11646 @subsection Server Variables
11648 One sticky point when defining variables (both on back ends and in Emacs
11649 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
11650 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
11651 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
11652 won't change the "derived" variables.
11654 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
11655 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
11656 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
11657 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
11658 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
11659 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
11660 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
11661 variables for each back end, see each back end's section later in this
11662 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
11666 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
11667 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
11668 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
11672 @node Servers and Methods
11673 @subsection Servers and Methods
11675 Wherever you would normally use a select method
11676 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
11677 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
11678 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
11682 @node Unavailable Servers
11683 @subsection Unavailable Servers
11685 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
11686 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
11687 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
11688 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
11689 actually the case or not.
11691 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
11692 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
11693 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
11694 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
11695 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
11696 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
11697 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
11698 it will regard that server as ``down''.
11700 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
11701 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
11703 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
11704 with the following commands:
11710 @findex gnus-server-open-server
11711 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
11712 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
11716 @findex gnus-server-close-server
11717 Close the connection (if any) to the server
11718 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
11722 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
11723 Mark the current server as unreachable
11724 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
11727 @kindex M-o (Server)
11728 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
11729 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
11730 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
11733 @kindex M-c (Server)
11734 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
11735 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
11736 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
11740 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
11741 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
11742 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
11746 @findex gnus-server-offline-server
11747 Set server status to offline (@code{gnus-server-offline-server}).
11753 @section Getting News
11754 @cindex reading news
11755 @cindex news back ends
11757 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
11758 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
11759 or it can read from a local spool.
11762 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
11763 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
11771 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
11772 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
11773 server as the, uhm, address.
11775 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
11776 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
11777 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
11778 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
11780 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
11781 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
11782 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
11784 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
11789 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
11790 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
11791 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
11793 @cindex authentification
11794 @cindex nntp authentification
11795 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11796 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
11797 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
11798 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
11799 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
11800 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
11801 present in this hook.
11803 @item nntp-authinfo-function
11804 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
11805 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
11806 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
11807 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
11808 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
11809 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
11810 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
11811 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
11812 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
11813 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
11814 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
11818 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
11821 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
11823 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
11824 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
11825 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
11826 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
11827 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
11828 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
11829 @samp{force} is explained below.
11833 Here's an example file:
11836 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
11837 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
11840 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
11841 have to be first, for instance.
11843 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
11844 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
11845 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
11846 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
11847 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
11848 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
11849 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
11851 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
11852 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
11858 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
11859 previously mentioned.
11861 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
11863 @item nntp-server-action-alist
11864 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
11865 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
11866 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
11867 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
11870 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
11871 '(("innd" (ding))))
11874 You probably don't want to do that, though.
11876 The default value is
11879 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
11880 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
11881 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
11884 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
11885 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
11887 @item nntp-maximum-request
11888 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
11889 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this back end
11890 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
11891 speed things up, the back end sends lots of these commands without
11892 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
11893 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
11894 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
11896 @item nntp-connection-timeout
11897 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
11898 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
11899 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
11900 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
11901 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
11902 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
11903 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} back end should wait for a
11904 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
11905 no timeouts are done.
11907 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
11908 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
11909 @c @cindex PPP connections
11910 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
11911 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
11912 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
11913 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
11914 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
11915 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
11916 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
11917 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
11918 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
11919 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
11921 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
11922 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
11923 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
11924 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
11925 @c described above.
11927 @item nntp-server-hook
11928 @vindex nntp-server-hook
11929 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11932 @item nntp-buggy-select
11933 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11934 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11936 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11937 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11938 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11939 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11942 @item nntp-xover-commands
11943 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11946 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11947 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11951 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11952 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11953 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11954 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11955 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11956 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11957 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11958 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11959 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11960 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11961 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11963 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11964 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11965 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11967 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11968 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11969 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11970 server closes connection.
11972 @item nntp-record-commands
11973 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11974 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11975 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11976 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11977 that doesn't seem to work.
11979 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11980 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11981 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11982 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11983 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11984 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11985 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11986 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11988 @item nntp-prepare-post-hook
11989 @vindex nntp-prepare-post-hook
11990 A hook run just before posting an article. If there is no
11991 @code{Message-ID} header in the article and the news server provides the
11992 recommended ID, it will be added to the article before running this
11993 hook. It is useful to make @code{Cancel-Lock} headers even if you
11994 inhibit Gnus to add a @code{Message-ID} header, you could say:
11997 (add-hook 'nntp-prepare-post-hook 'canlock-insert-header)
12000 Note that not all servers support the recommended ID. This works for
12001 INN versions 2.3.0 and later, for instance.
12005 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
12006 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
12007 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
12011 @node Direct Functions
12012 @subsubsection Direct Functions
12013 @cindex direct connection functions
12015 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
12016 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
12017 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
12018 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12021 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
12022 @item nntp-open-network-stream
12023 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
12026 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
12027 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
12028 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use
12029 this you must have OpenSSL (@uref{http://www.openssl.org}) or SSLeay
12030 installed (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also
12031 need @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
12032 define a server as follows:
12035 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
12037 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
12039 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
12040 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
12041 (nntp-port-number "snews")
12042 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
12045 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
12046 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
12047 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
12048 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
12049 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
12050 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
12051 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
12052 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
12056 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
12057 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
12058 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
12061 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
12062 session, which is not a good idea.
12066 @node Indirect Functions
12067 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
12068 @cindex indirect connection functions
12070 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
12071 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
12072 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
12073 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
12074 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
12075 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
12078 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12079 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
12080 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
12081 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
12082 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
12084 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12087 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
12088 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
12089 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
12090 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
12092 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12093 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command-switches
12094 List of strings to be used as the switches to
12095 @code{nntp-via-rlogin-command}. The default is @code{nil}. If you use
12096 @samp{ssh} for `nntp-via-rlogin-command', you may set this to
12097 @samp{("-C")} in order to compress all data connections, otherwise set
12098 this to @samp{("-t")} or @samp{("-C" "-t")} if the telnet command
12099 requires a pseudo-tty allocation on an intermediate host.
12102 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12103 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
12104 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
12105 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
12107 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
12110 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
12111 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
12112 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
12115 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
12116 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
12117 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
12118 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
12120 @item nntp-via-user-password
12121 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
12122 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
12124 @item nntp-via-envuser
12125 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
12126 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
12127 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
12128 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
12130 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
12131 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
12132 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
12133 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
12140 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
12145 @item nntp-via-user-name
12146 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
12147 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
12149 @item nntp-via-address
12150 @vindex nntp-via-address
12151 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
12156 @node Common Variables
12157 @subsubsection Common Variables
12159 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
12160 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
12165 @item nntp-pre-command
12166 @vindex nntp-pre-command
12167 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
12168 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
12169 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
12170 wrapper for instance.
12173 @vindex nntp-address
12174 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
12176 @item nntp-port-number
12177 @vindex nntp-port-number
12178 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
12180 @item nntp-end-of-line
12181 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
12182 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
12183 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
12184 using a non native connection function.
12186 @item nntp-telnet-command
12187 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
12188 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
12189 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
12190 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
12192 @item nntp-telnet-switches
12193 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
12194 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
12201 @subsection News Spool
12205 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
12206 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
12207 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
12210 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
12211 anything else) as the address.
12213 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
12214 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
12215 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
12216 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
12220 @item nnspool-inews-program
12221 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
12222 Program used to post an article.
12224 @item nnspool-inews-switches
12225 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
12226 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
12228 @item nnspool-spool-directory
12229 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
12230 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
12231 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
12233 @item nnspool-nov-directory
12234 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
12235 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
12236 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
12238 @item nnspool-lib-dir
12239 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
12240 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
12242 @item nnspool-active-file
12243 @vindex nnspool-active-file
12244 The path to the active file.
12246 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
12247 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
12248 The path to the group descriptions file.
12250 @item nnspool-history-file
12251 @vindex nnspool-history-file
12252 The path to the news history file.
12254 @item nnspool-active-times-file
12255 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
12256 The path to the active date file.
12258 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
12259 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
12260 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
12263 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12264 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
12266 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
12267 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
12268 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
12274 @section Getting Mail
12275 @cindex reading mail
12278 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
12282 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
12283 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
12284 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
12285 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
12286 * Mail Back End Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
12287 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
12288 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
12289 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
12290 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
12291 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
12292 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
12293 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail back ends for reading other files.
12294 * Choosing a Mail Back End:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
12298 @node Mail in a Newsreader
12299 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
12301 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
12302 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
12303 of a culture shock.
12305 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
12306 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
12308 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
12309 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
12310 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
12311 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
12313 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
12315 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
12316 deleted? How awful!
12318 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
12319 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
12320 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
12321 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
12324 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
12325 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
12326 they want to treat a message.
12328 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
12329 via @sc{smtp}, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
12330 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
12331 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
12332 archived somewhere else.
12334 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
12335 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
12336 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
12337 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
12338 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
12340 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
12341 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
12342 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
12344 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
12345 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
12348 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
12349 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
12350 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
12351 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
12352 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
12354 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
12355 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
12356 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
12357 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
12358 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
12359 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
12363 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
12364 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
12366 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
12367 mail back end of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
12368 and things will happen automatically.
12370 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
12371 mail" back end), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
12374 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
12377 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this back end will be queried for new
12378 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
12379 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
12380 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
12381 like any other group.
12383 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
12386 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12387 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12388 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12392 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
12393 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
12394 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
12397 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
12398 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
12399 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Back End} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
12402 @node Splitting Mail
12403 @subsection Splitting Mail
12404 @cindex splitting mail
12405 @cindex mail splitting
12407 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
12408 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
12409 to be split into groups.
12412 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12413 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12414 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
12415 ("mail.other" "")))
12418 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
12419 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
12420 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
12421 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
12422 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
12423 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
12424 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
12427 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
12430 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
12431 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
12432 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
12433 mail belongs in that group.
12435 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
12436 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
12437 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
12438 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
12439 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
12440 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
12442 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
12443 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
12444 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
12445 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
12446 thinks should carry this mail message.
12448 Note that the mail back ends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
12449 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
12450 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
12451 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
12453 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
12454 The mail back ends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
12455 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
12456 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
12457 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
12459 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
12462 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
12463 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
12464 links. If that's the case for you, set
12465 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
12466 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
12468 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
12469 @kindex nnmail-split-history
12470 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
12471 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
12472 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
12473 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
12476 @vindex nnmail-split-header-length-limit
12477 Header lines longer than the value of
12478 @code{nnmail-split-header-length-limit} are excluded from the split
12481 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-charset
12482 @vindex nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes
12483 By default the splitting codes MIME decodes headers so you can match
12484 on non-ASCII strings. The @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-charset}
12485 variable specifies the default charset for decoding. The behaviour
12486 can be turned off completely by binding
12487 @code{nnmail-mail-splitting-decodes} to nil, which is useful if you
12488 want to match articles based on the raw header data.
12490 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
12491 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
12492 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
12493 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
12494 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
12495 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
12496 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
12497 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
12498 month's rent money.
12502 @subsection Mail Sources
12504 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
12505 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
12509 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
12510 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
12511 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
12515 @node Mail Source Specifiers
12516 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
12518 @cindex mail server
12521 @cindex mail source
12523 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
12524 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
12529 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
12532 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
12533 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
12534 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
12537 The following mail source types are available:
12541 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
12547 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
12548 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
12551 An example file mail source:
12554 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
12557 Or using the default path:
12563 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
12564 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
12565 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
12568 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
12572 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
12575 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
12579 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
12582 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
12584 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
12587 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
12591 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used
12592 when you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files.
12593 That is, mail from the file @file{foo.bar.spool} will be put in the
12594 group @code{foo.bar}. (You can change the suffix to be used instead
12595 of @code{.spool}.) Setting
12596 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus
12597 to scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you
12598 want to scan mail groups at a specified level.
12604 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
12608 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
12612 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
12613 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
12614 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
12615 predicate are considered.
12619 Script run before/after fetching mail.
12623 An example directory mail source:
12626 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
12631 Get mail from a POP server.
12637 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
12638 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12641 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
12642 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
12643 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
12644 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
12645 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
12648 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
12652 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
12656 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
12657 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
12660 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
12663 The valid format specifier characters are:
12667 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
12668 included in this string.
12671 The name of the server.
12674 The port number of the server.
12677 The user name to use.
12680 The password to use.
12683 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12684 corresponding keywords.
12687 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12688 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12691 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
12692 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
12695 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
12696 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
12699 @item :authentication
12700 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
12701 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
12706 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
12707 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
12709 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
12710 default user name, and default fetcher:
12716 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
12719 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
12720 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
12723 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
12726 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
12730 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
12731 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
12732 contains exactly one mail.
12738 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
12739 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
12742 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
12743 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
12745 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
12746 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
12747 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
12750 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
12751 from locking problems).
12755 Two example maildir mail sources:
12758 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
12759 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
12763 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
12768 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
12769 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
12770 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
12771 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
12774 Note that for the Kerberos, GSSAPI, SSL/TLS and STARTTLS support you
12775 may need external programs and libraries, @xref{IMAP}.
12781 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
12782 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
12785 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
12786 @samp{993} for SSL/TLS connections.
12789 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
12793 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
12797 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
12798 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
12799 @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{starttls}, @samp{ssl},
12800 @samp{shell} or the default @samp{network}.
12802 @item :authentication
12803 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is
12804 one of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now,
12805 this means @samp{gssapi}, @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{digest-md5},
12806 @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default @samp{login}.
12809 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
12810 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
12811 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
12817 The valid format specifier characters are:
12821 The name of the server.
12824 User name from `imap-default-user'.
12827 The port number of the server.
12830 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
12831 corresponding keywords.
12834 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
12835 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
12838 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
12839 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
12840 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
12841 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
12842 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
12843 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 section 6.4.4.
12846 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
12847 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
12848 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
12849 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 section 2.3.2.
12852 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
12853 after finishing the fetch.
12857 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
12860 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
12862 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
12866 Get mail from a webmail server, such as @uref{www.hotmail.com},
12867 @uref{webmail.netscape.com}, @uref{www.netaddress.com},
12868 @uref{mail.yahoo..com}.
12870 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
12871 required for url "4.0pre.46".
12873 WARNING: Mails may be lost. NO WARRANTY.
12879 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
12880 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
12883 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
12887 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
12891 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
12892 folder after finishing the fetch.
12896 An example webmail source:
12899 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
12901 :password "secret")
12906 @item Common Keywords
12907 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
12913 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
12914 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
12918 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
12923 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
12924 useful when you use local mail and news.
12929 @subsubsection Function Interface
12931 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
12932 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
12933 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
12934 consider the following mail-source setting:
12937 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
12938 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
12941 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
12942 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
12943 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
12944 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
12945 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
12947 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
12950 @node Mail Source Customization
12951 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
12953 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
12954 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
12958 @item mail-source-crash-box
12959 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
12960 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
12961 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
12963 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
12964 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
12965 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
12967 @item mail-source-directory
12968 @vindex mail-source-directory
12969 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
12970 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
12971 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
12974 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12975 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12976 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12977 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12978 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12979 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12981 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12982 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12983 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12985 @item mail-source-movemail-program
12986 @vindex mail-source-movemail-program
12987 If non-nil, name of program for fetching new mail. If nil,
12988 @code{movemail} in @var{exec-directory}.
12993 @node Fetching Mail
12994 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12996 @vindex mail-sources
12997 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12998 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12999 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
13000 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
13002 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
13003 @code{nil}, the mail back ends will never attempt to fetch mail by
13006 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
13007 mail server, you'd say something like:
13012 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13013 :password "secret")))
13016 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
13020 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
13021 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
13024 :password "secret")))
13028 When you use a mail back end, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
13029 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
13030 mail if you're not using a mail back end---you have to do a lot of magic
13031 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
13032 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
13033 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
13037 @node Mail Back End Variables
13038 @subsection Mail Back End Variables
13040 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
13044 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13045 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
13046 The mail back ends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
13047 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
13049 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
13050 @item nnmail-split-hook
13051 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
13052 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
13053 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
13054 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
13055 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
13056 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
13057 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
13058 in the buffer will show up in any files.
13059 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
13062 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13063 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13064 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13065 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13066 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
13067 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
13068 starting to handle the new mail) and
13069 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
13070 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
13071 default file modes the new mail files get:
13074 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
13075 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
13077 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
13078 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
13081 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
13082 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
13083 If non-@code{nil}, the mail back ends will use long file and directory
13084 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
13085 (assuming use of @code{nnml} back end) or files (assuming use of
13086 @code{nnfolder} back end) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
13087 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
13089 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
13090 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
13091 @findex delete-file
13092 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
13094 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13095 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13096 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
13097 the back end (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
13098 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
13100 @item nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13101 @vindex nnmail-cache-ignore-groups
13102 This can be a regular expression or a list of regular expressions.
13103 Group names that match any of the regular expressions will never be
13104 recorded in the @code{Message-ID} cache.
13106 This can be useful, for example, when using Fancy Splitting
13107 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}) together with the function
13108 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent}.
13113 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
13114 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
13115 @cindex mail splitting
13116 @cindex fancy mail splitting
13118 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
13119 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
13120 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
13121 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
13122 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
13123 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
13125 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
13128 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
13129 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
13130 ;; from real errors.
13131 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
13133 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
13134 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
13135 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
13136 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
13137 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
13138 ;; Other mailing lists...
13139 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
13140 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
13141 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
13142 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
13143 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
13144 ;; message was really cross-posted.
13145 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
13146 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
13148 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
13149 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
13153 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
13154 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
13155 the five possible split syntaxes:
13160 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
13161 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
13165 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
13166 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
13167 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
13168 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
13169 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
13170 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
13171 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
13172 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
13175 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13176 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
13177 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
13178 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
13181 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13182 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
13185 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
13186 (i.e., delete) this message. Use with extreme caution.
13189 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
13190 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
13191 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
13192 function should return a @var{split}.
13195 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
13196 body of the messages:
13199 (defun split-on-body ()
13201 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
13202 (goto-char (point-min))
13203 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
13207 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
13208 when the @code{:} function is run.
13211 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
13212 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
13213 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
13217 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
13221 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
13222 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
13223 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
13224 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
13225 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
13227 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
13228 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
13229 are expanded as specified by the variable
13230 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
13231 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
13234 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
13235 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
13236 when all this splitting is performed.
13238 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
13239 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
13240 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
13243 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
13246 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
13247 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
13249 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
13250 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
13251 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
13252 groupings 1 through 9.
13254 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
13255 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
13256 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
13257 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
13258 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
13259 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
13260 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
13261 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
13262 it once per thread.
13264 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} and
13265 @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} to a non-nil value. And then
13266 you can include @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon
13269 (setq nnmail-treat-duplicates 'warn ; or 'delete
13270 nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids t
13272 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
13273 ;; other splits go here
13277 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
13278 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
13279 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
13280 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
13281 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
13282 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
13283 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
13284 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
13285 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
13286 unless the group name matches the regexp
13287 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
13288 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
13289 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
13290 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
13291 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
13292 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
13293 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
13294 messages goes into the new group.
13296 Also see the variable @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} if you don't
13297 want certain groups to be recorded in the cache. For example, if all
13298 outgoing messages are written to an `outgoing' group, you could set
13299 @code{nnmail-cache-ignore-groups} to match that group name.
13300 Otherwise, answers to all your messages would end up in the
13304 @node Group Mail Splitting
13305 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
13306 @cindex mail splitting
13307 @cindex group mail splitting
13309 @findex gnus-group-split
13310 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
13311 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
13312 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
13313 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
13314 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
13315 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
13316 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
13317 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
13319 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
13320 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
13321 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
13322 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
13324 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
13325 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
13326 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
13327 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
13328 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
13329 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
13330 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
13332 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
13333 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
13334 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
13335 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
13336 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
13337 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
13338 @code{gnus-group-split}.
13340 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
13341 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
13342 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
13343 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
13344 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
13345 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
13346 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
13347 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
13348 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
13349 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
13350 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
13351 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
13352 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
13354 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
13359 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
13360 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
13362 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
13363 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
13364 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
13365 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
13367 ((split-spec . catch-all))
13370 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
13371 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
13372 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
13375 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
13376 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
13377 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
13381 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
13382 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
13383 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13387 (: gnus-group-split-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
13390 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
13391 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
13392 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
13393 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
13394 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
13395 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
13396 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
13397 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
13398 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
13400 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
13401 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
13402 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
13403 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
13404 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
13405 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
13406 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
13407 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
13408 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
13410 @findex gnus-group-split-update
13411 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
13412 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
13413 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
13414 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
13415 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
13418 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
13421 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
13422 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
13423 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
13424 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
13425 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
13428 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
13429 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
13430 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
13431 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
13433 @node Incorporating Old Mail
13434 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
13435 @cindex incorporating old mail
13436 @cindex import old mail
13438 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
13439 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
13440 back ends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
13443 Doing so can be quite easy.
13445 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
13446 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
13447 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
13448 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
13449 your @code{nnml} groups.
13455 Go to the group buffer.
13458 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
13459 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13462 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
13465 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
13466 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
13469 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
13470 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
13473 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
13474 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
13475 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
13476 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
13477 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
13479 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
13480 back end to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
13481 using the new mail back end.
13484 @node Expiring Mail
13485 @subsection Expiring Mail
13486 @cindex article expiry
13488 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
13489 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
13490 different approach to mail reading.
13492 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
13493 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
13494 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
13495 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
13496 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
13497 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
13500 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
13501 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
13502 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
13503 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
13504 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
13505 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
13506 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
13507 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
13509 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13510 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
13511 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
13512 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
13513 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
13514 column in the summary buffer.
13516 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
13517 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
13518 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
13519 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
13522 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
13524 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
13525 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
13526 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
13529 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
13530 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
13531 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
13532 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
13533 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
13535 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
13536 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
13539 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
13540 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
13543 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
13544 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
13546 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
13547 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
13548 don't really mix very well.
13550 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
13551 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
13552 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
13553 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
13556 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
13557 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
13558 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
13559 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
13562 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13564 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
13566 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
13568 ((string= group "mail.junk")
13570 ((string= group "important")
13576 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
13577 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
13579 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
13580 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
13581 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
13584 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
13585 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
13587 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
13588 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
13589 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them
13590 to other groups instead of deleting them. The variable
13591 @code{nnmail-expiry-target} (and the @code{expiry-target} group
13592 parameter) controls this. The variable supplies a default value for
13593 all groups, which can be overridden for specific groups by the group
13594 parameter. default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a
13595 string (which should be the name of the group the message should be
13596 moved to), or a function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to
13597 the message in question, and with the name of the group being moved
13598 from as its parameter) which should return a target -- either a group
13599 name or @code{delete}.
13601 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
13603 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
13606 @findex nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13607 @vindex nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13608 Gnus provides a function @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-target} which will
13609 expire mail to groups according to the variable
13610 @code{nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets}. Here's an example:
13613 (setq nnmail-expiry-target 'nnmail-fancy-expiry-target
13614 nnmail-fancy-expiry-targets
13615 '((to-from "boss" "nnfolder:Work")
13616 ("subject" "IMPORTANT" "nnfolder:IMPORTANT.%Y.%b")
13617 ("from" ".*" "nnfolder:Archive-%Y")))
13620 With this setup, any mail that has @code{IMPORTANT} in its Subject
13621 header and was sent in the year @code{YYYY} and month @code{MMM}, will
13622 get expired to the group @code{nnfolder:IMPORTANT.YYYY.MMM}. If its
13623 From or To header contains the string @code{boss}, it will get expired
13624 to @code{nnfolder:Work}. All other mail will get expired to
13625 @code{nnfolder:Archive-YYYY}.
13627 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
13628 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
13629 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
13630 easier for procmail users.
13632 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
13633 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
13634 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
13635 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
13636 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
13637 caution. Even more dangerous is the
13638 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
13639 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
13640 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
13641 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
13642 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
13643 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
13644 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
13647 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
13649 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
13650 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
13651 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
13652 auto-expire turned on.
13656 @subsection Washing Mail
13657 @cindex mail washing
13658 @cindex list server brain damage
13659 @cindex incoming mail treatment
13661 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
13662 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
13663 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
13664 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
13665 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
13666 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
13668 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
13669 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
13670 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
13673 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
13674 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
13675 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
13676 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
13679 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13680 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
13681 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
13682 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
13683 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
13686 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13687 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
13688 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
13689 Emacs running on MS machines.
13693 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13694 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
13695 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
13696 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
13699 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13700 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
13701 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
13702 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
13704 (Note that this function works on both the header on the body of all
13705 messages, so it is a potentially dangerous function to use (if a body
13706 of a message contains something that looks like a header line). So
13707 rather than fix the bug, it is of course the right solution to make it
13708 into a feature by documenting it.)
13710 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13711 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
13712 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
13713 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
13714 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
13715 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
13716 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
13719 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
13720 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
13723 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
13724 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
13727 This can also be done non-destructively with
13728 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
13730 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
13731 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
13732 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
13734 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13735 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
13737 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
13738 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
13739 @code{References} headers.
13743 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13744 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
13745 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
13749 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
13750 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
13751 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
13758 @subsection Duplicates
13760 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
13761 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
13762 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
13763 @cindex duplicate mails
13764 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
13765 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
13766 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
13767 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
13768 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
13769 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
13770 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
13771 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
13772 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
13773 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
13774 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
13775 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
13776 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
13778 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
13779 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
13780 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
13781 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
13783 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
13786 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
13787 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
13791 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
13792 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
13793 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
13794 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
13795 (any mail "mail.misc")
13802 (setq nnmail-split-methods
13803 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
13808 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
13809 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
13810 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
13811 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
13812 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
13815 @node Not Reading Mail
13816 @subsection Not Reading Mail
13818 If you start using any of the mail back ends, they have the annoying
13819 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
13820 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
13822 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
13823 @code{nil}, none of the back ends will ever attempt to read incoming
13824 mail, which should help.
13826 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13827 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13828 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13829 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13830 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13831 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
13832 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
13833 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All back ends have
13834 variables called back-end-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
13835 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
13836 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
13838 All the mail back ends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
13839 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
13843 @node Choosing a Mail Back End
13844 @subsection Choosing a Mail Back End
13846 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
13847 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
13848 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
13850 There are six different mail back ends in the standard Gnus, and more
13851 back ends are available separately. The mail back end most people use
13852 (because it is possibly the fastest) is @code{nnml} (@pxref{Mail
13853 Spool}). You might notice that only five back ends are listed below;
13854 @code{nnmaildir}'s documentation has not yet been completely
13855 incorporated into this manual. Until it is, you can find it at
13856 @uref{http://multivac.cwru.edu./nnmaildir/}.
13859 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
13860 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
13861 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
13862 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like back end.
13863 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
13864 * Comparing Mail Back Ends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
13868 @node Unix Mail Box
13869 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
13871 @cindex unix mail box
13873 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13874 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13875 The @dfn{nnmbox} back end will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
13876 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
13877 which group it belongs in.
13879 Virtual server settings:
13882 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
13883 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
13884 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
13887 @item nnmbox-active-file
13888 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
13889 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
13890 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
13892 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
13893 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
13894 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
13895 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
13900 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
13904 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13905 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13906 The @dfn{nnbabyl} back end will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
13907 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
13908 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
13910 Virtual server settings:
13913 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
13914 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
13915 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
13917 @item nnbabyl-active-file
13918 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
13919 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
13920 @file{~/.rmail-active}
13922 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13923 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
13924 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
13930 @subsubsection Mail Spool
13932 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
13934 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
13935 format. It should be used with some caution.
13937 @vindex nnml-directory
13938 If you use this back end, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
13939 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
13940 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
13941 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
13943 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
13946 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
13947 in your account, you should not use this back end. As each mail gets its
13948 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
13949 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
13950 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
13951 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
13952 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
13953 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
13955 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest back end when it comes to article
13956 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
13957 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it possibly the
13958 fastest back end when it comes to reading mail.
13960 @cindex self contained nnml servers
13962 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnml}
13963 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
13964 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
13965 proper @code{nnml} server) and have all your marks be preserved. Marks
13966 for a group is usually stored in the @code{.marks} file (but see
13967 @code{nnml-marks-file-name}) within each @code{nnml} group's directory.
13968 Individual @code{nnml} groups are also possible to backup, use @kbd{G m}
13969 to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the nnml
13972 If for some reason you believe your @file{.marks} files are screwed
13973 up, you can just delete them all. Gnus will then correctly regenerate
13974 them next time it starts.
13976 Virtual server settings:
13979 @item nnml-directory
13980 @vindex nnml-directory
13981 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
13982 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
13985 @item nnml-active-file
13986 @vindex nnml-active-file
13987 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
13988 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
13990 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
13991 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
13992 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13993 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
13995 @item nnml-get-new-mail
13996 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
13997 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
14000 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
14001 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
14002 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14003 default is @code{nil}.
14005 @item nnml-nov-file-name
14006 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
14007 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
14009 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14010 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
14011 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
14013 @item nnml-marks-is-evil
14014 @vindex nnml-marks-is-evil
14015 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14016 default is @code{nil}.
14018 @item nnml-marks-file-name
14019 @vindex nnml-marks-file-name
14020 The name of the @dfn{marks} files. The default is @file{.marks}.
14022 @item nnml-use-compressed-files
14023 @vindex nnml-use-compressed-files
14024 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will allow using compressed message
14029 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
14030 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
14031 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
14032 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
14033 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
14034 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
14035 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
14040 @subsubsection MH Spool
14042 @cindex mh-e mail spool
14044 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
14045 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file or marks file.
14046 This makes @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower back end than @code{nnml},
14047 but it also makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
14049 Virtual server settings:
14052 @item nnmh-directory
14053 @vindex nnmh-directory
14054 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
14055 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14058 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
14059 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
14060 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
14064 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
14065 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
14066 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
14067 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
14068 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
14069 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
14070 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
14075 @subsubsection Mail Folders
14077 @cindex mbox folders
14078 @cindex mail folders
14080 @code{nnfolder} is a back end for storing each mail group in a separate
14081 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
14082 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
14085 @cindex self contained nnfolder servers
14087 When the marks file is used (which it is by default), @code{nnfolder}
14088 servers have the property that you may backup them using @code{tar} or
14089 similar, and later be able to restore them into Gnus (by adding the
14090 proper @code{nnfolder} server) and have all your marks be preserved.
14091 Marks for a group is usually stored in a file named as the mbox file
14092 with @code{.mrk} concatenated to it (but see
14093 @code{nnfolder-marks-file-suffix}) within the @code{nnfolder} directory.
14094 Individual @code{nnfolder} groups are also possible to backup, use
14095 @kbd{G m} to restore the group (after restoring the backup into the
14096 @code{nnfolder} directory).
14098 Virtual server settings:
14101 @item nnfolder-directory
14102 @vindex nnfolder-directory
14103 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
14104 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
14107 @item nnfolder-active-file
14108 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
14109 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
14111 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
14112 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
14113 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
14114 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
14116 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
14117 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
14118 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
14121 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
14122 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
14123 @cindex backup files
14124 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
14125 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
14126 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
14127 your @file{.emacs} file:
14130 (defun turn-off-backup ()
14131 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
14133 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
14136 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
14137 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
14138 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
14139 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
14140 extract some information from it before removing it.
14142 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
14143 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
14144 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
14145 default is @code{nil}.
14147 @item nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
14148 @vindex nnfolder-nov-file-suffix
14149 The extension for @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.nov}.
14151 @item nnfolder-nov-directory
14152 @vindex nnfolder-nov-directory
14153 The directory where the @sc{nov} files should be stored. If nil,
14154 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
14156 @item nnfolder-marks-is-evil
14157 @vindex nnfolder-marks-is-evil
14158 If non-@code{nil}, this back end will ignore any @sc{marks} files. The
14159 default is @code{nil}.
14161 @item nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
14162 @vindex nnfolder-marks-file-suffix
14163 The extension for @sc{marks} files. The default is @file{.mrk}.
14165 @item nnfolder-marks-directory
14166 @vindex nnfolder-marks-directory
14167 The directory where the @sc{marks} files should be stored. If nil,
14168 @code{nnfolder-directory} is used.
14173 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
14174 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
14175 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
14176 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
14177 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
14178 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
14181 @node Comparing Mail Back Ends
14182 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Back Ends
14184 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{back end} is the common word for a
14185 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
14186 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
14187 and so selection of a suitable back end is required in order to get that
14188 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
14190 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
14191 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
14192 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
14193 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
14194 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
14195 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
14196 @code{nnspool} back ends, to select between these methods, if one happens
14197 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
14200 The goal in selecting a mail back end is to pick one which
14201 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
14202 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
14203 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
14208 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
14209 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
14210 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
14211 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
14212 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
14213 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
14214 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
14215 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
14216 this back end, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
14217 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
14218 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
14219 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
14220 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
14225 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
14226 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
14227 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
14228 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
14229 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
14230 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
14231 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
14232 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
14233 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
14234 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
14235 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
14236 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
14237 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
14238 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
14240 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
14241 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
14246 @code{nnml} is the back end which smells the most as though you were
14247 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
14248 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
14249 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
14250 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
14251 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
14252 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
14253 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
14254 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
14255 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
14256 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
14257 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
14258 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
14259 provided by the active file and overviews.
14261 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
14262 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
14263 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
14264 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
14265 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
14268 It is also problematic using this back end if you are living in a
14269 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
14274 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
14275 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
14276 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
14277 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
14278 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
14279 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
14280 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
14284 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
14285 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
14286 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
14287 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
14288 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
14289 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
14290 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
14291 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
14292 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
14294 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
14295 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
14296 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
14297 friendly mail back end all over.
14301 @code{nnmaildir} is largely similar to @code{nnml}, with some notable
14302 differences. Each message is stored in a separate file, but the
14303 filename is unrelated to the article number in Gnus. @code{nnmaildir}
14304 also stores the equivalent of @code{nnml}'s overview files in one file
14305 per article, so it uses about twice as many inodes as @code{nnml}. (Use
14306 @code{df -i} to see how plentiful your inode supply is.) If this slows
14307 you down or takes up very much space, consider switching to ReiserFS
14308 (@uref{http://www.namesys.com/}) or another non-block-structured
14311 Since maildirs don't require locking for delivery, the maildirs you use
14312 as groups can also be the maildirs your mail is directly delivered to.
14313 This means you can skip Gnus's mail splitting if your mail is already
14314 organized into different mailboxes during delivery. A @code{directory}
14315 entry in @code{mail-sources} would have a similar effect, but would
14316 require one set of mailboxes for spooling deliveries (in mbox format,
14317 thus damaging message bodies), and another set to be used as groups (in
14318 whatever format you like). A maildir has a built-in spool, in the
14319 @code{new/} subdirectory. Beware that currently, mail moved from
14320 @code{new/} to @code{cur/} instead of via mail splitting will undergo
14321 treatment such as duplicate checking.
14323 An article will not necessarily keep the same number across Gnus
14324 sessions; articles are renumbered starting from 1 for each Gnus session
14325 (more precisely, each time you open the @code{nnmaildir} server). This
14326 way, you don't get gaps in your article number ranges, and when entering
14327 large groups, Gnus is likely to give a more accurate article count. The
14328 price is that @code{nnmaildir} doesn't work with the cache or agent.
14329 This will probably be changed in the future.
14331 @code{nnmaildir} stores article marks for a given group in the
14332 corresponding maildir, in a way designed so that it's easy to manipulate
14333 them from outside Gnus. You can tar up a maildir, unpack it somewhere
14334 else, and still have your marks. @code{nnml} also stores marks, but
14335 it's not as easy to work with them from outside Gnus as with
14338 For configuring expiry and other things, @code{nnmaildir} uses group
14339 parameters slightly different from those of other mail backends.
14341 @code{nnmaildir} uses a significant amount of memory to speed things up.
14342 (It keeps in memory some of the things that @code{nnml} stores in files
14343 and that @code{nnmh} repeatedly parses out of message files.) If this
14344 is a problem for you, you can set the @code{nov-cache-size} group
14345 parameter to somthing small (0 would probably not work, but 1 probably
14346 would) to make it use less memory.
14348 Startup and shutdown are likely to be slower with @code{nnmaildir} than
14349 with other backends. Everything in between is likely to be faster,
14350 depending in part on your filesystem.
14352 @code{nnmaildir} does not use @code{nnoo}, so you cannot use @code{nnoo}
14353 to write an @code{nnmaildir}-derived backend.
14358 @node Browsing the Web
14359 @section Browsing the Web
14361 @cindex browsing the web
14365 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
14366 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
14367 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
14368 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
14369 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
14370 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
14371 even know what a news group is.
14373 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
14374 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
14375 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
14376 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
14377 you mad in the end.
14379 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
14382 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of back ends for providing
14383 interfaces to these sources.
14387 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
14388 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
14389 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
14390 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
14391 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
14392 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
14395 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
14397 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
14398 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
14399 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus back end
14400 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these back ends,
14401 though, you should be ok.
14403 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
14404 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
14405 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
14406 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
14407 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
14409 @node Archiving Mail
14410 @subsection Archiving Mail
14411 @cindex archiving mail
14412 @cindex backup of mail
14414 Some of the back ends, notably @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, and
14415 @code{nnmaildir}, now actually store the article marks with each group.
14416 For these servers, archiving and restoring a group while preserving
14417 marks is fairly simple.
14419 (Preserving the group level and group parameters as well still
14420 requires ritual dancing and sacrifices to the @file{.newsrc.eld} deity
14423 To archive an entire @code{nnml}, @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir}
14424 server, take a recursive copy of the server directory. There is no need
14425 to shut down Gnus, so archiving may be invoked by @code{cron} or
14426 similar. You restore the data by restoring the directory tree, and
14427 adding a server definition pointing to that directory in Gnus. The
14428 @ref{Article Backlog}, @ref{Asynchronous Fetching} and other things
14429 might interfer with overwriting data, so you may want to shut down Gnus
14430 before you restore the data.
14432 It is also possible to archive individual @code{nnml},
14433 @code{nnfolder}, or @code{nnmaildir} groups, while preserving marks.
14434 For @code{nnml} or @code{nnmaildir}, you copy all files in the group's
14435 directory. For @code{nnfolder} you need to copy both the base folder
14436 file itself (@file{FOO}, say), and the marks file (@file{FOO.mrk} in
14437 this example). Restoring the group is done with @kbd{G m} from the Group
14438 buffer. The last step makes Gnus notice the new directory.
14439 @code{nnmaildir} notices the new directory automatically, so @kbd{G m}
14440 is unnecessary in that case.
14443 @subsection Web Searches
14448 @cindex Usenet searches
14449 @cindex searching the Usenet
14451 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
14452 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
14453 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
14454 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
14455 searches without having to use a browser.
14457 The @code{nnweb} back end allows an easy interface to the mighty search
14458 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
14459 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
14460 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
14461 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
14463 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
14464 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
14465 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
14466 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
14467 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
14468 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
14469 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
14470 engines (Google, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
14471 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
14472 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
14475 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
14476 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
14477 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
14478 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
14479 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
14480 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
14482 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
14483 to use @code{nnweb}.
14485 Virtual server variables:
14490 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
14491 are @code{google}, @code{dejanews}, and @code{gmane}. Note that
14492 @code{dejanews} is an alias to @code{google}.
14495 @vindex nnweb-search
14496 The search string to feed to the search engine.
14498 @item nnweb-max-hits
14499 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
14500 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
14503 @item nnweb-type-definition
14504 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
14505 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
14506 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
14511 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
14515 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
14518 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
14521 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
14525 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
14532 @subsection Slashdot
14536 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
14537 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
14538 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
14540 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
14541 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
14544 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14545 '((nnslashdot "")))
14548 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} back end for new comments
14549 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
14550 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
14551 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
14552 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
14555 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
14556 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
14558 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
14559 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
14560 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
14561 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
14562 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
14563 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
14566 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
14569 @item nnslashdot-threaded
14570 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
14571 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
14572 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
14573 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
14574 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
14575 but much, much slower than untreaded.
14577 @item nnslashdot-login-name
14578 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
14579 The login name to use when posting.
14581 @item nnslashdot-password
14582 @vindex nnslashdot-password
14583 The password to use when posting.
14585 @item nnslashdot-directory
14586 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
14587 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
14588 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
14590 @item nnslashdot-active-url
14591 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
14592 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
14593 news articles and comments. The default is
14594 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
14596 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
14597 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
14598 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
14600 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
14602 @item nnslashdot-article-url
14603 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
14604 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
14606 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
14608 @item nnslashdot-threshold
14609 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
14610 The score threshold. The default is -1.
14612 @item nnslashdot-group-number
14613 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
14614 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
14615 updated. The default is 0.
14622 @subsection Ultimate
14624 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
14626 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
14627 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
14628 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
14629 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
14631 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
14632 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
14633 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
14634 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
14635 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
14636 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
14637 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
14639 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
14642 @item nnultimate-directory
14643 @vindex nnultimate-directory
14644 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
14645 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
14650 @subsection Web Archive
14652 @cindex Web Archive
14654 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
14655 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
14656 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
14657 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14660 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
14661 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
14662 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
14663 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
14664 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
14665 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
14666 back end by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
14668 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
14671 @item nnwarchive-directory
14672 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
14673 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
14674 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
14676 @item nnwarchive-login
14677 @vindex nnwarchive-login
14678 The account name on the web server.
14680 @item nnwarchive-passwd
14681 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
14682 The password for your account on the web server.
14690 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
14691 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
14692 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
14695 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
14696 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
14699 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
14702 @item nnrss-directory
14703 @vindex nnrss-directory
14704 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
14705 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
14709 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
14710 the summary buffer.
14713 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
14714 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
14716 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
14718 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
14719 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
14722 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
14725 (require 'browse-url)
14727 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
14729 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
14732 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
14733 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
14735 (browse-url (cdr url))
14736 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
14738 (eval-after-load "gnus"
14739 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
14740 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
14741 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
14744 @node Customizing w3
14745 @subsection Customizing w3
14751 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
14752 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
14753 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
14755 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
14756 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
14757 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
14760 (eval-after-load "w3"
14762 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
14763 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
14764 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
14765 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
14767 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
14770 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
14771 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
14780 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14781 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14782 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14783 specify the network address of the server.
14785 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14786 POP can, it can hence be viewed as a POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14787 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14788 protocol -- however, @sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp}
14789 because news is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.
14791 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a POP++, use an imap entry in
14792 @code{mail-sources}. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the
14793 @sc{imap} server and store them on the local disk. This is not the
14794 usage described in this section--@xref{Mail Sources}.
14796 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14797 entry in @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods}. With this, Gnus will
14798 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14799 usage explained in this section.
14801 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14802 might look something like the following. (Note that for SSL/TLS, you
14803 need external programs and libraries, see below.)
14806 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14807 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14808 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14810 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14811 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14812 ; a UW server running on localhost
14814 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14815 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14816 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14817 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14818 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14819 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14820 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14821 (nnimap-stream network))
14822 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14824 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14825 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14826 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14829 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14834 @item nnimap-address
14835 @vindex nnimap-address
14837 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14838 server name if not specified.
14840 @item nnimap-server-port
14841 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14842 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14844 Note that this should be an integer, example server specification:
14847 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14848 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14851 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14852 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14853 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14854 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14855 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14856 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14857 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14859 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14860 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14861 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14864 Example server specification:
14867 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14868 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14869 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14872 @item nnimap-stream
14873 @vindex nnimap-stream
14874 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14875 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14876 of SSL/TLS. (@sc{imap} over SSL/TLS is being replaced by STARTTLS, which
14877 can be automatically detected, but it's not widely deployed yet.)
14879 Example server specification:
14882 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14883 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14886 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14890 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually Kerberos 5). Requires the
14891 @samp{imtest} program.
14893 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with Kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14895 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14896 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14899 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the program
14900 @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}) as well as the external
14901 library @samp{ssl.el}.
14903 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14905 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14908 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14909 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14910 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14911 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14912 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14913 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14914 restrictions on @sc{imap} commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14915 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14916 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14919 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14920 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14921 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14922 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14923 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14924 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14925 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14926 to OpenSSL/SSLeay. You also need @samp{ssl.el} (from the W3
14927 distribution, for instance).
14929 @vindex imap-shell-program
14930 @vindex imap-shell-host
14931 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14932 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14934 @item nnimap-authenticator
14935 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14937 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14938 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14940 Example server specification:
14943 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14944 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14947 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14951 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Requires
14952 external program @code{imtest}.
14954 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos 4 authentication. Requires external program
14957 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Requires
14958 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14960 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14962 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14964 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14967 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14969 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14970 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14971 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14972 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14973 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14974 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{B DEL} or
14977 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14978 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14979 running in circles yet?
14981 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14982 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14985 The possible options are:
14990 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14993 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14994 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14995 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14996 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14998 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
15003 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
15004 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
15006 If non-nil (the default), marks dormant articles as ticked (as well),
15007 for other @sc{imap} clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will
15008 naturally still (only) be marked as dormant. This is to make dormant
15009 articles stand out, just like ticked articles, in other @sc{imap}
15010 clients. (In other words, Gnus has two ``Tick'' marks and @sc{imap}
15013 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
15014 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
15017 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
15018 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15019 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
15020 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
15023 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
15024 as ticked for other users.
15026 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
15028 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
15030 This variable contain the @sc{imap} search command sent to server when
15031 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
15032 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
15033 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
15035 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
15036 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
15037 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
15038 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
15040 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
15041 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
15043 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
15044 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
15045 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
15051 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
15052 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
15053 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
15058 @node Splitting in IMAP
15059 @subsection Splitting in IMAP
15060 @cindex splitting imap mail
15062 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
15063 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
15064 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
15065 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
15066 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
15070 Here are the variables of interest:
15074 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
15075 @cindex splitting, crosspost
15077 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
15079 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
15080 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
15082 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
15084 @item nnimap-split-inbox
15085 @cindex splitting, inbox
15087 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
15089 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
15090 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
15094 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
15095 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
15098 No nnmail equivalent.
15100 @item nnimap-split-rule
15101 @cindex Splitting, rules
15102 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
15104 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
15107 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
15108 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
15109 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
15110 Neither did I, we need examples.
15113 (setq nnimap-split-rule
15115 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
15116 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
15117 ("INBOX.private" "")))
15120 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
15121 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
15122 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
15124 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
15125 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
15129 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
15132 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
15133 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
15134 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
15135 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
15137 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
15138 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
15139 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
15140 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
15141 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
15142 them every time you fetch new mail.)
15144 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
15145 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
15146 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
15148 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
15149 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
15150 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
15152 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it needs to.
15154 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
15155 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
15156 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
15159 (setq nnimap-split-rule
15160 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
15161 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
15162 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
15163 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
15164 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
15167 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
15168 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
15169 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
15170 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
15171 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
15172 group/function elements.
15174 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
15176 @item nnimap-split-predicate
15178 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
15180 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
15181 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
15183 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
15184 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
15185 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
15188 @item nnimap-split-fancy
15189 @cindex splitting, fancy
15190 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
15191 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
15193 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
15194 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
15195 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
15197 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
15198 nnimap back ends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
15199 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
15200 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
15205 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
15206 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
15209 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
15213 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
15214 @subsection Editing IMAP ACLs
15215 @cindex editing imap acls
15216 @cindex Access Control Lists
15217 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
15219 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
15221 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
15222 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
15223 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
15226 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
15227 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
15228 editing window with detailed instructions.
15230 Some possible uses:
15234 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
15235 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
15236 follow the list without subscribing to it.
15238 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
15239 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
15240 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
15244 @node Expunging mailboxes
15245 @subsection Expunging mailboxes
15249 @cindex Manual expunging
15251 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
15253 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
15254 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
15255 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
15257 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
15262 @node Other Sources
15263 @section Other Sources
15265 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
15266 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
15270 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
15271 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
15272 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
15273 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
15274 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
15278 @node Directory Groups
15279 @subsection Directory Groups
15281 @cindex directory groups
15283 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
15284 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
15287 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
15288 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
15289 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
15290 back end to read directories. Big deal.
15292 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
15293 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
15294 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
15295 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
15296 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
15298 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
15300 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' back end---you can't delete or expire
15301 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
15302 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
15303 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
15306 @node Anything Groups
15307 @subsection Anything Groups
15310 From the @code{nndir} back end (which reads a single spool-like
15311 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
15312 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
15315 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
15316 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
15317 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
15318 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
15319 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
15320 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
15321 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
15322 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
15323 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
15324 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
15327 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
15328 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
15329 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
15330 in the article buffer, just as usual.
15332 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
15333 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
15334 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
15335 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
15337 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
15338 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
15339 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
15340 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
15341 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
15342 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
15343 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
15344 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
15349 @item nneething-map-file-directory
15350 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
15351 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
15352 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
15354 @item nneething-exclude-files
15355 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
15356 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
15357 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
15359 @item nneething-include-files
15360 @vindex nneething-include-files
15361 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
15362 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
15364 @item nneething-map-file
15365 @vindex nneething-map-file
15366 Name of the map files.
15370 @node Document Groups
15371 @subsection Document Groups
15373 @cindex documentation group
15376 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
15377 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
15384 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
15389 The standard Unix mbox file.
15391 @cindex MMDF mail box
15393 The MMDF mail box format.
15396 Several news articles appended into a file.
15399 @cindex rnews batch files
15400 The rnews batch transport format.
15401 @cindex forwarded messages
15404 Forwarded articles.
15407 Netscape mail boxes.
15410 @sc{mime} multipart messages.
15412 @item standard-digest
15413 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
15416 A @sc{mime} digest of messages.
15418 @item lanl-gov-announce
15419 Announcement messages from LANL Gov Announce.
15421 @item rfc822-forward
15422 A message forwarded according to RFC822.
15425 The Outlook mail box.
15428 The Outlook Express dbx mail box.
15431 A bounce message from the Exim MTA.
15434 A message forwarded according to informal rules.
15437 An RFC934-forwarded message.
15443 A digest of Clarinet brief news items.
15446 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
15452 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
15453 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
15454 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
15457 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
15458 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
15459 group. And that's it.
15461 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
15462 new & spiffy Gnus mail back end, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
15463 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
15464 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
15465 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
15466 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
15467 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
15468 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
15469 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
15470 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
15472 Virtual server variables:
15475 @item nndoc-article-type
15476 @vindex nndoc-article-type
15477 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
15478 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
15479 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
15480 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail}, @code{outlook},
15481 @code{oe-dbx}, @code{mailman}, and @code{mail-in-mail} or @code{guess}.
15483 @item nndoc-post-type
15484 @vindex nndoc-post-type
15485 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
15486 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
15491 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
15495 @node Document Server Internals
15496 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
15498 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
15499 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
15500 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
15501 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
15503 First, here's an example document type definition:
15507 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
15508 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
15511 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
15512 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
15513 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
15514 types can be defined with very few settings:
15517 @item first-article
15518 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
15519 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
15522 @item article-begin
15523 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
15524 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
15526 @item head-begin-function
15527 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
15530 @item nndoc-head-begin
15531 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
15534 @item nndoc-head-end
15535 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
15536 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
15538 @item body-begin-function
15539 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
15543 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
15546 @item body-end-function
15547 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
15551 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
15554 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
15555 regexp will be totally ignored.
15559 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
15560 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
15561 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
15562 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
15563 something that's palatable for Gnus:
15566 @item prepare-body-function
15567 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
15568 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
15569 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
15571 @item article-transform-function
15572 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
15573 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
15574 body of the article.
15576 @item generate-head-function
15577 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
15578 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
15579 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
15580 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
15584 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
15589 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15590 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
15591 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
15592 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
15593 (head-end . "^ ?$")
15594 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
15595 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
15596 (subtype digest guess))
15599 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
15600 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
15601 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
15602 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
15603 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
15605 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
15606 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
15607 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
15608 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
15609 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
15610 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
15611 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
15612 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
15613 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
15614 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
15622 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
15623 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
15624 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
15626 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
15627 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
15628 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
15631 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
15632 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
15633 that interested in doing things properly.
15635 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
15636 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
15639 First some terminology:
15644 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
15645 get news and/or mail from.
15648 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
15649 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
15652 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
15656 @item message packets
15657 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
15658 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
15659 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15661 @item response packets
15662 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
15663 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
15664 default, where @var{x} is a number.
15674 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
15675 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
15676 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
15677 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
15680 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
15683 You put the packet in your home directory.
15686 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} back end as
15687 the native or secondary server.
15690 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
15691 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
15694 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
15698 You transfer this packet to the server.
15701 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
15704 You then repeat until you die.
15708 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
15709 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
15712 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
15713 * SOUP Groups:: A back end for reading @sc{soup} packets.
15714 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
15718 @node SOUP Commands
15719 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
15721 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
15725 @kindex G s b (Group)
15726 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
15727 Pack all unread articles in the current group
15728 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
15729 process/prefix convention.
15732 @kindex G s w (Group)
15733 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
15734 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
15737 @kindex G s s (Group)
15738 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
15739 Send all replies from the replies packet
15740 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
15743 @kindex G s p (Group)
15744 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
15745 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
15748 @kindex G s r (Group)
15749 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
15750 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
15753 @kindex O s (Summary)
15754 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
15755 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
15756 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
15757 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15762 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
15767 @item gnus-soup-directory
15768 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
15769 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
15770 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
15772 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
15773 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
15774 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
15775 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
15777 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
15778 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
15779 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
15780 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
15782 @item gnus-soup-packer
15783 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
15784 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15785 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
15787 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
15788 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
15789 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
15790 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15792 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
15793 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
15794 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
15796 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15797 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
15798 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
15799 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
15805 @subsubsection SOUP Groups
15808 @code{nnsoup} is the back end for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
15809 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
15810 you can read them at leisure.
15812 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
15816 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
15817 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
15818 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
15819 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
15821 @item nnsoup-directory
15822 @vindex nnsoup-directory
15823 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
15824 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
15826 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
15827 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
15828 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
15829 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
15831 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
15832 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
15833 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
15834 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
15835 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
15837 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
15838 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
15839 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
15840 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
15842 @item nnsoup-active-file
15843 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
15844 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
15845 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
15846 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
15847 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
15849 @item nnsoup-packer
15850 @vindex nnsoup-packer
15851 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
15852 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
15854 @item nnsoup-unpacker
15855 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
15856 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
15857 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
15859 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
15860 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
15861 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
15864 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
15865 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
15866 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
15869 @item nnsoup-always-save
15870 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
15871 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
15877 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
15879 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
15880 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
15881 more for that to happen.
15883 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
15884 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
15885 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
15888 In specific, this is what it does:
15891 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
15892 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
15895 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
15896 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
15897 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
15900 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
15901 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
15902 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
15905 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
15906 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
15907 The @code{nngateway} back end provides the interface.
15909 Note that you can't read anything from this back end---it can only be
15915 @item nngateway-address
15916 @vindex nngateway-address
15917 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
15919 @item nngateway-header-transformation
15920 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
15921 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
15922 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
15923 transformation should be called, and defaults to
15924 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
15925 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
15928 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
15929 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
15930 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
15933 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
15936 will get this @code{To} header inserted:
15939 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
15942 The following pre-defined functions exist:
15944 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15947 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
15948 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15949 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
15951 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15953 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
15954 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
15955 @code{nngateway-address}.
15960 (setq gnus-post-method
15962 "mail2news@@replay.com"
15963 (nngateway-header-transformation
15964 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
15972 So, to use this, simply say something like:
15975 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
15980 @node Combined Groups
15981 @section Combined Groups
15983 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
15987 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
15988 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
15992 @node Virtual Groups
15993 @subsection Virtual Groups
15995 @cindex virtual groups
15996 @cindex merging groups
15998 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
16001 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
16002 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
16003 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
16005 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
16006 regexp to match component groups.
16008 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
16009 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
16010 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it
16011 came. (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be
16012 shown in the virtual group.). To create an empty virtual group, run
16013 @kbd{G V} (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}) in the group buffer
16014 and edit the method regexp with @kbd{M-e}
16015 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method})
16017 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
16018 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
16021 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
16024 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
16025 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
16027 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
16028 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
16029 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
16030 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
16033 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
16036 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
16037 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
16038 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
16040 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
16041 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
16042 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
16043 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
16044 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
16046 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
16047 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
16048 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
16050 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
16051 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
16052 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
16053 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
16054 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
16055 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
16056 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
16057 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
16058 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
16059 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
16060 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
16062 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
16063 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
16064 has to ask the back end of the component group the article comes from
16065 whether it is a news or mail back end. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
16066 there is typically no sure way for the component back end to know this,
16067 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
16068 not-news back end. (Just to be on the safe side.)
16070 @kbd{C-c C-n} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
16071 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
16073 @code{nnvirtual} groups do not inherit anything but articles and marks
16074 from component groups---group parameters, for instance, are not
16078 @node Kibozed Groups
16079 @subsection Kibozed Groups
16083 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
16084 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a back end that will do this for
16085 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
16086 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
16088 @kindex G k (Group)
16089 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
16092 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
16093 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
16094 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
16095 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
16097 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
16098 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
16099 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
16101 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
16102 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
16103 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
16104 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
16105 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
16106 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
16107 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
16108 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
16110 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
16111 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
16112 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
16113 Stranger things have happened.
16115 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
16116 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
16118 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
16119 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
16120 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
16121 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
16122 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
16123 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
16125 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
16126 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
16129 @node Gnus Unplugged
16130 @section Gnus Unplugged
16135 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
16137 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
16138 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
16139 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
16140 read news. Believe it or not.
16142 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
16143 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
16144 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
16145 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
16146 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
16148 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
16149 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
16150 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
16151 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
16152 reading news on a machine.
16154 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
16158 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
16159 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
16163 Then, put the following magical incantation in your @file{.gnus.el}
16167 (setq gnus-agent t)
16171 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
16173 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
16176 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
16177 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
16178 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
16179 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
16180 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
16181 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
16182 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
16183 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
16184 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
16185 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
16190 @subsection Agent Basics
16192 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
16194 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
16195 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
16196 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
16197 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
16199 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
16200 connected to the net continuously.
16202 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
16203 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
16205 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
16210 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
16211 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
16212 already fetched while in this mode.
16215 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
16216 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
16217 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
16218 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
16219 Source Specifiers}).
16222 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
16223 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
16224 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
16225 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
16226 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
16229 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
16230 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
16231 then you read the news offline.
16234 And then you go to step 2.
16237 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
16243 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
16244 back end, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
16245 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
16246 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
16247 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
16248 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
16251 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
16258 @node Agent Categories
16259 @subsection Agent Categories
16261 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
16262 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
16263 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
16264 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
16265 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
16266 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
16267 you're interested in the articles anyway.
16269 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
16270 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
16271 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
16272 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
16273 managing categories.
16276 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
16277 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
16278 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
16282 @node Category Syntax
16283 @subsubsection Category Syntax
16285 A category consists of two things.
16289 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
16290 are eligible for downloading; and
16293 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
16294 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
16295 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
16298 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
16299 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
16300 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
16301 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
16303 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
16304 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
16305 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
16307 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
16308 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
16309 operators sprinkled in between.
16311 Perhaps some examples are in order.
16313 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
16314 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
16320 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
16321 short (for some value of ``short'').
16323 Here's a more complex predicate:
16332 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
16333 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
16336 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
16337 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
16338 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
16340 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
16341 you want to do, you can write your own.
16345 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
16346 lines; default 100.
16349 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
16350 lines; default 200.
16353 True iff the article has a download score less than
16354 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
16357 True iff the article has a download score greater than
16358 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
16361 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
16362 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
16363 checksum and sees whether articles match.
16372 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
16373 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
16374 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
16377 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
16378 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
16379 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
16380 something along the lines of the following:
16383 (defun my-article-old-p ()
16384 "Say whether an article is old."
16385 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
16386 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
16389 with the predicate then defined as:
16392 (not my-article-old-p)
16395 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
16396 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
16400 (require 'gnus-agent)
16401 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
16402 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
16403 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
16406 and simply specify your predicate as:
16412 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
16413 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
16414 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
16415 just don't give a damn.
16417 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
16418 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
16419 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
16420 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
16421 parameters like so:
16424 (agent-predicate . short)
16427 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
16428 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
16429 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
16431 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
16434 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
16437 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
16438 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
16439 predicate is assumed to be a list.
16442 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
16443 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
16444 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
16445 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
16446 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
16447 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
16449 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
16450 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
16451 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
16452 if it's to be specific to that group.
16454 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
16461 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
16462 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
16468 Category specification
16472 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16478 Group Parameter specification
16481 (agent-score ("from"
16482 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
16487 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
16493 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
16500 Category specification
16503 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
16509 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
16513 Group Parameter specification
16516 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
16519 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
16524 Use @code{normal} score files
16526 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
16527 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
16528 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
16529 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
16531 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
16532 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
16533 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
16534 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
16538 Category Specification
16545 Group Parameter specification
16548 (agent-score . file)
16553 @node Category Buffer
16554 @subsubsection Category Buffer
16556 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
16557 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
16558 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
16560 The following commands are available in this buffer:
16564 @kindex q (Category)
16565 @findex gnus-category-exit
16566 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
16569 @kindex k (Category)
16570 @findex gnus-category-kill
16571 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
16574 @kindex c (Category)
16575 @findex gnus-category-copy
16576 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
16579 @kindex a (Category)
16580 @findex gnus-category-add
16581 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
16584 @kindex p (Category)
16585 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
16586 Edit the predicate of the current category
16587 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
16590 @kindex g (Category)
16591 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
16592 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
16593 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
16596 @kindex s (Category)
16597 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
16598 Edit the download score rule of the current category
16599 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
16602 @kindex l (Category)
16603 @findex gnus-category-list
16604 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
16608 @node Category Variables
16609 @subsubsection Category Variables
16612 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
16613 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
16614 Hook run in category buffers.
16616 @item gnus-category-line-format
16617 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
16618 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
16619 Variables}). Valid elements are:
16623 The name of the category.
16626 The number of groups in the category.
16629 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
16630 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
16631 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
16633 @item gnus-agent-short-article
16634 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
16635 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
16637 @item gnus-agent-long-article
16638 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
16639 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
16641 @item gnus-agent-low-score
16642 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
16643 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
16646 @item gnus-agent-high-score
16647 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
16648 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
16654 @node Agent Commands
16655 @subsection Agent Commands
16657 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
16658 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged}) command works in all modes, and
16659 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
16663 * Group Agent Commands::
16664 * Summary Agent Commands::
16665 * Server Agent Commands::
16668 You can run a complete batch command from the command line with the
16669 following incantation:
16671 @cindex gnus-agent-batch
16673 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch
16678 @node Group Agent Commands
16679 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
16683 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
16684 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
16685 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
16686 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
16689 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
16690 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
16691 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
16694 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
16695 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
16696 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
16697 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
16700 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
16701 @findex gnus-group-send-queue
16702 Send all sendable messages in the queue group
16703 (@code{gnus-group-send-queue}). @xref{Drafts}.
16706 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
16707 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
16708 Add the current group to an Agent category
16709 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
16710 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16713 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
16714 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
16715 Remove the current group from its category, if any
16716 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
16717 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
16720 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
16721 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16722 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
16728 @node Summary Agent Commands
16729 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
16733 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
16734 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
16735 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
16738 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
16739 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
16740 Remove the downloading mark from the article
16741 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
16744 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
16745 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
16746 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
16749 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
16750 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
16751 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
16754 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
16755 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
16756 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
16757 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
16762 @node Server Agent Commands
16763 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
16767 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
16768 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
16769 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
16770 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
16773 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
16774 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
16775 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
16776 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
16782 @subsection Agent Expiry
16784 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
16785 @findex gnus-agent-expire
16786 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
16787 @cindex Agent expiry
16788 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
16791 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
16792 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
16793 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
16794 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
16795 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
16796 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
16798 @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} can also be a list of regexp/day pairs.
16799 The regexps will be matched against group names to allow differing
16800 expiry in different groups.
16803 (setq gnus-agent-expire-days
16809 If you use the list form, the last element must always be the default
16810 method---it must always match all groups.
16812 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
16813 If @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
16814 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
16815 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
16816 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
16818 @findex gnus-agent-regenerate
16819 If you find that some articles eligible for expiry are never expired,
16820 perhaps some Gnus Agent files are corrupted. There's a special
16821 @code{gnus-agent-regenerate} command to fix possible problems.
16823 @node Agent and IMAP
16824 @subsection Agent and IMAP
16826 The Agent work with any Gnus back end, including nnimap. However,
16827 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
16828 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
16829 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
16831 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
16832 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
16833 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
16834 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
16836 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
16837 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
16838 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
16839 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
16840 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
16842 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
16843 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
16844 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
16845 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
16846 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
16847 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
16849 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
16850 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
16851 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
16852 in the group buffer by default.
16854 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
16855 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
16860 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
16863 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
16867 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
16868 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
16869 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
16870 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
16871 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
16872 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
16873 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
16874 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
16877 @node Outgoing Messages
16878 @subsection Outgoing Messages
16880 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
16881 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
16882 after posting, and edit them at will.
16884 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
16885 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
16886 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
16887 messages in the draft group.
16891 @node Agent Variables
16892 @subsection Agent Variables
16895 @item gnus-agent-directory
16896 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
16897 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
16898 @file{~/News/agent/}.
16900 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
16901 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
16902 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
16903 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
16904 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
16907 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16908 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
16909 Hook run when connecting to the network.
16911 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16912 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
16913 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
16915 @item gnus-agent-fetched-hook
16916 @vindex gnus-agent-fetched-hook
16917 Hook run when after finishing fetching articles.
16919 @item gnus-agent-cache
16920 @vindex gnus-agent-cache
16921 Variable to control whether use the locally stored @sc{nov} and articles when
16924 @item gnus-agent-go-online
16925 @vindex gnus-agent-go-online
16926 If @code{gnus-agent-go-online} is @code{nil}, the Agent will never
16927 automatically switch offline servers into online status. If it is
16928 @code{ask}, the default, the Agent will ask if you wish to switch
16929 offline servers into online status when you re-connect. If it has any
16930 other value, all offline servers will be automatically switched into
16936 @node Example Setup
16937 @subsection Example Setup
16939 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
16940 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
16941 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
16944 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
16945 ;;; from your ISP's server.
16946 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
16948 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
16949 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
16950 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
16952 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
16953 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
16955 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
16956 ;;; (gnus-agentize) ; The obsolete setting.
16957 (setq gnus-agent t)
16960 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
16961 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
16964 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
16965 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
16966 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
16967 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
16968 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
16971 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
16972 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
16973 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
16974 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
16975 back all the killed groups.)
16977 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
16978 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
16979 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
16982 @node Batching Agents
16983 @subsection Batching Agents
16985 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
16986 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
16987 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
16991 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
16995 @node Agent Caveats
16996 @subsection Agent Caveats
16998 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
16999 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
17003 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the Agent?
17007 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
17009 @strong{No}, unless @code{gnus-agent-cache} is `nil'.
17013 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
17014 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP and also uses the
17015 locally stored articles.
17022 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
17023 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
17024 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
17027 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
17028 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
17029 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
17030 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
17031 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
17033 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
17034 before generating the summary buffer.
17036 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
17037 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
17038 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
17040 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
17041 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
17042 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
17043 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
17046 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
17047 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
17048 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
17049 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
17050 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
17051 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
17052 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
17053 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
17054 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
17055 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
17056 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
17057 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
17058 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
17059 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
17060 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
17061 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
17062 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
17066 @node Summary Score Commands
17067 @section Summary Score Commands
17068 @cindex score commands
17070 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
17071 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
17072 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
17073 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
17074 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
17076 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
17077 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
17078 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
17079 score file the current one.
17081 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
17086 @kindex V s (Summary)
17087 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
17088 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
17091 @kindex V S (Summary)
17092 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
17093 Display the score of the current article
17094 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
17097 @kindex V t (Summary)
17098 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
17099 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
17100 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
17103 @kindex V w (Summary)
17104 @findex gnus-score-find-favourite-words
17105 List words used in scoring (@code{gnus-score-find-favourite-words}).
17108 @kindex V R (Summary)
17109 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
17110 Run the current summary through the scoring process
17111 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
17112 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
17113 effect you're having.
17116 @kindex V c (Summary)
17117 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
17118 Make a different score file the current
17119 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
17122 @kindex V e (Summary)
17123 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
17124 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
17125 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
17129 @kindex V f (Summary)
17130 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
17131 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
17132 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
17135 @kindex V F (Summary)
17136 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
17137 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
17138 after editing score files.
17141 @kindex V C (Summary)
17142 @findex gnus-score-customize
17143 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
17144 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
17148 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
17153 @kindex V m (Summary)
17154 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
17155 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
17156 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
17159 @kindex V x (Summary)
17160 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
17161 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
17162 expunge all articles below this score
17163 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
17166 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
17167 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
17170 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
17171 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
17175 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
17176 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
17178 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
17179 keys are available:
17183 Score on the author name.
17186 Score on the subject line.
17189 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
17192 Score on the @code{References} line.
17198 Score on the number of lines.
17201 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
17204 Score on an "extra" header, that is, one of those in gnus-extra-headers,
17205 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks additional header data in overviews.
17208 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
17209 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
17210 @file{ADAPT} files.)
17219 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
17225 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
17226 what headers you are scoring on.
17238 Substring matching.
17241 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
17270 Greater than number.
17275 The fourth and usually final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e.,
17276 expiring) score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry,
17277 or whether it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score
17282 Temporary score entry.
17285 Permanent score entry.
17288 Immediately scoring.
17292 If you are scoring on `e' (extra) headers, you will then be prompted for
17293 the header name on which you wish to score. This must be a header named
17294 in gnus-extra-headers, and @samp{TAB} completion is available.
17298 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
17299 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
17300 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
17301 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
17303 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
17304 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
17305 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
17306 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
17307 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
17309 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
17310 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
17311 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
17312 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
17313 current score file.
17315 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
17316 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
17317 pretend they are keymaps or not.
17320 @node Group Score Commands
17321 @section Group Score Commands
17322 @cindex group score commands
17324 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
17329 @kindex W f (Group)
17330 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
17331 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
17332 all the time. This command will flush the cache
17333 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
17337 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
17339 @findex gnus-batch-score
17340 @cindex batch scoring
17342 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
17346 @node Score Variables
17347 @section Score Variables
17348 @cindex score variables
17352 @item gnus-use-scoring
17353 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
17354 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
17355 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
17357 @item gnus-kill-killed
17358 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
17359 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
17360 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
17361 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
17362 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
17363 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
17364 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
17366 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
17367 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
17368 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
17369 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
17370 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
17372 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
17373 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
17374 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
17375 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
17377 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17378 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
17379 @cindex score cache
17380 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
17381 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
17382 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
17383 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
17384 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
17385 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
17388 @item gnus-save-score
17389 @vindex gnus-save-score
17390 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
17391 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
17392 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
17394 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
17395 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
17396 across group visits.
17398 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17399 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
17400 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
17401 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
17402 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
17403 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
17404 manually entered data.
17406 @item gnus-summary-default-score
17407 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
17408 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
17410 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
17411 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
17412 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
17413 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
17414 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
17415 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
17417 @item gnus-score-over-mark
17418 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
17419 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
17420 default. Default is @samp{+}.
17422 @item gnus-score-below-mark
17423 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
17424 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
17425 default. Default is @samp{-}.
17427 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17428 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
17429 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
17430 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
17432 Predefined functions available are:
17435 @item gnus-score-find-single
17436 @findex gnus-score-find-single
17437 Only apply the group's own score file.
17439 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
17440 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
17441 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
17442 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
17443 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
17444 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
17445 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
17446 then a regexp match is done.
17448 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
17449 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
17451 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
17452 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
17453 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
17454 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
17456 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17457 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
17458 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
17459 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
17460 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
17464 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all
17465 these functions will be called with the group name as argument, and
17466 all the returned lists of score files will be applied. These
17467 functions can also return lists of lists of score alists directly. In
17468 that case, the functions that return these non-file score alists
17469 should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file functions, to
17470 ensure that the last score file returned is the local score file.
17473 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
17474 overall score file, you could use the value
17476 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
17477 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
17480 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
17481 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
17482 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
17483 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
17484 are expired. It's 7 by default.
17486 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17487 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
17488 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, temporary score entries that have
17489 been triggered (matched) will have their dates updated. (This is how Gnus
17490 controls expiry---all non-matched-entries will become too old while
17491 matched entries will stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this
17492 variable to @code{nil}, even matched entries will grow old and will
17493 have to face that oh-so grim reaper.
17495 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17496 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
17497 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
17499 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
17500 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
17501 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
17502 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
17503 threading---according to the current value of
17504 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
17505 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
17506 simplified in this manner.
17511 @node Score File Format
17512 @section Score File Format
17513 @cindex score file format
17515 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
17516 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
17517 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
17519 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
17523 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
17525 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
17527 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
17529 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
17534 (mark-and-expunge -10)
17538 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
17539 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
17540 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
17541 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
17545 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
17546 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
17548 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
17549 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
17550 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
17552 Six keys are supported by this alist:
17557 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
17558 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
17559 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
17560 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
17561 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
17562 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
17563 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
17564 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
17565 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
17566 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
17567 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
17568 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
17569 to articles that matches these score entries.
17571 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
17572 score entry has one to four elements.
17576 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
17577 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
17581 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
17582 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
17583 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
17584 is successful. If this element is not present, the
17585 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
17586 instead. This is 1000 by default.
17589 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
17590 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
17591 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
17592 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
17593 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
17596 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
17597 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
17598 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
17599 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
17602 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
17603 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
17604 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
17605 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
17606 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
17607 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
17608 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
17609 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
17610 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
17611 instead, if you feel like.
17614 Just as for the standard string overview headers, if you are using
17615 gnus-extra-headers, you can score on these headers' values. In this
17616 case, there is a 5th element in the score entry, being the name of the
17617 header to be scored. The following entry is useful in your
17618 @file{all.SCORE} file in case of spam attacks from a single origin host,
17619 if your @sc{nntp} server tracks NNTP-Posting-Host in overviews:
17622 ("111.222.333.444" -1000 nil s "NNTP-Posting-Host")
17626 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
17627 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
17629 These predicates are true if
17632 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
17635 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
17636 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
17643 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
17644 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
17645 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
17646 it's not. I think.)
17648 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some back ends (like
17649 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
17650 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
17651 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
17654 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
17655 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
17656 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
17657 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
17658 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
17659 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
17660 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
17664 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
17665 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
17666 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
17667 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
17668 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
17669 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
17670 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
17671 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
17674 @item Head, Body, All
17675 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
17679 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
17680 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
17681 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
17682 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
17683 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
17684 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
17685 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
17689 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
17690 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
17691 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
17692 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
17693 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
17694 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
17695 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
17696 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
17697 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
17698 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
17699 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
17703 @cindex Score File Atoms
17705 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17706 lower than this number will be marked as read.
17709 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17710 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
17712 @item mark-and-expunge
17713 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
17714 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
17717 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
17718 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
17719 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
17720 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
17721 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
17724 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
17725 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
17728 @item exclude-files
17729 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
17730 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
17734 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
17735 ignored when handling global score files.
17738 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
17739 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
17740 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
17741 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
17744 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
17745 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
17746 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
17747 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
17749 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
17753 (mark-and-expunge -100)
17756 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
17757 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
17758 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
17759 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
17760 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
17762 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
17763 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
17764 scoring rules exist.
17767 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
17768 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
17769 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
17770 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
17771 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
17772 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
17773 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17774 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
17775 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
17776 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
17777 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
17781 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
17782 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
17783 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
17784 file for a number of groups.
17787 @cindex local variables
17788 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
17789 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
17790 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
17791 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
17792 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
17796 @node Score File Editing
17797 @section Score File Editing
17799 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
17800 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
17801 with a mode for that.
17803 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
17804 additional commands:
17809 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
17810 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
17811 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
17812 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
17815 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
17816 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
17817 Insert the current date in numerical format
17818 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
17819 you were wondering.
17822 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
17823 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
17824 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
17825 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
17826 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
17831 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
17833 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
17834 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
17836 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
17837 e} to begin editing score files.
17840 @node Adaptive Scoring
17841 @section Adaptive Scoring
17842 @cindex adaptive scoring
17844 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
17845 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
17846 stupidity, to be precise.
17848 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
17849 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
17850 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
17851 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
17852 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
17853 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
17854 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
17855 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
17856 variable to @code{(word line)}.
17858 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17859 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
17860 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
17861 might look something like this:
17864 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
17865 '((gnus-unread-mark)
17866 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
17867 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
17868 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
17869 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
17870 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
17871 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
17872 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
17873 (gnus-ancient-mark)
17874 (gnus-low-score-mark)
17875 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
17878 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
17879 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
17880 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
17881 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
17882 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
17883 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
17886 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
17887 will be applied to each article.
17889 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
17890 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
17891 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
17892 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
17894 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
17895 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
17896 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
17897 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
17899 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
17900 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
17901 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
17902 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
17904 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
17905 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
17906 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
17907 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
17908 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
17909 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
17911 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
17912 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
17913 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
17914 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
17915 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
17916 aspirins afterwards.)
17918 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
17919 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
17920 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
17922 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
17923 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
17924 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
17926 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
17927 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
17928 let you use different rules in different groups.
17930 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
17931 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
17932 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
17935 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
17936 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
17937 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
17938 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
17939 the length of the match is less than
17940 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
17941 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
17944 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17945 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
17946 headers. If you adapt on words, the
17947 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
17948 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
17951 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
17952 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
17953 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
17954 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
17955 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
17958 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
17959 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
17960 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
17961 score with 30 points.
17963 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
17964 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
17965 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
17966 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
17967 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
17969 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
17970 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
17971 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
17972 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
17973 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
17975 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
17976 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
17977 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
17978 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
17980 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
17981 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
17982 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
17983 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
17985 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
17986 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
17987 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
17988 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
17989 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
17991 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
17992 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
17993 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
17995 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
17996 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
17997 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
17998 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
18001 @node Home Score File
18002 @section Home Score File
18004 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
18005 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
18006 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
18007 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
18009 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
18010 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
18011 could perhaps use the same home score file.
18013 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
18014 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
18019 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
18023 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
18024 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
18028 A list. The elements in this list can be:
18032 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
18033 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
18036 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
18037 the home score file.
18040 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
18043 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
18048 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
18051 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18052 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
18055 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
18056 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
18058 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
18060 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18061 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
18064 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
18065 Other functions include
18068 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
18069 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
18070 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
18071 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
18075 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
18076 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
18077 their own home score files:
18080 (setq gnus-home-score-file
18081 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
18082 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
18083 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
18084 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
18087 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
18088 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
18089 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
18090 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
18091 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
18093 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
18094 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
18095 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
18096 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
18097 precedence over this variable.
18100 @node Followups To Yourself
18101 @section Followups To Yourself
18103 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
18104 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
18105 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
18106 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
18107 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
18108 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
18112 @item gnus-score-followup-article
18113 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
18114 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
18117 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
18118 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
18119 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
18123 @vindex message-sent-hook
18124 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
18125 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
18127 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
18131 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
18132 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
18136 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
18137 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
18140 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
18141 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
18146 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
18150 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
18151 is system-dependent.
18154 @node Scoring On Other Headers
18155 @section Scoring On Other Headers
18156 @cindex scoring on other headers
18158 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
18159 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
18160 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
18161 that Gnus has to request every single article from the back end to find
18162 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
18164 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
18165 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
18166 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
18167 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
18168 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
18170 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18173 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
18174 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
18177 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
18178 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
18179 time if you have much mail.
18181 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
18182 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
18188 @section Scoring Tips
18189 @cindex scoring tips
18195 @cindex scoring crossposts
18196 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
18197 the @code{Xref} header.
18199 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
18202 @item Multiple crossposts
18203 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
18204 more than, say, 3 groups:
18207 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
18211 @item Matching on the body
18212 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
18213 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
18214 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
18215 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
18216 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
18217 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
18218 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
18221 @item Marking as read
18222 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
18223 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
18224 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
18228 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
18230 @item Negated character classes
18231 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
18232 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
18233 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
18237 @node Reverse Scoring
18238 @section Reverse Scoring
18239 @cindex reverse scoring
18241 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
18242 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
18243 like this in your score file:
18247 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
18252 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
18253 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
18256 @node Global Score Files
18257 @section Global Score Files
18258 @cindex global score files
18260 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
18261 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
18262 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
18264 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
18265 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
18266 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
18268 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
18269 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
18270 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
18271 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
18272 files are applicable to which group.
18274 To use the score file
18275 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
18276 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
18280 (setq gnus-global-score-files
18281 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
18282 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
18285 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
18287 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
18288 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
18289 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
18290 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
18292 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
18293 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
18295 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
18296 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
18297 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
18298 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
18299 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
18300 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
18302 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
18308 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
18310 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
18312 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
18314 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
18315 lowered out of existence.
18317 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
18318 articles completely.
18321 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
18322 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
18323 old articles for a long time.
18326 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
18327 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
18328 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
18329 holding our breath yet?
18333 @section Kill Files
18336 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
18337 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
18338 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
18340 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
18341 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
18342 files into score files.
18344 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
18345 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
18346 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
18347 that isn't a very good idea.
18349 Normal kill files look like this:
18352 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18353 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
18357 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
18358 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
18360 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
18361 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
18364 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
18369 @kindex M-k (Summary)
18370 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
18371 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
18374 @kindex M-K (Summary)
18375 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
18376 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
18379 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
18384 @kindex M-k (Group)
18385 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
18386 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
18389 @kindex M-K (Group)
18390 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
18391 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
18394 Kill file variables:
18397 @item gnus-kill-file-name
18398 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
18399 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
18400 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
18401 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
18402 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
18403 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
18405 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18406 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
18407 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
18408 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
18411 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
18412 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
18413 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
18414 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
18415 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
18416 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
18417 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
18418 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
18419 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
18421 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18422 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
18423 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
18428 @node Converting Kill Files
18429 @section Converting Kill Files
18431 @cindex converting kill files
18433 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
18434 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
18435 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
18438 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
18439 You can fetch it from
18440 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
18442 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
18443 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
18444 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
18452 GroupLens (@uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/}) is a
18453 collaborative filtering system that helps you work together with other
18454 people to find the quality news articles out of the huge volume of
18455 news articles generated every day.
18457 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
18458 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
18459 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
18460 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
18461 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
18462 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
18463 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
18464 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
18467 @sc{Note:} Unfortunately the GroupLens system seems to have shut down,
18468 so this section is mostly of historical interest.
18471 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
18472 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
18473 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
18474 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
18478 @node Using GroupLens
18479 @subsection Using GroupLens
18481 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
18483 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
18484 better bit in town at the moment.
18486 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
18490 @item gnus-use-grouplens
18491 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
18492 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
18493 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
18495 @item grouplens-pseudonym
18496 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
18497 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
18498 with the Better Bit Bureau.
18500 @item grouplens-newsgroups
18501 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
18502 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
18506 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
18507 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
18508 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
18509 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
18510 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
18511 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
18514 @node Rating Articles
18515 @subsection Rating Articles
18517 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
18518 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
18519 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
18520 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
18523 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
18528 @kindex r (GroupLens)
18529 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
18530 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
18533 @kindex k (GroupLens)
18534 @findex grouplens-score-thread
18535 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
18536 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
18537 threads in rec.humor.
18541 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
18542 the score of the article you're reading.
18547 @kindex n (GroupLens)
18548 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
18549 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
18552 @kindex , (GroupLens)
18553 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
18554 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
18558 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
18559 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
18562 @node Displaying Predictions
18563 @subsection Displaying Predictions
18565 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
18566 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
18567 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
18568 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
18569 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
18571 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
18572 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
18573 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
18574 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
18575 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
18576 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
18577 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
18578 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
18579 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
18580 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
18581 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
18582 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
18583 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
18585 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
18586 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
18587 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
18588 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
18590 The following are valid values for that variable.
18593 @item prediction-spot
18594 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
18597 @item confidence-interval
18598 A numeric confidence interval.
18600 @item prediction-bar
18601 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
18603 @item confidence-bar
18604 Numerical confidence.
18606 @item confidence-spot
18607 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
18609 @item prediction-num
18610 Plain-old numeric value.
18612 @item confidence-plus-minus
18613 Prediction +/- confidence.
18618 @node GroupLens Variables
18619 @subsection GroupLens Variables
18623 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
18624 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
18625 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
18626 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
18629 @item grouplens-bbb-host
18630 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
18633 @item grouplens-bbb-port
18634 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
18636 @item grouplens-score-offset
18637 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
18638 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
18641 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
18642 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
18643 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
18648 @node Advanced Scoring
18649 @section Advanced Scoring
18651 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
18652 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
18653 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
18654 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
18655 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
18657 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
18661 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
18662 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
18663 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
18667 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
18668 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
18670 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
18671 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
18672 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
18673 non-@code{nil} value.
18675 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
18676 operator, and various match operators.
18683 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18684 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
18685 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
18690 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
18691 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
18692 then this operator will return @code{false}.
18697 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
18698 logical negation of the value of its argument.
18702 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
18703 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
18704 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
18705 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
18706 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
18707 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
18708 the ancestry you want to go.
18710 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
18711 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
18712 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
18713 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
18714 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
18717 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
18718 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
18720 Please note that the following examples are score file rules. To
18721 make a complete score file from them, surround them with another pair
18724 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
18725 when he's talking about Gnus:
18729 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18730 ("subject" "Gnus"))
18736 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
18740 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18747 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
18748 really don't want to read what he's written:
18752 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
18753 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
18757 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
18758 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
18759 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
18766 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
18767 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
18768 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
18769 ("body" "white.*socks"))
18773 The possibilities are endless.
18776 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
18777 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
18779 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
18780 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
18781 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
18782 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
18783 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
18784 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
18785 @samp{subject}) first.
18787 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
18788 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
18799 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
18800 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
18806 ("subject" "Gnus")))
18813 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
18814 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
18819 @section Score Decays
18820 @cindex score decays
18823 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
18824 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
18825 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
18826 use them in any sensible way.
18828 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
18829 @findex gnus-decay-score
18830 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
18831 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
18832 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
18833 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
18834 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
18835 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
18836 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
18837 definition of that function:
18840 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
18842 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
18843 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
18846 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
18848 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
18850 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
18853 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
18854 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
18855 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
18856 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
18860 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
18863 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
18866 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
18870 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
18871 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
18872 the new score, which should be an integer.
18874 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
18875 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
18880 @include message.texi
18881 @chapter Emacs MIME
18882 @include emacs-mime.texi
18884 @include sieve.texi
18892 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
18893 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
18894 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
18895 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
18896 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
18897 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
18898 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
18899 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
18900 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
18901 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
18902 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
18903 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
18904 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
18905 * Predicate Specifiers:: Specifying predicates.
18906 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
18907 * Image Enhancements:: Modern versions of Emacs/XEmacs can display images.
18908 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
18909 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
18910 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
18914 @node Process/Prefix
18915 @section Process/Prefix
18916 @cindex process/prefix convention
18918 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
18919 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
18921 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
18922 command to be performed on.
18926 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
18927 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
18928 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
18929 with the current one.
18931 @vindex transient-mark-mode
18932 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
18933 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
18935 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
18936 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
18939 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
18940 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
18942 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
18945 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
18946 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
18947 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
18948 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
18950 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
18951 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
18952 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
18953 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
18954 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
18955 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
18956 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
18957 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
18959 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
18960 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
18961 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
18962 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
18963 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
18967 @section Interactive
18968 @cindex interaction
18972 @item gnus-novice-user
18973 @vindex gnus-novice-user
18974 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
18975 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
18976 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
18977 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
18980 @item gnus-expert-user
18981 @vindex gnus-expert-user
18982 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
18983 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
18984 matter how strange.
18986 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
18987 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
18988 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
18989 is @code{t} by default.
18991 @item gnus-interactive-exit
18992 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
18993 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
18998 @node Symbolic Prefixes
18999 @section Symbolic Prefixes
19000 @cindex symbolic prefixes
19002 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
19003 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
19004 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
19005 rule of 900 to the current article.
19007 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
19008 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
19009 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
19010 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
19011 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
19012 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
19013 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
19015 @kindex M-i (Summary)
19016 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
19017 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
19018 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
19019 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
19020 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a C-M-u} means ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u}
19021 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b C-M-u} means
19022 ``feed the @kbd{C-M-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
19023 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
19025 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
19026 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
19027 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
19029 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
19033 @node Formatting Variables
19034 @section Formatting Variables
19035 @cindex formatting variables
19037 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
19038 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
19039 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
19040 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
19041 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
19044 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
19045 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
19046 lots of percentages everywhere.
19049 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
19050 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
19051 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
19052 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
19053 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
19054 * Positioning Point:: Moving point to a position after an operation.
19055 * Tabulation:: Tabulating your output.
19056 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
19059 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
19060 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
19061 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
19062 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
19063 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
19064 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
19065 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
19066 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
19068 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
19069 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
19071 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
19072 @findex gnus-update-format
19073 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
19074 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
19075 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
19076 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
19080 @node Formatting Basics
19081 @subsection Formatting Basics
19083 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
19084 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
19085 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
19087 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
19088 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
19089 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
19090 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
19091 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
19094 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
19095 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
19096 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
19097 less than 4 characters wide.
19099 Also Gnus supports some extended format specifications, such as
19100 @samp{%&user-date;}.
19103 @node Mode Line Formatting
19104 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
19106 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
19107 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
19108 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
19109 with the following two differences:
19114 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
19117 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
19118 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
19119 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
19120 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
19121 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
19122 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
19123 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
19128 @node Advanced Formatting
19129 @subsection Advanced Formatting
19131 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
19132 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
19133 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
19134 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
19136 These are the valid modifiers:
19141 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
19145 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
19150 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
19153 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
19158 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
19161 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
19164 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
19167 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
19173 "~(form (current-time-string))@@"
19178 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
19179 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
19180 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
19181 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
19182 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
19183 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
19184 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
19186 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
19187 last operation, padding.
19189 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
19190 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
19191 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
19192 @xref{Compilation}.
19195 @node User-Defined Specs
19196 @subsection User-Defined Specs
19198 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
19199 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
19200 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
19201 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
19202 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
19203 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
19204 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
19205 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
19206 should protect against that.
19208 Also Gnus supports extended user-defined specs, such as @samp{%u&foo;}.
19209 Gnus will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{foo}.
19211 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
19212 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
19213 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
19214 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
19218 @node Formatting Fonts
19219 @subsection Formatting Fonts
19221 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
19222 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
19223 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
19224 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
19227 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
19228 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
19229 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
19230 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
19231 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
19232 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
19234 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
19235 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
19236 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
19237 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
19238 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
19239 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
19240 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
19241 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
19243 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
19246 ;; Create three face types.
19247 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
19248 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
19250 ;; We want the article count to be in
19251 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
19252 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
19253 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
19255 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
19256 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
19258 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
19259 (setq gnus-group-line-format
19260 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
19263 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
19264 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
19266 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
19267 mode-line variables.
19269 @node Positioning Point
19270 @subsection Positioning Point
19272 Gnus usually moves point to a pre-defined place on each line in most
19273 buffers. By default, point move to the first colon character on the
19274 line. You can customize this behaviour in three different ways.
19276 You can move the colon character to somewhere else on the line.
19278 @findex gnus-goto-colon
19279 You can redefine the function that moves the point to the colon. The
19280 function is called @code{gnus-goto-colon}.
19282 But perhaps the most convenient way to deal with this, if you don't want
19283 to have a colon in your line, is to use the @samp{%C} specifier. If you
19284 put a @samp{%C} somewhere in your format line definition, Gnus will
19289 @subsection Tabulation
19291 You can usually line up your displays by padding and cutting your
19292 strings. However, when combining various strings of different size, it
19293 can often be more convenient to just output the strings, and then worry
19294 about lining up the following text afterwards.
19296 To do that, Gnus supplies tabulator specs--@samp{%=}. There are two
19297 different types---@dfn{hard tabulators} and @dfn{soft tabulators}.
19299 @samp{%50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19300 50. If the text is already past column 50, nothing will be inserted.
19301 This is the soft tabulator.
19303 @samp{%-50=} will insert space characters to pad the line up to column
19304 50. If the text is already past column 50, the excess text past column
19305 50 will be removed. This is the hard tabulator.
19308 @node Wide Characters
19309 @subsection Wide Characters
19311 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
19312 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
19313 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
19315 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
19316 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
19317 these coutries, that's not true.
19319 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
19320 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
19321 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
19322 prettieer. The default value is @code{t}.
19326 @node Window Layout
19327 @section Window Layout
19328 @cindex window layout
19330 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
19332 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
19333 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
19334 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
19335 @code{t} by default.
19337 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
19338 glitches. Use at your own peril.
19340 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
19341 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
19342 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
19345 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
19346 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
19347 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19351 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
19352 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
19353 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
19354 possible names is listed below.
19356 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
19357 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
19360 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
19364 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
19365 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
19366 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
19367 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
19368 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
19369 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
19370 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
19371 size spec per split.
19373 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
19374 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
19375 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
19376 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
19377 present) gets focus.
19379 Here's a more complicated example:
19382 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
19383 (summary 0.25 point)
19384 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
19388 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
19389 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
19390 occupy, not a percentage.
19392 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
19393 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
19394 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
19395 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
19396 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
19399 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
19402 (article (horizontal 1.0
19407 (summary 0.25 point)
19412 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
19413 @code{horizontal} thingie?
19415 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
19416 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
19417 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
19418 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
19419 the screen is to be given to this strip.
19421 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
19422 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
19423 lines from the splits.
19425 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
19429 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
19430 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
19431 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
19432 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
19433 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
19434 size = number | frame-params
19435 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
19438 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
19439 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
19440 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
19441 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
19443 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
19444 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
19445 @cindex window height
19446 @cindex window width
19447 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
19448 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
19449 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
19450 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
19451 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
19452 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
19454 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
19455 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
19456 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
19457 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
19459 @findex gnus-configure-frame
19460 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
19461 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
19462 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
19463 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
19464 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
19465 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
19466 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
19467 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
19468 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
19469 configuration list.
19472 (gnus-configure-frame
19476 (article 0.3 point))
19484 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
19485 @code{frame} split:
19488 (gnus-configure-frame
19491 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
19493 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
19494 (user-position . t)
19495 (left . -1) (top . 1))
19500 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
19501 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
19502 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
19503 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
19504 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
19505 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
19506 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
19507 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
19509 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
19510 be found in its default value.
19512 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
19513 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
19514 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
19518 (message (horizontal 1.0
19519 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
19521 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
19526 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
19527 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
19528 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
19533 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
19534 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
19535 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
19536 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
19537 (name . "Message"))
19538 (message 1.0 point))))
19541 @findex gnus-add-configuration
19542 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
19543 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
19544 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
19545 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
19548 (gnus-add-configuration
19549 '(article (vertical 1.0
19551 (summary .25 point)
19555 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
19556 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
19557 Gnus has been loaded.
19559 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
19560 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
19561 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
19562 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
19563 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
19565 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
19566 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
19567 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
19570 @subsection Example Window Configurations
19574 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
19575 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
19590 (gnus-add-configuration
19593 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19595 (summary 0.16 point)
19598 (gnus-add-configuration
19601 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
19602 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
19608 @node Faces and Fonts
19609 @section Faces and Fonts
19614 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
19615 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
19616 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
19621 @section Compilation
19622 @cindex compilation
19623 @cindex byte-compilation
19625 @findex gnus-compile
19627 Remember all those line format specification variables?
19628 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
19629 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
19630 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
19631 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
19632 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
19635 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
19636 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
19637 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
19638 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
19639 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
19640 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
19641 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
19645 @section Mode Lines
19648 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
19649 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
19650 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
19651 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
19652 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
19653 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
19654 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
19657 @cindex display-time
19659 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
19660 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
19661 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
19662 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
19663 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
19664 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
19665 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
19666 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
19669 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
19671 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
19672 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
19674 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
19675 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
19676 (length display-time-string)))))
19679 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
19680 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
19681 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
19682 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
19683 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
19686 @node Highlighting and Menus
19687 @section Highlighting and Menus
19689 @cindex highlighting
19692 @vindex gnus-visual
19693 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
19694 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
19695 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
19698 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
19699 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
19702 @item group-highlight
19703 Do highlights in the group buffer.
19704 @item summary-highlight
19705 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
19706 @item article-highlight
19707 Do highlights in the article buffer.
19709 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
19711 Create menus in the group buffer.
19713 Create menus in the summary buffers.
19715 Create menus in the article buffer.
19717 Create menus in the browse buffer.
19719 Create menus in the server buffer.
19721 Create menus in the score buffers.
19723 Create menus in all buffers.
19726 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
19727 buffers, you could say something like:
19730 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
19733 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
19736 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
19739 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
19740 in all Gnus buffers.
19742 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
19745 @item gnus-mouse-face
19746 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
19747 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
19748 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
19752 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
19756 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
19757 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
19758 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
19760 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
19761 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
19762 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
19764 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
19765 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
19766 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
19768 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
19769 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
19770 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
19772 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
19773 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
19774 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
19776 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
19777 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
19778 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
19789 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
19790 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
19791 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
19792 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
19793 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
19797 @vindex gnus-carpal
19798 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
19799 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
19800 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
19805 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19806 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
19807 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
19809 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
19810 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
19811 Face used on buttons.
19813 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
19814 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
19815 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
19817 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19818 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
19819 Buttons in the group buffer.
19821 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19822 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
19823 Buttons in the summary buffer.
19825 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19826 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
19827 Buttons in the server buffer.
19829 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19830 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
19831 Buttons in the browse buffer.
19834 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
19835 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
19836 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
19844 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
19845 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
19846 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
19847 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
19848 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
19850 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
19851 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
19852 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
19854 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
19855 been idle for thirty minutes:
19858 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
19861 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
19865 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
19868 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
19869 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
19870 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19872 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
19873 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
19874 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
19875 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
19877 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
19878 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
19879 @var{idle} minutes.
19881 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
19882 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
19885 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
19886 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
19887 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
19889 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
19890 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
19891 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
19892 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
19894 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
19895 your @file{.gnus} file:
19897 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
19899 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
19902 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
19903 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
19904 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
19905 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
19906 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
19907 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
19908 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
19909 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
19910 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
19911 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
19912 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
19914 @findex gnus-demon-init
19915 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
19916 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
19917 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
19918 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
19919 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
19921 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
19922 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
19923 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
19932 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
19933 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
19935 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
19936 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
19937 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
19938 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
19941 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
19942 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
19943 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
19944 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
19946 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
19947 this will make spam disappear.
19949 There are some variables to customize, of course:
19952 @item gnus-use-nocem
19953 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
19954 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
19957 @item gnus-nocem-groups
19958 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
19959 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
19960 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
19961 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
19963 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
19964 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
19965 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
19966 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
19967 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
19968 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
19970 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
19971 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
19973 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
19974 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
19975 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
19976 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
19977 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
19978 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
19979 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
19980 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
19981 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
19982 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
19984 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
19985 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
19988 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
19991 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
19992 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
19995 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
19998 The specs are applied left-to-right.
20001 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
20002 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
20004 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
20005 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
20006 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
20007 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
20009 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
20010 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
20013 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
20015 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
20023 This might be dangerous, though.
20025 @item gnus-nocem-directory
20026 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
20027 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
20028 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
20030 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
20031 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
20032 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
20033 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
20034 might then see old spam.
20036 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
20037 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
20038 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
20039 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
20040 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
20043 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
20044 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
20045 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
20046 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
20050 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
20051 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
20052 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
20053 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
20060 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
20061 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
20062 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
20064 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
20065 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
20066 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
20067 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
20068 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
20069 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
20070 @code{undo} function.
20072 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
20073 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
20074 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
20075 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
20076 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
20077 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
20078 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
20079 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
20080 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
20081 never be totally undoable.
20083 @findex gnus-undo-mode
20084 @vindex gnus-use-undo
20086 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
20087 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
20088 default. The @kbd{C-M-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
20089 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
20093 @node Predicate Specifiers
20094 @section Predicate Specifiers
20095 @cindex predicate specifiers
20097 Some Gnus variables are @dfn{predicate specifiers}. This is a special
20098 form that allows flexible specification of predicates without having
20099 to type all that much.
20101 These specifiers are lists consisting of functions, symbols and lists.
20106 (or gnus-article-unseen-p
20107 gnus-article-unread-p)
20110 The available symbols are @code{or}, @code{and} and @code{not}. The
20111 functions all take one parameter.
20113 @findex gnus-make-predicate
20114 Internally, Gnus calls @code{gnus-make-predicate} on these specifiers
20115 to create a function that can be called. This input parameter to this
20116 function will be passed along to all the functions in the predicate
20121 @section Moderation
20124 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
20125 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
20126 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
20129 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
20133 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
20136 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
20138 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
20143 You split your incoming mail by matching on
20144 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
20145 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
20148 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
20149 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
20152 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
20153 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
20157 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
20160 (setq gnus-moderated-list
20161 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
20165 @node Image Enhancements
20166 @section Image Enhancements
20168 XEmacs, as well as Emacs 21, is able to display pictures and stuff, so
20169 Gnus has taken advantage of that.
20172 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what you're reading.
20173 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
20174 * X-Face:: Display a funky, teensy black-and-white image.
20175 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
20176 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
20189 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
20190 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
20191 over your shoulder as you read news.
20194 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
20195 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
20196 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
20197 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
20198 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
20203 @subsubsection Picon Basics
20205 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
20214 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
20215 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
20216 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
20217 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
20218 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
20219 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
20220 @code{GIF} formats.
20223 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20224 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
20225 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
20226 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
20227 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
20229 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20230 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
20231 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
20232 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
20233 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
20234 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20236 If you are using Debian GNU/Linux, saying @samp{apt-get install
20237 picons.*} will install the picons where Gnus can find them.
20240 @node Picon Requirements
20241 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
20243 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must have @code{x} support
20244 compiled into XEmacs. To display color picons which are much nicer
20245 than the black & white one, you also need one of @code{xpm} or
20246 @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
20248 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20249 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
20250 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
20251 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
20252 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
20253 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20256 @subsubsection Easy Picons
20258 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
20259 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
20262 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
20263 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
20266 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
20267 containing the Picons databases.
20269 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
20272 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20273 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
20278 @subsubsection Hard Picons
20286 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
20287 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
20288 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
20289 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
20290 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
20295 @item gnus-picons-database
20296 @vindex gnus-picons-database
20297 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
20298 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
20299 subdirectories. This is only useful if
20300 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
20301 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
20303 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20304 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
20305 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
20306 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
20307 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
20308 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
20309 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
20311 @item gnus-picons-display-where
20312 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20313 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
20314 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
20315 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
20316 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
20317 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
20318 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
20320 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20321 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
20322 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
20327 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
20328 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
20330 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
20331 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
20334 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
20336 @item gnus-article-display-picons
20337 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
20338 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
20339 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
20341 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20342 @findex gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
20343 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
20344 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the function name, not @code{xface})
20350 @node Picon Useless Configuration
20351 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
20359 The following variables offer further control over how things are
20360 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
20361 don't need to worry about.
20365 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
20366 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
20367 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20368 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
20370 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
20371 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
20372 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
20373 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
20375 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
20376 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
20377 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
20378 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
20379 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
20381 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20382 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
20383 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
20384 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
20385 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
20386 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
20387 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
20388 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20390 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20391 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
20392 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
20393 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
20394 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable name, not @code{xface})
20396 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20397 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
20398 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
20399 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
20400 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
20401 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
20402 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
20404 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20405 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
20406 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
20407 Defaults to @code{nil}.
20409 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
20410 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
20411 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
20412 Defaults to @code{t}.
20414 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20415 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
20416 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
20417 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
20419 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
20420 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
20421 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
20423 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20424 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
20425 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
20426 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
20428 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
20429 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
20431 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20432 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
20433 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
20434 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
20435 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
20436 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
20437 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
20438 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
20449 @subsection Smileys
20454 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/BigFace,height=20cm}}
20459 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
20460 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
20462 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
20463 @file{.gnus.el} file:
20466 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
20469 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
20470 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
20471 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
20472 text and maps that to file names.
20474 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
20475 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
20476 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
20477 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
20478 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
20479 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
20481 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
20482 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
20484 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
20485 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
20486 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
20488 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
20489 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
20493 @item smiley-data-directory
20494 @vindex smiley-data-directory
20495 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
20497 @item smiley-flesh-color
20498 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
20499 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
20501 @item smiley-features-color
20502 @vindex smiley-features-color
20503 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20505 @item smiley-tongue-color
20506 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
20507 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
20509 @item smiley-circle-color
20510 @vindex smiley-circle-color
20511 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
20513 @item smiley-mouse-face
20514 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
20515 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
20524 @code{X-Face} headers describe a 48x48 pixel black-and-white (1 bit
20525 depth) image that's supposed to represent the author of the message.
20526 It seems to be supported by an ever-growing number of mail and news
20530 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
20531 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
20532 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
20533 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
20541 Decoding an @code{X-Face} header either requires an Emacs that has
20542 @samp{compface} support (which most XEmacs versions has), or that you
20543 have @samp{compface} installed on your system. If either is true,
20544 Gnus will default to displaying @code{X-Face} headers.
20546 The variable that controls this is the
20547 @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable. If this variable is a
20548 string, this string will be executed in a sub-shell. If it is a
20549 function, this function will be called with the face as the argument.
20550 If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which is a regexp) matches
20551 the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
20553 The default action under Emacs 20 is to fork off the @code{display}
20554 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For
20555 the @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
20556 like @code{compface} or @code{faces-xface} on a GNU/Linux system.} to
20559 Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image support, the default
20560 action is to display the face before the @code{From} header. (It's
20561 nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with @code{X-Face} support---that
20562 will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native @code{X-Face}
20563 support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
20564 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
20565 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
20566 like @code{netpbm}, @code{libgr-progs} and @code{compface}.})
20568 (NOTE: @code{x-face} is used in the variable/function names, not
20571 Gnus provides a few convenience functions and variables to allow
20572 easier insertion of X-Face headers in outgoing messages.
20574 @findex gnus-random-x-face
20575 @code{gnus-random-x-face} goes through all the @samp{pbm} files
20576 in @code{gnus-x-face-directory} and picks one at random, and then
20577 converts it to the X-Face format by using the
20578 @code{gnus-convert-pbm-to-x-face-command} shell command. The
20579 @samp{pbm} files should be 48x48 pixels big.
20581 @code{gnus-x-face-from-file} takes a file as the parameter, and then
20582 converts the file to X-Face format by using the
20583 @code{gnus-convert-image-to-x-face-command} shell command.
20585 Here's how you would typically use the former function. Put something
20586 like the folllowing in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
20589 (setq message-required-news-headers
20590 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20591 (list '(X-Face . gnus-random-x-face))))
20594 Using the latter function would be something like this:
20597 (setq message-required-news-headers
20598 (nconc message-required-news-headers
20599 (list '(X-Face . (lambda ()
20600 (gnus-x-face-from-file
20601 "~/My-face.gif"))))))
20606 @subsection Toolbar
20616 @item gnus-use-toolbar
20617 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
20618 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
20619 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
20620 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
20622 @item gnus-group-toolbar
20623 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
20624 The toolbar in the group buffer.
20626 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
20627 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
20628 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
20630 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20631 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
20632 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
20638 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
20641 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20642 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
20643 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
20644 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
20645 unusual directory structure.
20647 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20648 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
20649 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
20650 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
20652 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20653 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
20654 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
20655 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
20656 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
20657 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
20659 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20660 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
20661 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
20675 @node Fuzzy Matching
20676 @section Fuzzy Matching
20677 @cindex fuzzy matching
20679 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
20680 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
20682 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
20683 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
20684 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
20686 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
20687 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
20688 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
20689 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
20690 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
20693 @node Thwarting Email Spam
20694 @section Thwarting Email Spam
20698 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
20700 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
20701 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
20702 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
20703 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
20704 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
20705 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
20706 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
20707 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
20710 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
20711 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
20712 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
20713 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
20714 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
20715 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
20720 * Anti-Spam Basics:: Simple steps to reduce the amount of spam.
20721 * SpamAssassin:: How to use external anti-spam tools.
20722 * Hashcash:: Reduce spam by burning CPU time.
20725 @node Anti-Spam Basics
20726 @subsection Anti-Spam Basics
20730 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
20732 One way of dealing with spam is having Gnus split out all spam into a
20733 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
20735 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
20736 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
20737 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
20738 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
20739 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
20740 part of the mail address.)
20743 (setq message-default-news-headers
20744 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
20747 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
20748 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
20753 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
20754 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
20755 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
20761 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
20762 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
20763 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
20764 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
20766 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @sc{smtp} server
20767 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
20768 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
20769 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
20770 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
20771 your fancy split rule in this way:
20776 (to "larsi" "misc")
20780 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
20781 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
20782 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
20783 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
20784 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
20786 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
20787 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
20788 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
20789 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
20790 cosmic balance somewhat.
20792 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
20793 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
20794 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
20795 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
20800 @subsection SpamAssassin, Vipul's Razor, DCC, etc
20801 @cindex SpamAssassin
20802 @cindex Vipul's Razor
20805 The days where the hints in the previous section was sufficient in
20806 avoiding spam is coming to an end. There are many tools out there
20807 that claim to reduce the amount of spam you get. This section could
20808 easily become outdated fast, as new products replace old, but
20809 fortunately most of these tools seem to have similar interfaces. Even
20810 though this section will use SpamAssassin as an example, it should be
20811 easy to adapt it to most other tools.
20813 If the tool you are using is not installed on the mail server, you
20814 need to invoke it yourself. Ideas on how to use the
20815 @code{:postscript} mail source parameter (@pxref{Mail Source
20816 Specifiers}) follows.
20820 '((file :prescript "formail -bs spamassassin < /var/mail/%u")
20823 :postscript "mv %t /tmp/foo; formail -bs spamc < /tmp/foo > %t")))
20826 Once you managed to process your incoming spool somehow, thus making
20827 the mail contain e.g. a header indicating it is spam, you are ready to
20828 filter it out. Using normal split methods (@pxref{Splitting Mail}):
20831 (setq nnmail-split-methods '(("spam" "^X-Spam-Flag: YES")
20835 Or using fancy split methods (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
20838 (setq nnmail-split-methods 'nnmail-split-fancy
20839 nnmail-split-fancy '(| ("X-Spam-Flag" "YES" "spam")
20843 Some people might not like the idea of piping the mail through various
20844 programs using a @code{:prescript} (if some program is buggy, you
20845 might lose all mail). If you are one of them, another solution is to
20846 call the external tools during splitting. Example fancy split method:
20849 (setq nnmail-split-fancy '(| (: kevin-spamassassin)
20851 (defun kevin-spamassassin ()
20853 (let ((buf (or (get-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
20854 (get-buffer " *nnml move*"))))
20856 (progn (message "Oops, cannot find message buffer") nil)
20858 (if (eq 1 (call-process-region (point-min) (point-max)
20859 "spamc" nil nil nil "-c"))
20863 That is about it. As some spam is likely to get through anyway, you
20864 might want to have a nifty function to call when you happen to read
20865 spam. And here is the nifty function:
20868 (defun my-gnus-raze-spam ()
20869 "Submit SPAM to Vipul's Razor, then mark it as expirable."
20871 (gnus-summary-show-raw-article)
20872 (gnus-summary-save-in-pipe "razor-report -f -d")
20873 (gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable 1))
20877 @subsection Hashcash
20880 A novel technique to fight spam is to require senders to do something
20881 costly for each message they send. This has the obvious drawback that
20882 you cannot rely on that everyone in the world uses this technique,
20883 since it is not part of the internet standards, but it may be useful
20884 in smaller communities.
20886 While the tools in the previous section work well in practice, they
20887 work only because the tools are constantly maintained and updated as
20888 new form of spam appears. This means that a small percentage of spam
20889 will always get through. It also means that somewhere, someone needs
20890 to read lots of spam to update these tools. Hashcash avoids that, but
20891 instead requires that everyone you communicate with supports the
20892 scheme. You can view the two approaches as pragmatic vs dogmatic.
20893 The approaches have their own advantages and disadvantages, but as
20894 often in the real world, a combination of them is stronger than either
20895 one of them separately.
20898 The ``something costly'' is to burn CPU time, more specifically to
20899 compute a hash collision up to a certain number of bits. The
20900 resulting hashcash cookie is inserted in a @samp{X-Hashcash:}
20901 header. For more details, and for the external application
20902 @code{hashcash} you need to install to use this feature, see
20903 @uref{http://www.cypherspace.org/~adam/hashcash/}. Even more
20904 information can be found at @uref{http://www.camram.org/}.
20906 If you wish to call hashcash for each message you send, say something
20910 (require 'hashcash)
20911 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'mail-add-payment)
20914 The @code{hashcash.el} library can be found at
20915 @uref{http://users.actrix.gen.nz/mycroft/hashcash.el}, or in the Gnus
20916 development contrib directory.
20918 You will need to set up some additional variables as well:
20922 @item hashcash-default-payment
20923 @vindex hashcash-default-payment
20924 This variable indicates the default number of bits the hash collision
20925 should consist of. By default this is 0, meaning nothing will be
20926 done. Suggested useful values include 17 to 29.
20928 @item hashcash-payment-alist
20929 @vindex hashcash-payment-alist
20930 Some receivers may require you to spend burn more CPU time than the
20931 default. This variable contains a list of @samp{(ADDR AMOUNT)} cells,
20932 where ADDR is the receiver (email address or newsgroup) and AMOUNT is
20933 the number of bits in the collision that is needed. It can also
20934 contain @samp{(ADDR STRING AMOUNT)} cells, where the STRING is the
20935 string to use (normally the email address or newsgroup name is used).
20939 Where the @code{hashcash} binary is installed.
20943 Currently there is no built in functionality in Gnus to verify
20944 hashcash cookies, it is expected that this is performed by your hand
20945 customized mail filtering scripts. Improvements in this area would be
20946 a useful contribution, however.
20948 @node Various Various
20949 @section Various Various
20955 @item gnus-home-directory
20956 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
20957 defaults to @file{~/}.
20959 @item gnus-directory
20960 @vindex gnus-directory
20961 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
20962 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
20963 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
20965 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
20966 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
20967 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
20968 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
20970 @item gnus-default-directory
20971 @vindex gnus-default-directory
20972 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
20973 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
20974 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
20975 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
20976 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
20977 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
20980 @vindex gnus-verbose
20981 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
20982 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
20983 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
20984 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
20985 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
20987 @item gnus-verbose-backends
20988 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
20989 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
20990 to the Gnus back ends instead of Gnus proper.
20992 @item nnheader-max-head-length
20993 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
20994 When the back ends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
20995 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
20996 the absolute max length the back ends will try to read before giving up
20997 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
20998 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
20999 @code{t}, the back ends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
21000 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
21001 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
21003 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
21004 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
21005 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
21006 read when doing the operation described above.
21008 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21009 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21011 @cindex invalid characters in file names
21012 @cindex characters in file names
21013 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
21014 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
21015 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
21018 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
21022 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
21023 Windows (phooey) systems.
21025 @item gnus-hidden-properties
21026 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
21027 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
21028 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
21029 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
21031 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
21032 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
21033 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
21034 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
21035 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
21037 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
21038 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
21039 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
21041 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
21042 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
21044 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
21045 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
21046 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
21047 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
21050 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
21058 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
21059 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
21061 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
21063 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
21069 Not because of victories @*
21072 but for the common sunshine,@*
21074 the largess of the spring.
21078 but for the day's work done@*
21079 as well as I was able;@*
21080 not for a seat upon the dais@*
21081 but at the common table.@*
21086 @chapter Appendices
21089 * XEmacs:: Requirements for installing under XEmacs.
21090 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
21091 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
21092 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
21093 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
21094 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
21095 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
21096 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
21097 * Frequently Asked Questions::
21104 @cindex Installing under XEmacs
21106 XEmacs is distributed as a collection of packages. You should install
21107 whatever packages the Gnus XEmacs package requires. The current
21108 requirements are @samp{gnus}, @samp{w3}, @samp{mh-e},
21109 @samp{mailcrypt}, @samp{rmail}, @samp{eterm}, @samp{mail-lib},
21110 @samp{xemacs-base}, and @samp{fsf-compat}.
21117 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
21118 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
21120 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
21121 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
21122 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
21123 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
21124 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
21126 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
21127 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
21128 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
21129 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
21130 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
21131 appropriate name, don't you think?)
21133 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
21134 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
21135 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
21136 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
21139 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
21140 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
21141 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
21142 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
21143 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
21144 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
21145 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
21146 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
21147 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
21151 @node Gnus Versions
21152 @subsection Gnus Versions
21154 @cindex September Gnus
21156 @cindex Quassia Gnus
21157 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
21161 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
21162 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
21163 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
21165 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
21166 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
21168 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
21169 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
21171 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
21172 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
21174 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
21175 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
21178 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
21180 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
21181 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
21182 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
21183 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
21184 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
21185 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
21188 @node Other Gnus Versions
21189 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
21192 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
21193 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
21194 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
21195 @sc{mime} capabilities.
21197 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
21198 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
21199 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
21200 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
21207 What's the point of Gnus?
21209 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
21210 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
21211 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
21212 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
21213 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
21214 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
21215 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
21216 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
21217 keep track of millions of people who post?
21219 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
21220 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
21221 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
21222 to separate the newsreader from the back ends, Gnus now offers a simple
21223 interface for anybody who wants to write new back ends for fetching mail
21224 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
21225 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
21226 every one of you to explore and invent.
21228 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
21229 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
21232 @node Compatibility
21233 @subsection Compatibility
21235 @cindex compatibility
21236 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
21237 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
21238 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
21243 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
21247 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
21250 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
21253 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
21254 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
21255 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
21256 important variables have their values copied into their global
21257 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
21258 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
21260 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
21261 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
21262 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
21263 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
21264 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
21268 @cindex highlighting
21269 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
21270 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
21271 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
21272 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
21273 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
21274 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
21277 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
21278 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
21279 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
21280 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
21282 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
21283 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
21284 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
21285 to stop doing it the old way.
21287 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
21289 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
21291 @cindex reporting bugs
21293 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
21294 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
21295 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
21297 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
21298 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
21299 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
21300 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
21305 @subsection Conformity
21307 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
21308 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
21316 There are no known breaches of this standard.
21320 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
21322 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
21323 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
21324 We do have some breaches to this one.
21330 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
21331 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
21332 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
21333 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
21334 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
21339 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
21340 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
21341 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
21342 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
21344 @item MIME - RFC 2045-2049 etc
21346 All the various @sc{mime} RFCs are supported.
21348 @item Disposition Notifications - RFC 2298
21349 Message Mode is able to request notifications from the receiver.
21351 @item PGP - RFC 1991 and RFC 2440
21354 RFC 1991 is the original PGP message specification, published as a
21355 Information RFC. RFC 2440 was the follow-up, now called Open PGP, and
21356 put on the Standards Track. Both document a non-@sc{mime} aware PGP
21357 format. Gnus supports both encoding (signing and encryption) and
21358 decoding (verification and decryption).
21360 @item PGP/MIME - RFC 2015/3156
21361 RFC 2015 (superceded by 3156 which references RFC 2440 instead of RFC
21362 1991) describes the @sc{mime}-wrapping around the RF 1991/2440 format.
21363 Gnus supports both encoding and decoding.
21365 @item S/MIME - RFC 2633
21366 RFC 2633 describes the @sc{s/mime} format.
21368 @item IMAP - RFC 1730/2060, RFC 2195, RFC 2086, RFC 2359, RFC 2595, RFC 1731
21369 RFC 1730 is @sc{imap} version 4, updated somewhat by RFC 2060 (@sc{imap} 4
21370 revision 1). RFC 2195 describes CRAM-MD5 authentication for @sc{imap}. RFC
21371 2086 describes access control lists (ACLs) for @sc{imap}. RFC 2359
21372 describes a @sc{imap} protocol enhancement. RFC 2595 describes the proper
21373 TLS integration (STARTTLS) with @sc{imap}. RFC 1731 describes the
21374 GSSAPI/Kerberos4 mechanisms for @sc{imap}.
21378 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
21379 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
21384 @subsection Emacsen
21390 Gnus should work on :
21398 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
21402 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
21403 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
21406 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
21407 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
21408 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
21412 @node Gnus Development
21413 @subsection Gnus Development
21415 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
21416 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
21417 propose changes and new features, post patches and new back ends. This
21418 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
21419 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
21420 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
21421 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
21422 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
21424 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
21425 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
21426 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
21427 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
21428 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
21431 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
21432 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
21433 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
21434 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
21435 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
21437 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
21438 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
21439 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
21440 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
21441 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
21442 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
21443 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
21444 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
21445 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
21446 can't be assumed to do so.
21451 @subsection Contributors
21452 @cindex contributors
21454 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
21455 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
21456 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
21457 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
21458 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
21459 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
21460 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
21461 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
21462 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
21463 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
21465 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
21471 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
21474 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
21475 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
21476 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
21477 functionality and stuff.
21480 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
21481 well as numerous other things).
21484 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
21487 Joe Reiss---creator of the smiley faces.
21490 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
21493 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
21496 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
21497 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
21500 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
21503 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
21504 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21507 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
21510 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
21513 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
21516 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
21519 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
21520 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
21523 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
21526 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
21529 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
21532 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
21536 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
21539 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
21542 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
21545 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
21546 well as autoconf support.
21550 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
21551 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
21553 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
21562 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
21566 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
21576 Alexei V. Barantsev,
21591 Massimo Campostrini,
21596 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
21597 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
21601 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
21604 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
21610 Michael Welsh Duggan,
21615 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
21619 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
21627 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
21629 Michelangelo Grigni,
21633 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
21635 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
21637 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
21644 François Felix Ingrand,
21645 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
21646 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
21648 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
21659 Peter Skov Knudsen,
21660 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
21662 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
21663 Thor Kristoffersen,
21666 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
21684 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
21685 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
21692 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
21697 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
21701 John McClary Prevost,
21707 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
21712 Christian von Roques,
21715 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
21722 Philippe Schnoebelen,
21724 Randal L. Schwartz,
21738 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
21743 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
21759 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
21764 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
21765 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
21766 (550kB and counting).
21768 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
21771 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
21772 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
21776 @subsection New Features
21777 @cindex new features
21780 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
21781 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
21782 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
21783 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
21784 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
21787 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
21788 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
21789 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
21792 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
21794 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
21799 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
21800 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
21803 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
21804 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
21807 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
21810 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
21811 All the mail back ends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
21812 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
21815 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
21816 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
21817 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
21818 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
21821 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
21822 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21825 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
21826 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
21827 (@pxref{The Active File}).
21830 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
21831 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
21834 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
21835 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
21836 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
21839 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
21840 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
21841 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
21844 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
21845 the @file{.emacs} file.
21848 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
21849 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
21852 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
21853 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
21856 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
21857 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
21860 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
21861 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
21864 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
21865 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
21868 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
21871 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
21872 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
21875 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
21876 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
21879 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
21880 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
21883 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
21886 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
21887 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
21890 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
21894 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
21898 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
21899 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
21902 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
21908 @node September Gnus
21909 @subsubsection September Gnus
21913 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/september,height=20cm}}
21917 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
21922 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
21923 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
21927 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
21928 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
21932 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
21936 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
21937 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
21940 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
21944 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
21947 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
21950 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
21953 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
21957 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
21958 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
21961 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
21965 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
21969 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
21973 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
21977 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
21980 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
21981 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
21984 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
21988 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
21989 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
21992 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
21995 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
21996 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
21997 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
22000 Gnus has a new back end (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
22004 The Gnus cache is much faster.
22007 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
22011 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
22012 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
22015 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
22016 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
22019 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
22020 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
22023 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
22024 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
22025 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
22028 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
22029 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
22032 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
22035 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
22038 All mail back ends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
22041 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
22044 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
22045 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
22048 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
22052 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
22055 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fseptember,height=5cm}}
22060 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
22063 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
22067 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
22070 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
22074 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
22077 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
22080 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
22081 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
22084 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
22085 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
22089 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
22090 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
22093 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
22097 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
22098 buffer to allow easier treatment.
22101 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
22104 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
22108 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
22112 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
22113 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
22116 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
22120 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
22121 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
22124 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
22125 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
22128 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
22132 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
22135 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
22138 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
22144 @subsubsection Red Gnus
22146 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
22150 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=ps/red,height=20cm}}
22157 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
22160 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
22161 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
22164 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
22165 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
22169 Article washing status can be displayed in the
22170 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
22173 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
22176 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
22177 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
22180 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
22184 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
22185 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
22189 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
22190 Server Internals}).
22193 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
22197 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
22200 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
22201 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
22204 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
22205 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
22206 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
22209 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
22210 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
22213 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
22214 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
22217 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{C-M-_}
22221 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
22222 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
22225 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
22226 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
22229 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
22233 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
22236 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
22240 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
22241 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
22244 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
22245 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
22248 A new command for reading collections of documents
22249 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{C-M-d}
22250 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
22253 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
22257 A new mail-to-news back end makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
22258 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
22261 A new back end for reading searches from Web search engines
22262 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
22263 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
22266 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
22267 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
22271 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
22275 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
22279 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=ps/fred,width=3cm}}
22284 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
22288 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
22292 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
22293 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
22296 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
22302 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
22304 New features in Gnus 5.6:
22309 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
22310 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
22311 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
22314 The @code{nndraft} back end has returned, but works differently than
22315 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
22316 group, which is created automatically.
22319 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
22323 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
22326 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
22327 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
22330 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
22334 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
22337 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
22338 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
22341 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
22344 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
22345 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
22348 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
22349 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
22352 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
22353 control over simplification.
22356 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
22359 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
22363 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
22366 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
22369 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
22370 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
22371 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
22374 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
22375 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
22378 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
22382 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
22383 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
22386 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
22387 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
22390 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
22394 A history of where mails have been split is available.
22397 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
22400 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
22401 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
22404 A new function for citing in Message has been
22405 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
22408 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
22411 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
22415 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
22416 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
22419 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
22420 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
22423 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} back end.
22426 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
22430 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
22431 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
22433 New features in Gnus 5.8:
22438 The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
22439 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
22441 If you used procmail like in
22444 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
22445 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
22446 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
22447 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
22450 this now has changed to
22454 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
22458 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
22459 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
22462 Gnus is now a @sc{mime}-capable reader. This affects many parts of
22463 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
22466 Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
22467 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
22470 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
22471 called to position point.
22474 The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
22475 summary buffers and @sc{nov} files.
22478 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
22479 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
22482 The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
22483 subtly different manner.
22486 New web-based back ends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
22487 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
22488 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
22491 Gnus can now read @sc{imap} mail via @code{nnimap}.
22499 @section The Manual
22503 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
22504 either @code{texi2dvi}
22506 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
22507 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
22509 to get what you hold in your hands now.
22511 The following conventions have been used:
22516 This is a @samp{string}
22519 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
22522 This is a @file{file}
22525 This is a @code{symbol}
22529 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
22533 (setq flargnoze "yes")
22536 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
22539 (setq flumphel 'yes)
22542 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
22543 ever get them confused.
22547 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
22548 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
22549 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
22550 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
22551 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
22552 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
22553 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
22559 @node On Writing Manuals
22560 @section On Writing Manuals
22562 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
22563 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
22564 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
22565 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
22566 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
22567 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
22570 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
22571 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
22572 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
22575 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
22576 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
22581 @section Terminology
22583 @cindex terminology
22588 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
22589 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
22590 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
22591 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
22592 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
22596 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
22597 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
22598 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
22599 not posting, and replying is not following up.
22603 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
22607 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
22612 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of back ends, both news and mail
22613 back ends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
22614 is all done by the back ends.
22618 Gnus will always use one method (and back end) as the @dfn{native}, or
22619 default, way of getting news.
22623 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
22624 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary back ends for getting
22629 Secondary back ends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
22630 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
22634 A message that has been posted as news.
22637 @cindex mail message
22638 A message that has been mailed.
22642 A mail message or news article
22646 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
22651 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
22656 A line from the head of an article.
22660 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
22661 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
22665 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the back end for the headers of all
22666 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
22667 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
22668 normal @sc{head} format.
22672 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
22673 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
22674 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
22675 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
22676 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
22677 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
22679 @item killed groups
22680 @cindex killed groups
22681 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
22682 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
22684 @item zombie groups
22685 @cindex zombie groups
22686 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
22689 @cindex active file
22690 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
22691 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
22692 is rather large, as you might surmise.
22695 @cindex bogus groups
22696 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
22697 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
22698 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
22701 @cindex activating groups
22702 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
22703 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
22704 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
22708 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
22710 @item select method
22711 @cindex select method
22712 A structure that specifies the back end, the server and the virtual
22715 @item virtual server
22716 @cindex virtual server
22717 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
22718 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
22719 whole is a virtual server.
22723 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
22724 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
22727 @item ephemeral groups
22728 @cindex ephemeral groups
22729 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
22730 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
22731 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
22734 @cindex solid groups
22735 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
22736 group buffer are solid groups.
22738 @item sparse articles
22739 @cindex sparse articles
22740 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
22741 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
22745 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
22746 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
22750 @cindex thread root
22751 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
22752 articles in the thread.
22756 An article that has responses.
22760 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
22764 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
22765 specified by RFC 1153.
22771 @node Customization
22772 @section Customization
22773 @cindex general customization
22775 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
22776 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
22777 for some quite common situations.
22780 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
22781 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
22782 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
22783 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
22787 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
22788 @subsection Slow/Expensive NNTP Connection
22790 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
22791 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
22792 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
22796 @item gnus-read-active-file
22797 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
22798 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
22799 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22800 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
22801 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
22803 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
22804 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
22805 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
22806 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
22810 @node Slow Terminal Connection
22811 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
22813 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
22814 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
22815 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
22819 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
22820 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
22821 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
22822 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
22823 horizontal and vertical recentering.
22825 @item gnus-visible-headers
22826 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
22827 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
22828 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
22829 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
22831 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
22833 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
22834 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
22835 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
22838 @item gnus-use-full-window
22839 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
22840 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
22841 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
22842 want to read them anyway.
22844 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
22845 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
22849 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
22850 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
22851 lines, which might save some time.
22855 @node Little Disk Space
22856 @subsection Little Disk Space
22859 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
22860 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
22864 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
22865 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
22866 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22867 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22870 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
22871 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
22872 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
22873 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
22876 @item gnus-save-killed-list
22877 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
22878 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
22879 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
22880 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
22886 @subsection Slow Machine
22887 @cindex slow machine
22889 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
22890 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
22892 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
22893 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
22895 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
22896 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
22897 summary buffer faster.
22901 @node Troubleshooting
22902 @section Troubleshooting
22903 @cindex troubleshooting
22905 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
22913 Make sure your computer is switched on.
22916 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
22917 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
22921 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
22922 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
22923 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
22924 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
22927 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
22931 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
22932 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
22933 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
22934 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
22935 something like that.
22938 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
22941 @cindex reporting bugs
22943 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
22945 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
22946 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
22947 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
22948 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
22950 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
22951 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
22952 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
22953 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
22956 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
22957 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
22958 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
22959 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
22960 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
22961 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
22963 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
22964 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
22965 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
22969 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
22970 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
22972 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
22973 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
22975 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
22976 @cindex ding mailing list
22977 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
22978 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
22982 @node Gnus Reference Guide
22983 @section Gnus Reference Guide
22985 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
22986 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
22987 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
22988 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
22991 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
22992 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
22993 back ends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
22994 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
22995 and general methods of operation.
22998 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
22999 * Back End Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
23000 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
23001 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
23002 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
23003 * Group Info:: The group info format.
23004 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
23005 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
23006 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
23010 @node Gnus Utility Functions
23011 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
23012 @cindex Gnus utility functions
23013 @cindex utility functions
23015 @cindex internal variables
23017 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
23018 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
23019 Below is a list of the most common ones.
23023 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
23024 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
23025 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
23027 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
23028 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
23029 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
23031 @item gnus-group-real-name
23032 @findex gnus-group-real-name
23033 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
23036 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
23037 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
23038 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
23039 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
23041 @item gnus-get-info
23042 @findex gnus-get-info
23043 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
23045 @item gnus-group-unread
23046 @findex gnus-group-unread
23047 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
23051 @findex gnus-active
23052 The active entry for @var{group}.
23054 @item gnus-set-active
23055 @findex gnus-set-active
23056 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
23058 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
23059 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
23060 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
23063 @item gnus-continuum-version
23064 @findex gnus-continuum-version
23065 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
23066 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
23069 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
23070 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
23071 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
23073 @item gnus-news-group-p
23074 @findex gnus-news-group-p
23075 Says whether @var{group} came from a news back end.
23077 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
23078 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
23079 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
23081 @item gnus-server-to-method
23082 @findex gnus-server-to-method
23083 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
23085 @item gnus-server-equal
23086 @findex gnus-server-equal
23087 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
23089 @item gnus-group-native-p
23090 @findex gnus-group-native-p
23091 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
23093 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
23094 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
23095 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
23097 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
23098 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
23099 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
23101 @item group-group-find-parameter
23102 @findex group-group-find-parameter
23103 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
23104 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
23106 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
23107 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
23108 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
23110 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
23111 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
23112 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
23114 @item gnus-check-backend-function
23115 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
23116 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the back end
23117 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
23120 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
23124 @item gnus-read-method
23125 @findex gnus-read-method
23126 Prompts the user for a select method.
23131 @node Back End Interface
23132 @subsection Back End Interface
23134 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
23135 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
23136 server is a @dfn{back end} and some @dfn{back end variables}. As examples
23137 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
23138 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
23139 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
23141 When Gnus asks for information from a back end---say @code{nntp}---on
23142 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
23143 function parameters. (If not, the back end should use the ``current''
23144 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
23145 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
23146 been opened, the function should fail.
23148 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
23149 name. Take this example:
23153 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
23154 (nntp-port-number 4324))
23157 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
23158 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
23160 The back ends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
23161 The standard back ends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
23162 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
23164 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
23165 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
23166 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
23168 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
23169 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
23170 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
23171 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
23172 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
23173 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
23176 Some back ends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} back ends, and
23177 some might be said not to be. The latter are back ends that generally
23178 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
23179 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
23182 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
23183 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
23184 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
23185 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
23186 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
23187 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
23188 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
23189 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Back End Functions}.}
23190 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
23191 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
23193 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
23194 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
23195 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
23196 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
23197 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
23198 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
23199 of numbers as long as possible.
23201 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary back end
23204 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
23207 * Required Back End Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
23208 * Optional Back End Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
23209 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
23210 * Writing New Back Ends:: Extending old back ends.
23211 * Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
23212 * Mail-like Back Ends:: Some tips on mail back ends.
23216 @node Required Back End Functions
23217 @subsubsection Required Back End Functions
23221 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
23223 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
23224 @code{Message-ID}s. Current back ends do not fully support either---only
23225 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most back ends do not support
23226 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
23228 The result data should either be HEADs or @sc{nov} lines, and the result
23229 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
23230 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
23231 of HEADs and @sc{nov} lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
23233 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
23234 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
23235 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
23236 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
23237 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the back end finds it
23238 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
23239 number, do maximum fetches.
23241 Here's an example HEAD:
23244 221 1056 Article retrieved.
23245 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
23246 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
23247 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
23248 Subject: Re: Something very droll
23249 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
23250 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
23252 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
23253 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
23254 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
23258 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
23259 these in the data buffer.
23261 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
23265 head = error / valid-head
23266 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
23267 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
23268 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
23269 header = <text> eol
23272 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
23273 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
23277 nov-buffer = *nov-line
23278 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
23279 field = <text except TAB>
23282 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
23286 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
23288 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
23289 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
23291 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The back end
23292 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
23293 server. In fact, it should do so.
23295 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
23296 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
23299 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
23301 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
23302 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
23305 There should be no data returned.
23308 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
23310 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the back end
23311 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that back end
23312 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
23313 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
23315 There should be no data returned.
23318 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
23320 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
23321 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
23322 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
23323 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
23325 There should be no data returned.
23328 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
23330 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
23332 There should be no data returned.
23335 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
23337 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
23338 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
23339 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
23340 it would be nice if that were possible.
23342 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
23343 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
23344 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
23345 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
23346 into its article buffer.
23348 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
23349 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
23350 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
23351 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
23352 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
23353 on successful article retrieval.
23356 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
23358 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
23359 making @var{group} the current group.
23361 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
23364 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
23367 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
23370 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
23371 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
23372 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
23373 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
23374 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
23375 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
23376 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
23377 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader. If the group contains no
23378 articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1 and the
23382 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
23383 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
23384 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
23388 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
23390 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
23391 a no-op on most back ends.
23393 There should be no data returned.
23396 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
23398 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
23401 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
23404 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
23405 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
23408 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
23409 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag. If the group
23410 contains no articles, the lowest article number should be reported as 1
23411 and the highest as 0.
23414 active-file = *active-line
23415 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
23417 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
23420 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
23421 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
23422 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
23425 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
23427 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
23428 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
23429 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
23430 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
23431 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
23432 clear if the posting could not be completed.
23434 There should be no result data from this function.
23439 @node Optional Back End Functions
23440 @subsubsection Optional Back End Functions
23444 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
23446 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
23447 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
23448 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
23450 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
23451 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
23452 former is in the same format as the data from
23453 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
23454 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
23457 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
23461 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
23463 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the back end for
23464 alterations. This comes in handy if the back end really carries all the
23465 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
23466 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
23467 should return the (altered) group info.
23469 There should be no result data from this function.
23472 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
23474 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
23475 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
23476 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
23477 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
23478 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
23479 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
23480 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
23481 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
23483 There should be no result data from this function.
23486 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
23488 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
23489 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
23490 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some back ends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
23491 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
23492 propagate the mark information to the server.
23494 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
23497 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
23500 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
23501 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
23502 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
23503 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
23504 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
23505 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
23506 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your back end should, if
23507 possible, not limit itself to these.
23509 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
23510 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
23511 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
23512 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
23514 An example action list:
23517 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
23518 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
23519 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
23522 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
23523 mark on (currently not used for anything).
23525 There should be no result data from this function.
23527 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
23529 If the user tries to set a mark that the back end doesn't like, this
23530 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
23531 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
23532 @var{mark}. If the back end doesn't care, it must return the original
23533 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
23535 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
23536 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
23537 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
23540 There should be no result data from this function.
23543 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
23545 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
23546 request that the back end check for incoming articles, in one way or
23547 another. A mail back end will typically read the spool file or query the
23548 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
23549 to be heeded---if the back end decides that it is too much work just
23550 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
23551 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
23553 There should be no result data from this function.
23556 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
23558 The result data from this function should be a description of
23562 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
23564 description = <text>
23567 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
23569 The result data from this function should be the description of all
23570 groups available on the server.
23573 description-buffer = *description-line
23577 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
23579 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
23580 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date format
23581 (i.e., the date format used in mail and news headers, and returned by
23582 the function @code{message-make-date} by default). The data should be
23583 in the active buffer format.
23585 It is okay for this function to return `too many' groups; some back ends
23586 might find it cheaper to return the full list of groups, rather than
23587 just the new groups. But don't do this for back ends with many groups.
23588 Normally, if the user creates the groups herself, there won't be too
23589 many groups, so @code{nnml} and the like are probably safe. But for
23590 back ends like @code{nntp}, where the groups have been created by the
23591 server, it is quite likely that there can be many groups.
23594 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
23596 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
23598 There should be no return data.
23601 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
23603 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
23604 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
23605 numbers.) It is left up to the back end to decide how old articles
23606 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
23607 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
23610 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
23613 There should be no result data returned.
23616 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
23619 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
23620 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
23622 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
23623 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
23624 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
23625 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
23626 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
23627 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
23629 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
23630 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
23633 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
23634 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23636 There should be no data returned.
23639 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
23641 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
23642 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
23643 this function in short order.
23645 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
23646 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
23648 There should be no data returned.
23651 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
23653 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
23654 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
23656 There should be no data returned.
23659 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
23661 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
23662 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
23663 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
23665 There should be no data returned.
23668 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
23670 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
23671 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
23673 There should be no data returned.
23678 @node Error Messaging
23679 @subsubsection Error Messaging
23681 @findex nnheader-report
23682 @findex nnheader-get-report
23683 The back ends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
23684 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
23685 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the back end
23686 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
23687 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
23688 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
23691 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
23693 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
23696 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
23697 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
23698 recently reported message for the back end in question. This function
23699 takes one argument---the server symbol.
23701 Internally, these functions access @var{back-end}@code{-status-string},
23702 so the @code{nnchoke} back end will have its error message stored in
23703 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
23706 @node Writing New Back Ends
23707 @subsubsection Writing New Back Ends
23709 Many back ends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
23710 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
23711 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
23712 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
23713 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
23716 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
23717 back ends when writing new back ends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
23718 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
23720 All the back ends declare their public variables and functions by using a
23721 package called @code{nnoo}.
23723 To inherit functions from other back ends (and allow other back ends to
23724 inherit functions from the current back end), you should use the
23730 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
23731 parameters. For instance:
23734 (nnoo-declare nndir
23738 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
23739 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
23742 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
23743 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
23744 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
23746 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
23747 variables in the parent back ends to map the variable to when executing
23748 a function in those back ends.
23751 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23752 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23753 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23756 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
23757 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
23758 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
23760 @item nnoo-define-basics
23761 This macro defines some common functions that almost all back ends should
23765 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23769 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
23770 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
23771 function as being public so that other back ends can inherit it.
23773 @item nnoo-map-functions
23774 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current back end to
23775 functions from the parent back ends.
23778 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23779 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23780 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
23783 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
23784 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
23785 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
23786 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
23789 This macro allows importing functions from back ends. It should be the
23790 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
23791 haven't already been defined.
23797 nnmh-request-newgroups)
23801 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
23802 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
23803 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
23808 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} back end.
23811 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
23812 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
23816 (require 'nnheader)
23820 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
23822 (nnoo-declare nndir
23825 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
23826 "Where nndir will look for groups."
23827 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
23829 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
23830 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
23833 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
23835 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
23836 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
23837 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
23839 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
23840 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
23842 ;;; Interface functions.
23844 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
23846 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
23847 (setq nndir-directory
23848 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
23850 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
23851 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
23852 (push `(nndir-current-group
23853 ,(file-name-nondirectory
23854 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23856 (push `(nndir-top-directory
23857 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
23859 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
23861 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
23862 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23863 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
23864 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
23865 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
23869 nnmh-status-message
23871 nnmh-request-newgroups))
23877 @node Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23878 @subsubsection Hooking New Back Ends Into Gnus
23880 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
23881 @findex gnus-declare-backend
23882 Having Gnus start using your new back end is rather easy---you just
23883 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
23884 enter the back end into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
23886 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the back end name and
23887 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
23892 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
23895 The above line would then go in the @file{nnchoke.el} file.
23897 The abilities can be:
23901 This is a mailish back end---followups should (probably) go via mail.
23903 This is a newsish back end---followups should (probably) go via news.
23905 This back end supports both mail and news.
23907 This is neither a post nor mail back end---it's something completely
23910 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
23911 articles and groups.
23913 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
23914 true for almost all back ends.
23915 @item prompt-address
23916 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
23917 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for back ends like
23918 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
23922 @node Mail-like Back Ends
23923 @subsubsection Mail-like Back Ends
23925 One of the things that separate the mail back ends from the rest of the
23926 back ends is the heavy dependence by most of the mail back ends on
23927 common functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the
23928 definition of @code{nnml-request-scan}:
23931 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
23932 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
23933 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
23936 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
23937 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
23940 This function takes four parameters.
23944 This should be a symbol to designate which back end is responsible for
23947 @item exit-function
23948 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
23950 @item temp-directory
23951 Where the temporary files should be stored.
23954 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
23955 performed for one group only.
23958 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{back-end}@code{-save-mail} to
23959 save each article. @var{back-end}@code{-active-number} will be called to
23960 find the article number assigned to this article.
23962 The function also uses the following variables:
23963 @var{back-end}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
23964 this back end); and @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} and
23965 @var{back-end}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
23966 @var{back-end}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
23970 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
23971 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
23975 @node Score File Syntax
23976 @subsection Score File Syntax
23978 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
23979 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
23980 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
23982 Here's a typical score file:
23986 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
23993 BNF definition of a score file:
23996 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
23997 element = rule / atom
23998 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
23999 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
24000 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
24001 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
24003 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
24004 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
24005 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
24006 date-header = "date"
24007 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
24008 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
24009 score = "nil" / <integer>
24010 date = "nil" / <natural number>
24011 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
24012 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
24013 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
24014 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
24015 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
24016 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
24017 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
24018 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
24019 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
24020 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
24021 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
24022 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
24023 exclude-files / read-only / touched
24024 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
24025 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
24026 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
24027 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
24028 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
24029 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
24030 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
24031 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
24032 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
24033 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
24034 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
24035 eval = "eval" space <form>
24036 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
24039 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
24042 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
24043 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
24044 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
24045 one looong line, then that's ok.
24047 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
24048 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
24052 @subsection Headers
24054 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
24055 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
24056 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
24057 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
24059 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
24060 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
24061 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
24062 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
24063 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
24064 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
24065 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
24067 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
24068 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
24069 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
24070 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
24071 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
24073 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
24074 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
24080 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
24081 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
24083 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
24084 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
24085 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
24086 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
24088 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
24092 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
24095 is transformed into
24098 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
24101 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
24102 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
24105 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
24108 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
24109 is slightly tricky:
24112 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
24118 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
24121 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
24127 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
24134 and is equal to the previous range.
24136 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
24137 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
24138 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
24142 range = simple-range / normal-range
24143 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
24144 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
24145 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
24146 number *[ " " contents ]
24149 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
24150 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
24151 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
24152 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
24153 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
24158 @subsection Group Info
24160 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
24161 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
24162 describes the group.
24164 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
24165 second is a more complex one:
24168 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
24170 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
24171 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
24173 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
24176 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
24177 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
24178 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
24179 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
24180 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
24181 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
24182 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
24183 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
24184 this section is about.
24186 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
24187 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
24188 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
24190 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
24193 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
24194 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
24195 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
24196 group = quote <string> quote
24197 ralevel = rank / level
24198 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
24199 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
24200 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
24202 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
24203 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
24204 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
24205 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
24208 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
24209 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
24212 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
24213 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
24216 @item gnus-info-group
24217 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
24218 @findex gnus-info-group
24219 @findex gnus-info-set-group
24220 Get/set the group name.
24222 @item gnus-info-rank
24223 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
24224 @findex gnus-info-rank
24225 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
24226 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
24228 @item gnus-info-level
24229 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
24230 @findex gnus-info-level
24231 @findex gnus-info-set-level
24232 Get/set the group level.
24234 @item gnus-info-score
24235 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
24236 @findex gnus-info-score
24237 @findex gnus-info-set-score
24238 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
24240 @item gnus-info-read
24241 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
24242 @findex gnus-info-read
24243 @findex gnus-info-set-read
24244 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
24246 @item gnus-info-marks
24247 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
24248 @findex gnus-info-marks
24249 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
24250 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
24252 @item gnus-info-method
24253 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
24254 @findex gnus-info-method
24255 @findex gnus-info-set-method
24256 Get/set the group select method.
24258 @item gnus-info-params
24259 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
24260 @findex gnus-info-params
24261 @findex gnus-info-set-params
24262 Get/set the group parameters.
24265 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
24266 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
24268 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
24269 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
24270 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
24271 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
24274 @node Extended Interactive
24275 @subsection Extended Interactive
24276 @cindex interactive
24277 @findex gnus-interactive
24279 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
24280 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
24281 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
24284 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
24285 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
24290 The best thing to do would have been to implement
24291 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
24292 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
24293 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
24294 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
24295 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
24296 @code{interactive}.
24298 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
24303 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
24304 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
24308 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
24309 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
24310 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
24313 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
24317 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
24321 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
24327 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
24328 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
24332 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
24333 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
24334 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
24336 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
24337 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
24338 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
24339 Gnus, that's very useful.
24341 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
24342 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
24343 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
24344 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
24345 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
24346 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
24347 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
24348 following function:
24351 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
24355 (,function ,@@args))
24359 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
24360 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
24361 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
24364 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
24365 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
24366 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
24368 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
24369 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
24370 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
24373 @node Various File Formats
24374 @subsection Various File Formats
24377 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
24378 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
24382 @node Active File Format
24383 @subsubsection Active File Format
24385 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
24386 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
24389 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
24392 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
24393 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
24394 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
24395 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
24396 no.general 1000 900 y
24399 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
24402 active = *group-line
24403 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
24404 group = <non-white-space string>
24406 high-number = <non-negative integer>
24407 low-number = <positive integer>
24408 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
24411 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
24412 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
24415 @node Newsgroups File Format
24416 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
24418 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
24419 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
24420 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
24423 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
24424 Here's the definition:
24428 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
24429 group = <non-white-space string>
24431 description = <string>
24436 @node Emacs for Heathens
24437 @section Emacs for Heathens
24439 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
24440 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
24441 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{C-M-a}'', ``kill the
24442 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
24443 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
24444 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
24445 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
24449 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
24450 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
24455 @subsection Keystrokes
24459 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
24462 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
24465 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
24466 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
24467 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
24468 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
24469 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
24470 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
24472 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
24473 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
24474 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
24475 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
24476 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
24477 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
24478 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
24480 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
24481 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{C-M-m}
24482 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
24483 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
24484 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
24485 ``Press @kbd{C-M-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
24486 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
24488 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
24489 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
24490 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
24491 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
24492 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
24498 @subsection Emacs Lisp
24500 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
24501 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
24502 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
24503 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
24505 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
24506 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
24507 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
24508 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
24509 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
24510 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
24511 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
24514 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
24515 write the following:
24518 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
24521 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
24522 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
24523 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
24526 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
24527 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
24528 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
24529 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
24530 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
24532 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
24533 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
24534 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
24538 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
24542 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
24545 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
24546 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
24549 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
24552 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
24553 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
24556 @include gnus-faq.texi
24576 @c Local Variables:
24578 @c coding: iso-8859-1
24580 % LocalWords: BNF mucho detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
24581 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
24582 % LocalWords: nnmbox newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
24583 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
24584 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref