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4 @settitle Gnus 5.4.38 Manual
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233 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
240 \thispagestyle{empty}
242 Copyright \copyright{} 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
244 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
245 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
246 are preserved on all copies.
248 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
249 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
250 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
251 permission notice identical to this one.
253 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
254 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
263 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
265 Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
267 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
268 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
269 are preserved on all copies.
272 Permission is granted to process this file through Tex and print the
273 results, provided the printed document carries copying permission
274 notice identical to this one except for the removal of this paragraph
275 (this paragraph not being relevant to the printed manual).
278 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
279 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided also that the
280 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
281 permission notice identical to this one.
283 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
284 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
290 @title Gnus 5.4.38 Manual
292 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
295 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
296 Copyright @copyright{} 1995,96,97 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
298 Permission is granted to make and distribute verbatim copies of
299 this manual provided the copyright notice and this permission notice
300 are preserved on all copies.
302 Permission is granted to copy and distribute modified versions of this
303 manual under the conditions for verbatim copying, provided that the
304 entire resulting derived work is distributed under the terms of a
305 permission notice identical to this one.
307 Permission is granted to copy and distribute translations of this manual
308 into another language, under the above conditions for modified versions.
317 @top The Gnus Newsreader
321 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
322 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
323 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
326 This manual corresponds to Gnus 5.4.38.
337 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
338 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
340 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
341 being accused of plagiarism:
343 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
344 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
345 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you can
346 even read news with it!
348 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
349 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
350 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
351 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
352 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
359 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
360 * The Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
361 * The Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
362 * The Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
363 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
364 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
365 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
366 * Various:: General purpose settings.
367 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
368 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
369 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
370 * Key Index:: Key Index.
374 @chapter Starting Gnus
379 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
380 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
383 @findex gnus-other-frame
384 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
385 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
386 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
388 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
392 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
393 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
394 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
395 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
396 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
397 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
398 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
399 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
400 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
401 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
402 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
406 @node Finding the News
407 @section Finding the News
410 @vindex gnus-select-method
412 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
413 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
414 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
415 native method. All groups that are not fetched with this method are
418 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
419 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
422 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
425 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
428 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
431 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
432 certainly be much faster.
434 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
436 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
437 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
438 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
439 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
440 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
441 that fails as well, Gnus will will try to use the machine that is
442 running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
444 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
445 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
446 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
447 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
449 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
450 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
451 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
452 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
453 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
454 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting.
456 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
458 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
459 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
460 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
461 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
462 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
463 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
465 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
467 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
468 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
469 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
470 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
471 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
472 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
475 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
476 would typically set this variable to
479 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
484 @section The First Time
485 @cindex first time usage
487 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
488 be subscribed by default.
490 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
491 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
492 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
493 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
496 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
497 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is here
498 defined as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
500 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
501 help you with most common problems.
503 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
504 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
508 @node The Server is Down
509 @section The Server is Down
510 @cindex server errors
512 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
513 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
514 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
516 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
517 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
518 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
519 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
520 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
521 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
522 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
524 @findex gnus-no-server
525 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
527 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
528 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
529 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
530 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
531 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
532 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
537 @section Slave Gnusae
540 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
541 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
542 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
543 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
545 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
548 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
549 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
550 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
551 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
552 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
553 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
554 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
556 Anyways, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
557 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
558 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
559 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
560 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
561 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
562 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
563 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
565 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
566 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
569 @node Fetching a Group
570 @section Fetching a Group
571 @cindex fetching a group
573 @findex gnus-fetch-group
574 It it sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
575 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
576 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
577 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
578 It takes the group name as a parameter.
586 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
587 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
588 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
589 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
590 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
591 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
592 is @code{t} by default. If you set this variable to @code{always}, then
593 Gnus will query the backends for new groups even when you do the @kbd{g}
594 command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
597 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
598 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
599 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
603 @node Checking New Groups
604 @subsection Checking New Groups
606 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
607 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
608 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
609 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
610 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
611 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
612 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
613 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
614 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
615 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
617 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
618 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
619 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
620 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
621 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
622 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
623 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
624 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
625 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
626 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
627 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
629 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
630 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
631 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
632 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
633 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
634 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
637 @node Subscription Methods
638 @subsection Subscription Methods
640 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
641 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
642 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
644 This variable should contain a function. Some handy pre-fab values
649 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
650 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
651 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
652 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
653 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
655 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
656 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
657 Subscribe all new groups randomly.
659 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
660 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
661 Subscribe all new groups alphabetically.
663 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
664 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
665 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
666 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
667 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
668 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into it's
669 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
670 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
671 up. Or something like that.
673 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
674 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
675 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
676 you about @strong{all} new groups.
678 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
679 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
684 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
685 A closely related variable is
686 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
687 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
688 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
689 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
692 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above to
693 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
694 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
697 @node Filtering New Groups
698 @subsection Filtering New Groups
700 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
701 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
702 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
705 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
708 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
709 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
710 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
711 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
712 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
713 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
714 subscribing these groups.
715 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
716 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
718 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
719 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
720 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
721 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
722 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
723 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
724 and if the the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
725 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
727 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
728 Yet another variable that meddles here is
729 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
730 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
731 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
732 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
733 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
734 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
735 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
736 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
738 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
739 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
742 @node Changing Servers
743 @section Changing Servers
744 @cindex changing servers
746 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
747 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
748 very flaky and you want to use another.
750 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
751 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
755 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
756 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
757 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
758 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
761 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
762 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
763 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
764 functions more than absolutely necessary.
766 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
767 @findex gnus-change-server
768 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
769 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
770 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
771 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
772 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
774 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
775 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
776 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
777 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
778 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
780 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
781 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
782 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
783 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
784 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
785 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
789 @section Startup Files
790 @cindex startup files
795 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
796 information is traditionally stored in this file.
798 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
799 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
800 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
801 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
802 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
803 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
804 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
806 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
807 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
808 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
809 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file.
811 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
812 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
813 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
814 the file and save some space, as well as making exit from Gnus faster.
815 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
816 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right?
818 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
819 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
820 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
821 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
822 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
823 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
824 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
825 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
826 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
827 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
828 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
829 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
831 @vindex gnus-startup-file
832 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
833 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
834 file being whatever that one is with a @samp{.eld} appended.
836 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
837 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
838 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
839 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
840 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
841 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
842 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
843 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
844 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
845 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
848 (defun turn-off-backup ()
849 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
851 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
852 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
855 @vindex gnus-init-file
856 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
857 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
858 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
859 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
860 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
861 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
862 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
863 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
864 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
873 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
874 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
875 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
876 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
877 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
880 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
881 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
884 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
885 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
886 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
888 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
889 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
890 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
891 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
892 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
893 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
896 @node The Active File
897 @section The Active File
899 @cindex ignored groups
901 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
902 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
903 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
905 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
906 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
907 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
908 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
909 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
910 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
911 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
914 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
915 @c if you set it to anything else.
917 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
919 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
920 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
921 reading the active file. This variable is @code{t} by default.
923 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
924 you actually subscribe to.
926 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
927 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
928 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
929 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
931 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
932 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
933 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
934 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
935 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
936 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
938 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
939 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
940 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
941 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
942 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
943 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
945 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
946 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
948 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
949 secondary select methods.
952 @node Startup Variables
953 @section Startup Variables
958 @vindex gnus-load-hook
959 A hook that is run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
960 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
961 times you start Gnus.
963 @item gnus-startup-hook
964 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
965 A hook that is run after starting up Gnus successfully.
967 @item gnus-started-hook
968 @vindex gnus-started-hook
969 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
972 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
973 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
974 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
975 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
976 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
977 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
978 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
979 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
981 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
982 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
983 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
984 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
985 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
986 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
988 @item gnus-no-groups-message
989 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
990 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
992 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
993 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
994 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
996 @item gnus-startup-jingle
997 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
998 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
999 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1004 @node The Group Buffer
1005 @chapter The Group Buffer
1006 @cindex group buffer
1008 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1009 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1010 long as Gnus is active.
1013 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1014 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1015 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1016 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1017 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1018 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1019 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1020 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1021 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1022 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1023 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1024 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1025 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1026 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1027 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1028 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1029 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1033 @node Group Buffer Format
1034 @section Group Buffer Format
1037 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1038 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1039 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1043 @node Group Line Specification
1044 @subsection Group Line Specification
1045 @cindex group buffer format
1047 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1048 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1050 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1053 25: news.announce.newusers
1054 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1059 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1060 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1061 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1062 asterisk at the beginning of the line?)
1064 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1065 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1066 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1067 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1068 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1069 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1071 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1073 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1074 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1075 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1076 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1079 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1080 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1081 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1083 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1088 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1091 Whether the group is subscribed.
1094 Level of subscribedness.
1097 Number of unread articles.
1100 Number of dormant articles.
1103 Number of ticked articles.
1106 Number of read articles.
1109 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1110 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1113 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1116 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1125 Newsgroup description.
1128 @samp{m} if moderated.
1131 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1140 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1144 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1147 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1148 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1149 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1150 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1151 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.emacs.gnus}.
1154 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1156 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1160 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1164 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1165 be a letter. @sc{gnus} will call the function
1166 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1167 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1168 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1169 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1174 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1175 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1176 group, or a bogus native group.
1179 @node Group Modeline Specification
1180 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1181 @cindex group modeline
1183 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1184 The mode line can be changed by setting
1185 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). It
1186 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1190 The native news server.
1192 The native select method.
1196 @node Group Highlighting
1197 @subsection Group Highlighting
1198 @cindex highlighting
1199 @cindex group highlighting
1201 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1202 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1203 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1204 that look like @var{(form . face)}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1205 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1207 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1211 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1213 ,(custom-face-lookup "Red" nil nil t nil nil))
1214 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) .
1215 ,(custom-face-lookup "SeaGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1217 ,(custom-face-lookup "SpringGreen" nil nil t nil nil))
1219 ,(custom-face-lookup "SteelBlue" nil nil t nil nil))
1221 ,(custom-face-lookup "SkyBlue" nil nil t nil nil))))
1224 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1231 The number of unread articles in the group.
1235 Whether the group is a mail group.
1237 The level of the group.
1239 The score of the group.
1241 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1243 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1246 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1247 topic being inserted.
1250 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1251 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1252 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1254 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1255 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1256 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1257 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1258 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1261 @node Group Maneuvering
1262 @section Group Maneuvering
1263 @cindex group movement
1265 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1266 expected, hopefully.
1272 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1273 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1274 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1280 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1281 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1282 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1286 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1287 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1291 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1292 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1296 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1297 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1298 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1302 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1303 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1304 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1307 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1313 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1314 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1315 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1320 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1321 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1322 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1326 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1327 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1328 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1331 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1332 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1333 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1334 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1338 @node Selecting a Group
1339 @section Selecting a Group
1340 @cindex group selection
1345 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1346 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1347 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1348 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1349 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1350 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1351 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1352 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1353 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1354 negative, Gnus fetches the @var{abs(N)} oldest articles.
1358 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1359 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1360 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1361 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1362 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1366 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1367 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1368 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1369 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1370 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1371 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1372 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1373 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer.
1374 This might be useful if you want to toggle threading before entering the
1378 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1379 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1380 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1381 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1382 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1385 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1386 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1387 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1388 doing any processing of its contents
1389 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1390 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1391 manner will have no permanent effects.
1395 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
1396 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
1397 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
1398 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
1399 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
1400 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
1401 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
1402 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
1405 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
1406 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
1407 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
1408 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
1413 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
1414 full summary buffer.
1417 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
1420 Select the most high-scored article in the group when entering the
1424 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
1425 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
1426 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
1430 @node Subscription Commands
1431 @section Subscription Commands
1432 @cindex subscription
1440 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
1441 Toggle subscription to the current group
1442 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
1448 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
1449 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
1450 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
1451 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
1457 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
1458 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
1464 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
1465 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
1468 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
1469 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
1470 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
1471 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
1472 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
1478 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
1479 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
1483 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
1484 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
1487 @kindex S C-k (Group)
1488 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
1489 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
1490 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
1491 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
1492 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
1493 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
1494 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
1495 @file{.newsrc} file.
1499 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1509 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
1510 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
1511 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
1512 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
1513 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
1518 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
1519 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
1520 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
1524 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
1525 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
1526 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
1528 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1529 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1530 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1531 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
1532 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
1533 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
1540 @section Group Levels
1544 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
1545 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
1546 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
1547 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
1548 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1550 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
1556 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
1557 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
1558 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
1559 prompted for a level.
1562 @vindex gnus-level-killed
1563 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
1564 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
1565 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
1566 Gnus considers groups on between levels 1 and
1567 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
1568 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
1569 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
1570 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
1571 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (default 9),
1572 completely dead. Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly
1573 the same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what
1574 articles you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and
1575 living groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely
1576 for reasons of efficiency.
1578 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
1579 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
1581 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
1582 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
1583 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
1585 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
1586 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
1587 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
1588 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
1589 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
1590 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
1591 relevant legal ranges.
1593 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
1594 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
1595 will only move to groups that are of the same level (or lower). In
1596 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
1597 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
1598 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
1601 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
1602 All groups with a level less than or equal to
1603 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
1606 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
1607 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
1608 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
1609 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
1612 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
1613 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
1614 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
1615 use this level as the ``work'' level.
1617 @vindex gnus-activate-level
1618 Gnus will normally just activate groups that are on level
1619 @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to activate
1620 unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable to
1621 5. The default is 6.
1625 @section Group Score
1628 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
1629 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
1630 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
1633 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can assign a score to each
1634 group. You can then sort the group buffer based on this score.
1635 Alternatively, you can sort on score and then level. (Taken together,
1636 the level and the score is called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group
1637 that is on level 4 and has a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group
1638 on level 5 that has a score of 300. (The level is the most significant
1639 part and the score is the least significant part.))
1641 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
1642 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
1643 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
1644 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
1645 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
1646 action after each summary exit, you can add
1647 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
1648 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
1649 slow things down somewhat.
1652 @node Marking Groups
1653 @section Marking Groups
1654 @cindex marking groups
1656 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
1657 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
1658 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
1659 bidding on those groups.
1661 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
1662 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
1663 with the process mark and then execute the command.
1671 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
1672 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
1678 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
1679 Remove the mark from the current group
1680 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
1684 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
1685 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
1689 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
1690 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
1694 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
1695 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
1699 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
1700 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
1701 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
1704 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
1706 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
1707 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
1708 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
1709 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
1710 the command to be executed.
1713 @node Foreign Groups
1714 @section Foreign Groups
1715 @cindex foreign groups
1717 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
1718 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
1719 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
1720 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
1727 @findex gnus-group-make-group
1728 @cindex making groups
1729 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
1730 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
1731 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
1735 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
1736 @cindex renaming groups
1737 Rename the current group to something else
1738 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is legal only on some
1739 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
1745 @findex gnus-group-customize
1746 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
1750 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
1751 @cindex renaming groups
1752 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
1753 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
1757 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
1758 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
1759 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
1763 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
1764 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
1765 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
1769 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
1771 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
1772 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
1777 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
1778 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
1782 @cindex (ding) archive
1783 @cindex archive group
1784 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
1785 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
1786 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
1787 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
1788 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
1789 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
1790 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
1794 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
1796 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
1797 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
1798 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
1799 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
1803 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
1805 Read an arbitrary directory as if with were a newsgroup with the
1806 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
1807 @xref{Anything Groups}.
1811 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
1812 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
1814 Make a group based on some file or other
1815 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1816 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
1817 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
1818 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
1819 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, and @code{forward}. If you run
1820 this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file type.
1821 @xref{Document Groups}.
1825 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
1830 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
1831 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
1832 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
1833 search engine type and the search string. Legal search engine types
1834 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
1835 @xref{Web Searches}.
1838 @kindex G DEL (Group)
1839 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
1840 This function will delete the current group
1841 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
1842 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
1843 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
1844 absolutely sure of what you are doing.
1848 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
1849 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
1850 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
1854 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
1855 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
1856 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
1859 @xref{Select Methods} for more information on the various select
1862 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
1863 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
1864 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
1865 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
1866 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers.
1869 @node Group Parameters
1870 @section Group Parameters
1871 @cindex group parameters
1873 The group parameters store information local to a particular group:
1878 If the group parameter list contains an element that looks like
1879 @code{(to-address . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used by
1880 the backend when doing followups and posts. This is primarily useful in
1881 mail groups that represent closed mailing lists---mailing lists where
1882 it's expected that everybody that writes to the mailing list is
1883 subscribed to it. Since using this parameter ensures that the mail only
1884 goes to the mailing list itself, it means that members won't receive two
1885 copies of your followups.
1887 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
1888 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
1889 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
1890 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
1891 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
1892 list address instead.
1896 If the group parameter list has an element that looks like
1897 @code{(to-list . "some@@where.com")}, that address will be used when
1898 doing a @kbd{a} in any group. It is totally ignored when doing a
1899 followup---except that if it is present in a news group, you'll get mail
1900 group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
1902 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
1903 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
1904 sending the message.
1906 @item broken-reply-to
1907 @cindex broken-reply-to
1908 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
1909 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
1910 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
1911 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
1912 broken behavior. So there!
1916 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
1917 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
1921 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list, Gnus will treat
1922 all responses as if they were responses to news articles. This can be
1923 useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a news group.
1927 If this symbol is present in the group parameter list and set to
1928 @code{t}, new composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current
1929 group. If it is present and set to @code{none}, no @code{Gcc:} header
1930 will be generated, if it is present and a string, this string will be
1931 inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header (this symbol takes precedence over
1932 any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later).
1936 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
1937 . t)}, , all articles that are read will be marked as expirable. For an
1938 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
1941 @cindex total-expire
1942 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
1943 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
1944 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
1949 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
1950 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
1951 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
1952 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
1953 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
1954 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
1957 @cindex score file group parameter
1958 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
1959 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. This
1960 means that all score commands you issue will end up in that file.
1963 @cindex adapt file group parameter
1964 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
1965 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
1966 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
1969 When unsubscribing to a mailing list you should never send the
1970 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
1971 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
1972 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
1975 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} says which articles to
1976 display on entering the group. Legal values are:
1980 Display all articles, both read and unread.
1983 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
1988 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
1989 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
1990 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
1993 @item @var{(variable form)}
1994 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
1995 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
1996 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
1997 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
1998 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
1999 @code{eval}ed there.
2001 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2002 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2003 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2004 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2005 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2009 Use the @kbd{G p} command to edit group parameters of a group.
2011 Also @pxref{Topic Parameters}.
2013 Here's an example group parameter list:
2016 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2021 @node Listing Groups
2022 @section Listing Groups
2023 @cindex group listing
2025 These commands all list various slices of the groups that are available.
2033 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2034 List all groups that have unread articles
2035 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2036 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2037 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2038 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2045 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2046 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2047 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2048 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2049 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2050 unsubscribed groups).
2054 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2055 List all unread groups on a specific level
2056 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2057 with no unread articles.
2061 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2062 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2063 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2064 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2069 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2070 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2074 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2075 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2076 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2080 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2081 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2085 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2086 List absolutely all groups that are in the active file(s) of the
2087 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2088 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2089 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2090 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list group that
2091 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they are killed groups.
2092 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2096 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2097 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2098 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2102 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2103 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2104 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2108 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2109 @cindex visible group parameter
2110 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2111 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2112 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2113 get the same effect.
2115 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2116 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2117 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2118 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2119 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2122 @node Sorting Groups
2123 @section Sorting Groups
2124 @cindex sorting groups
2126 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2127 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2128 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2129 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2130 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2131 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2136 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2137 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2138 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2140 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2141 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2142 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2144 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2145 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2146 Sort by group level.
2148 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2149 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2150 Sort by group score.
2152 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2153 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2154 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2155 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}.
2157 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2158 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2159 Sort by number of unread articles.
2161 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
2162 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
2163 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
2168 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
2169 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
2173 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
2174 some sorting criteria:
2178 @kindex G S a (Group)
2179 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2180 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
2181 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2184 @kindex G S u (Group)
2185 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
2186 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
2187 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2190 @kindex G S l (Group)
2191 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
2192 Sort the group buffer by group level
2193 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
2196 @kindex G S v (Group)
2197 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
2198 Sort the group buffer by group score
2199 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}).
2202 @kindex G S r (Group)
2203 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
2204 Sort the group buffer by group rank
2205 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2208 @kindex G S m (Group)
2209 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
2210 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
2211 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
2215 When given a prefix, all these commands will sort in reverse order.
2217 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
2221 @kindex G P a (Group)
2222 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
2223 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2224 group name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
2227 @kindex G P u (Group)
2228 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
2229 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by the number of
2230 unread articles (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
2233 @kindex G P l (Group)
2234 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
2235 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group level
2236 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
2239 @kindex G P v (Group)
2240 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
2241 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group score
2242 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}).
2245 @kindex G P r (Group)
2246 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
2247 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer by group rank
2248 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}).
2251 @kindex G P m (Group)
2252 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
2253 Sort the process/prefixed groups in the group buffer alphabetically by
2254 backend name (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
2260 @node Group Maintenance
2261 @section Group Maintenance
2262 @cindex bogus groups
2267 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
2268 Find bogus groups and delete them
2269 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
2273 @findex gnus-find-new-newsgroups
2274 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-find-new-newsgroups}). If
2275 given a prefix, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server for
2279 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
2280 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
2281 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
2282 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}).
2285 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
2286 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
2287 Run all articles in all groups through the expiry process
2288 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
2293 @node Browse Foreign Server
2294 @section Browse Foreign Server
2295 @cindex foreign servers
2296 @cindex browsing servers
2301 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
2302 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
2303 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
2304 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
2307 @findex gnus-browse-mode
2308 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
2309 will be use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
2310 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
2312 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
2317 @findex gnus-group-next-group
2318 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
2322 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
2323 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
2326 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
2327 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
2328 Enter the current group and display the first article
2329 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
2332 @kindex RET (Browse)
2333 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
2334 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
2338 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
2339 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
2340 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2346 @findex gnus-browse-exit
2347 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
2351 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
2352 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
2353 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
2358 @section Exiting Gnus
2359 @cindex exiting Gnus
2361 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
2366 @findex gnus-group-suspend
2367 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
2368 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
2369 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
2373 @findex gnus-group-exit
2374 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
2378 @findex gnus-group-quit
2379 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
2380 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
2383 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
2384 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
2385 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
2386 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
2387 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
2392 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
2393 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
2394 trying to customize meta-variables.
2399 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
2400 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
2401 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
2407 @section Group Topics
2410 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
2411 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
2412 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
2413 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
2414 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
2415 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
2423 2: alt.religion.emacs
2426 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2428 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2429 13: comp.sources.unix
2432 @findex gnus-topic-mode
2434 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
2435 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
2436 is a toggling command.)
2438 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
2439 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
2440 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
2441 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
2444 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
2445 the hook for the group mode:
2448 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
2452 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
2453 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
2454 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
2455 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
2456 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
2460 @node Topic Variables
2461 @subsection Topic Variables
2462 @cindex topic variables
2464 Now, if you select a topic, if will fold/unfold that topic, which is
2465 really neat, I think.
2467 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
2468 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
2469 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
2482 Number of groups in the topic.
2484 Number of unread articles in the topic.
2486 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
2489 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
2490 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
2491 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
2494 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
2495 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
2497 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
2498 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
2499 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
2502 @node Topic Commands
2503 @subsection Topic Commands
2504 @cindex topic commands
2506 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
2507 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
2508 definitions slightly.
2514 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
2515 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
2516 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
2520 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
2521 Move the current group to some other topic
2522 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2523 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2527 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
2528 Copy the current group to some other topic
2529 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
2530 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2534 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
2535 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
2536 This command uses the process/prefix convention
2537 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
2541 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
2542 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2543 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
2547 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
2548 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
2549 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
2553 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
2554 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
2555 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
2558 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
2559 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
2560 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
2561 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
2565 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
2567 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
2568 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
2569 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
2570 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
2571 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
2572 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
2575 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
2576 @findex gnus-topic-indent
2577 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
2578 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
2579 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
2583 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
2584 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
2585 topic will be removed along with the topic.
2589 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
2590 Yank the previously killed group or topic
2591 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
2596 @findex gnus-topic-rename
2597 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
2600 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
2601 @findex gnus-topic-delete
2602 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
2606 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
2607 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
2608 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
2612 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
2613 @cindex group parameters
2614 @cindex topic parameters
2616 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
2617 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
2623 @subsection Topic Sorting
2624 @cindex topic sorting
2626 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
2632 @kindex T S a (Topic)
2633 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
2634 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
2635 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
2638 @kindex T S u (Topic)
2639 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
2640 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
2641 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
2644 @kindex T S l (Topic)
2645 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
2646 Sort the current topic by group level
2647 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
2650 @kindex T S v (Topic)
2651 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
2652 Sort the current topic by group score
2653 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}).
2656 @kindex T S r (Topic)
2657 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
2658 Sort the current topic by group rank
2659 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}).
2662 @kindex T S m (Topic)
2663 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
2664 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
2665 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
2669 @xref{Sorting Groups} for more information about group sorting.
2672 @node Topic Topology
2673 @subsection Topic Topology
2674 @cindex topic topology
2677 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
2683 2: alt.religion.emacs
2686 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2688 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2689 13: comp.sources.unix
2692 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
2693 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
2694 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
2699 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
2700 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
2704 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
2705 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
2706 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
2707 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
2708 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
2709 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
2711 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
2712 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
2713 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
2716 @node Topic Parameters
2717 @subsection Topic Parameters
2718 @cindex topic parameters
2720 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
2721 ancestor) topic parameters. All legal group parameters are legal topic
2722 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
2724 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
2725 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
2726 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
2727 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
2733 2: alt.religion.emacs
2737 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
2739 8: comp.binaries.fractals
2740 13: comp.sources.unix
2744 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
2745 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
2746 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
2747 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
2748 @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
2749 . "religion.SCORE")}.
2751 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
2752 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
2753 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
2754 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
2755 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
2757 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
2758 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
2759 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
2760 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
2761 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
2762 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
2763 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
2764 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
2767 @node Misc Group Stuff
2768 @section Misc Group Stuff
2771 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
2772 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
2773 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
2774 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
2781 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
2782 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
2783 @xref{The Server Buffer}.
2787 @findex gnus-group-post-news
2788 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). The current
2789 group name will be used as the default.
2793 @findex gnus-group-mail
2794 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
2798 Variables for the group buffer:
2802 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
2803 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
2804 @code{gnus-group-mode-hook} is called after the group buffer has been
2807 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
2808 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
2809 @code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} is called after the group buffer is
2810 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
2813 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2814 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2815 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
2816 whether they are empty or not.
2821 @node Scanning New Messages
2822 @subsection Scanning New Messages
2823 @cindex new messages
2824 @cindex scanning new news
2830 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
2831 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
2832 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
2833 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
2834 command will force a total rereading of the active file(s) from the
2839 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
2840 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
2841 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
2842 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
2843 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
2844 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
2846 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
2847 @cindex activating groups
2849 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
2850 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
2855 @findex gnus-group-restart
2856 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
2857 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
2858 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
2862 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
2863 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
2865 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
2866 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
2870 @node Group Information
2871 @subsection Group Information
2872 @cindex group information
2873 @cindex information on groups
2880 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
2881 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
2884 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
2885 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
2886 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
2887 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
2888 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
2889 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
2890 for fetching the file.
2892 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
2893 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
2898 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
2899 @cindex describing groups
2900 @cindex group description
2901 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
2902 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
2903 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
2907 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
2908 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
2909 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
2914 @findex gnus-version
2915 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
2919 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
2920 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
2923 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
2926 @findex gnus-info-find-node
2927 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
2931 @node Group Timestamp
2932 @subsection Group Timestamp
2934 @cindex group timestamps
2936 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
2937 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
2938 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
2941 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
2944 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
2946 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
2947 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
2950 (setq gnus-group-line-format
2951 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
2954 This will result in lines looking like:
2957 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
2958 0: custom 19961002T012713
2961 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
2962 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
2966 (setq gnus-group-line-format
2967 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
2972 @subsection File Commands
2973 @cindex file commands
2979 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
2980 @vindex gnus-init-file
2981 @cindex reading init file
2982 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
2983 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
2987 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
2988 @cindex saving .newsrc
2989 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
2990 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
2991 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
2994 @c @kindex Z (Group)
2995 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
2996 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3001 @node The Summary Buffer
3002 @chapter The Summary Buffer
3003 @cindex summary buffer
3005 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3006 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3008 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3009 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3011 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3014 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3015 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3016 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3017 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3018 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3019 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
3020 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3021 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3022 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3023 * Sorting:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3024 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3025 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3026 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3027 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3028 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3029 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3030 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3031 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3032 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3033 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3034 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3035 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3036 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3037 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3038 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
3039 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3040 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3044 @node Summary Buffer Format
3045 @section Summary Buffer Format
3046 @cindex summary buffer format
3049 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
3050 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
3051 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
3054 @findex mail-extract-address-components
3055 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
3056 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
3057 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
3058 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
3059 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined function exist:
3060 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
3061 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
3062 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
3063 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
3064 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead.
3066 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
3067 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
3068 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
3069 with those specs that require it. The default is @samp{}.
3072 @node Summary Buffer Lines
3073 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
3075 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
3076 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
3077 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
3078 lines a a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
3079 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3081 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
3083 The following format specification characters are understood:
3091 Subject if the article is the root or the previous article had a
3092 different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
3093 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @samp{}.)
3095 Full @code{From} header.
3097 The name (from the @code{From} header).
3099 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
3100 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
3101 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
3102 may be more thorough.
3104 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
3107 Number of lines in the article.
3109 Number of characters in the article.
3111 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3113 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
3114 pushes everything after it off the screen).
3116 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
3117 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
3119 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
3120 for adopted articles.
3122 One space for each thread level.
3124 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
3132 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
3133 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
3134 default level. If the difference between
3135 @code{gnus-summary-default-level} and the score is less than
3136 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
3144 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
3146 The @code{Date} in @code{YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS} format.
3152 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
3153 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
3155 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
3156 article has any children.
3160 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
3161 be a letter. @sc{gnus} will call the function
3162 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
3163 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
3164 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
3165 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
3168 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
3169 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
3170 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
3171 that. This means that it is illegal to have these specs after a
3172 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
3173 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
3175 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
3176 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
3178 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
3181 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
3182 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
3184 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
3185 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar. Set
3186 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you like. The default
3187 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
3189 Here are the elements you can play with:
3195 Unprefixed group name.
3197 Current article number.
3201 Number of unread articles in this group.
3203 Number of unselected articles in this group.
3205 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
3206 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
3207 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
3208 and no unselected ones.
3210 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
3211 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
3213 Subject of the current article.
3217 Name of the current score file.
3219 Number of dormant articles.
3221 Number of ticked articles.
3223 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
3225 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
3229 @node Summary Highlighting
3230 @subsection Summary Highlighting
3234 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3235 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
3236 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
3237 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
3238 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3240 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
3241 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
3242 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
3243 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
3245 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
3246 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
3247 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) that is used to
3248 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
3250 @item gnus-summary-highlight
3251 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
3252 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
3253 list where the elements are on the format @var{(FORM . FACE)}. If you
3254 would, for instance, like ticked articles to be italic and high-scored
3255 articles to be bold, you could set this variable to something like
3257 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
3258 ((> score default) . bold))
3260 As you may have guessed, if @var{FORM} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
3261 @var{FACE} will be applied to the line.
3265 @node Summary Maneuvering
3266 @section Summary Maneuvering
3267 @cindex summary movement
3269 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
3270 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
3272 None of these commands select articles.
3277 @kindex M-n (Summary)
3278 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
3279 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
3280 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
3281 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
3285 @kindex M-p (Summary)
3286 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
3287 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
3288 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
3289 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
3294 @kindex G j (Summary)
3295 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
3296 Ask for an article number and then go to that article
3297 (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
3300 @kindex G g (Summary)
3301 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
3302 Ask for an article number and then go the summary line of that article
3303 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
3306 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
3307 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
3308 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
3309 to the group buffer.
3311 Variables related to summary movement:
3315 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
3316 @item gnus-auto-select-next
3317 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
3318 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
3319 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
3320 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
3321 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
3322 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
3323 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
3324 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
3325 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
3326 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
3327 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
3328 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
3330 @item gnus-auto-select-same
3331 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
3332 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
3333 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
3334 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
3335 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) This variable is not
3336 particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
3338 @item gnus-summary-check-current
3339 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
3340 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
3341 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
3342 Instead, they will choose the current article.
3344 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
3345 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
3346 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
3347 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
3348 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
3349 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
3350 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
3351 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
3357 @node Choosing Articles
3358 @section Choosing Articles
3359 @cindex selecting articles
3362 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
3363 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
3367 @node Choosing Commands
3368 @subsection Choosing Commands
3370 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
3371 and they all select and display an article.
3375 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3376 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3377 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
3378 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3383 @kindex G n (Summary)
3384 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
3385 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
3390 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
3391 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
3396 @kindex G N (Summary)
3397 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
3398 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
3403 @kindex G P (Summary)
3404 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
3405 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
3408 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
3409 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
3410 Go to the next article with the same subject
3411 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
3414 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
3415 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
3416 Go to the previous article with the same subject
3417 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
3421 @kindex G f (Summary)
3423 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
3424 Go to the first unread article
3425 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
3429 @kindex G b (Summary)
3431 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
3432 Go to the article with the highest score
3433 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
3438 @kindex G l (Summary)
3439 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
3440 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
3443 @kindex G p (Summary)
3444 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
3445 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
3446 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
3447 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
3448 history as you like.
3452 @node Choosing Variables
3453 @subsection Choosing Variables
3455 Some variables that are relevant for moving and selecting articles:
3458 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3459 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
3460 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
3461 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
3462 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
3463 the server and display it in the article buffer.
3465 @item gnus-select-article-hook
3466 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
3467 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
3468 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
3470 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
3471 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
3472 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
3473 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
3474 @findex gnus-unread-mark
3475 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
3476 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
3477 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
3478 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
3479 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
3480 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
3481 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
3482 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
3483 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
3488 @node Paging the Article
3489 @section Scrolling the Article
3490 @cindex article scrolling
3495 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
3496 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
3497 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
3498 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
3499 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
3502 @kindex DEL (Summary)
3503 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
3504 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
3507 @kindex RET (Summary)
3508 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
3509 Scroll the current article one line forward
3510 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
3514 @kindex A g (Summary)
3516 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
3517 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
3518 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
3519 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
3520 the way it came from the server.
3525 @kindex A < (Summary)
3526 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
3527 Scroll to the beginning of the article
3528 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
3533 @kindex A > (Summary)
3534 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
3535 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
3539 @kindex A s (Summary)
3541 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
3542 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
3543 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
3548 @node Reply Followup and Post
3549 @section Reply, Followup and Post
3552 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
3553 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
3557 @node Summary Mail Commands
3558 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
3560 @cindex composing mail
3562 Commands for composing a mail message:
3568 @kindex S r (Summary)
3570 @findex gnus-summary-reply
3571 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
3572 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
3577 @kindex S R (Summary)
3578 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
3579 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
3580 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
3581 command uses the process/prefix convention.
3584 @kindex S w (Summary)
3585 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
3586 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
3587 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}).
3590 @kindex S W (Summary)
3591 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
3592 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
3593 message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This command uses
3594 the process/prefix convention.
3597 @kindex S o m (Summary)
3598 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
3599 Forward the current article to some other person
3600 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3601 headers of the forwarded article.
3606 @kindex S m (Summary)
3607 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
3608 Send a mail to some other person
3609 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
3612 @kindex S D b (Summary)
3613 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
3614 @cindex bouncing mail
3615 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
3616 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
3617 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
3618 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
3619 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
3620 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
3621 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
3622 very well fail, though.
3625 @kindex S D r (Summary)
3626 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
3627 Not to be confused with the previous command,
3628 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
3629 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
3630 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
3631 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
3632 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
3633 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
3634 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
3636 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
3637 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
3638 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
3639 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
3640 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
3642 This command understands the process/prefix convention
3643 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3646 @kindex S O m (Summary)
3647 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
3648 Digest the current series and forward the result using mail
3649 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
3650 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3653 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
3654 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
3655 @cindex crossposting
3656 @cindex excessive crossposting
3657 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
3658 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
3660 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
3661 This command is provided as a way to fight back agains the current
3662 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
3663 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
3664 command understands the process/prefix convention
3665 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
3670 @node Summary Post Commands
3671 @subsection Summary Post Commands
3673 @cindex composing news
3675 Commands for posting a news article:
3681 @kindex S p (Summary)
3682 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
3683 Post an article to the current group
3684 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
3689 @kindex S f (Summary)
3690 @findex gnus-summary-followup
3691 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
3695 @kindex S F (Summary)
3697 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
3698 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
3699 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
3700 process/prefix convention.
3703 @kindex S n (Summary)
3704 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3705 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3706 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
3709 @kindex S n (Summary)
3710 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
3711 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
3712 message through mail and include the original message
3713 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
3714 the process/prefix convention.
3717 @kindex S o p (Summary)
3718 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
3719 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
3720 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}). If given a prefix, include the full
3721 headers of the forwarded article.
3724 @kindex S O p (Summary)
3725 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
3726 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
3727 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}).
3730 @kindex S u (Summary)
3731 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
3732 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
3733 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
3737 @node Canceling and Superseding
3738 @section Canceling Articles
3739 @cindex canceling articles
3740 @cindex superseding articles
3742 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
3743 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
3745 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
3747 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
3749 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
3750 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
3751 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
3752 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
3754 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
3755 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
3758 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
3759 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
3760 your original article.
3762 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
3764 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
3765 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
3766 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
3769 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
3770 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
3771 have posted almost the same article twice.
3773 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
3774 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
3775 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
3776 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
3777 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
3778 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
3779 header by substituting one of those words for the word
3780 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
3781 you would do normally. The previous article will be
3782 canceled/superseded.
3784 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
3787 @node Marking Articles
3788 @section Marking Articles
3789 @cindex article marking
3790 @cindex article ticking
3793 There are several marks you can set on an article.
3795 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
3796 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
3797 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
3799 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
3802 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
3803 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
3804 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
3808 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
3812 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
3813 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
3817 @node Unread Articles
3818 @subsection Unread Articles
3820 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
3825 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
3826 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
3828 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
3829 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
3830 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
3831 tick it. However, articles can be expired, so if you want to keep an
3832 article forever, you'll have to make it persistent (@pxref{Persistent
3836 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
3837 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
3839 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
3840 are followups to it.
3843 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
3844 Markes as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
3846 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
3851 @subsection Read Articles
3852 @cindex expirable mark
3854 All the following marks mark articles as read.
3859 @vindex gnus-del-mark
3860 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
3861 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
3864 @vindex gnus-read-mark
3865 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
3868 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
3869 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
3870 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
3873 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
3874 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
3877 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
3878 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
3881 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
3882 Marked as read by having a too low score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
3885 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
3886 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
3889 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
3890 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
3893 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
3894 @sc{SOUP}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
3897 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
3898 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
3902 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
3903 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
3904 (@code{gnus-duplicated-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
3908 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
3909 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
3911 One more special mark, though:
3915 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
3916 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
3918 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
3919 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
3920 control the expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
3921 articles that are marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
3927 @subsection Other Marks
3928 @cindex process mark
3931 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
3937 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
3938 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
3939 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
3940 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
3941 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}
3944 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
3945 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
3946 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
3947 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
3950 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
3951 Articles that are stored in the article cache will be marked with an
3952 @samp{*} in the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}).
3955 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
3956 Articles that are ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
3957 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
3958 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}.
3961 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
3962 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
3963 It the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
3964 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
3965 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
3968 @vindex gnus-process-mark
3969 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}. A
3970 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
3971 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
3972 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
3973 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
3977 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
3978 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
3979 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
3981 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
3982 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
3983 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
3987 @subsection Setting Marks
3988 @cindex setting marks
3990 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
3996 @kindex M t (Summary)
3997 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
3998 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
4003 @kindex M ? (Summary)
4004 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
4005 Mark the current article as dormant
4006 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}).
4010 @kindex M d (Summary)
4012 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
4013 Mark the current article as read
4014 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
4018 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
4019 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
4020 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
4025 @kindex M k (Summary)
4026 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
4027 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
4028 and then select the next unread article
4029 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
4033 @kindex M K (Summary)
4034 @kindex C-k (Summary)
4035 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
4036 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
4037 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
4040 @kindex M C (Summary)
4041 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
4042 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
4045 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
4046 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
4047 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
4048 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
4051 @kindex M H (Summary)
4052 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
4053 Catchup the current group to point
4054 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
4057 @kindex C-w (Summary)
4058 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
4059 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
4060 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
4063 @kindex M V k (Summary)
4064 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
4065 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
4066 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
4070 @kindex M c (Summary)
4071 @kindex M-u (Summary)
4072 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
4073 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
4074 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}).
4078 @kindex M e (Summary)
4080 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
4081 Mark the current article as expirable
4082 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
4085 @kindex M b (Summary)
4086 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
4087 Set a bookmark in the current article
4088 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
4091 @kindex M B (Summary)
4092 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
4093 Remove the bookmark from the current article
4094 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
4097 @kindex M V c (Summary)
4098 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
4099 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
4100 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4103 @kindex M V u (Summary)
4104 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
4105 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
4106 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
4109 @kindex M V m (Summary)
4110 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
4111 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
4112 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
4113 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
4116 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
4117 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
4118 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
4119 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
4120 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
4121 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
4122 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
4123 The default is @code{t}.
4126 @node Setting Process Marks
4127 @subsection Setting Process Marks
4128 @cindex setting process marks
4135 @kindex M P p (Summary)
4136 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
4137 Mark the current article with the process mark
4138 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
4139 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
4143 @kindex M P u (Summary)
4144 @kindex M-# (Summary)
4145 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
4146 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
4149 @kindex M P U (Summary)
4150 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
4151 Remove the process mark from all articles
4152 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
4155 @kindex M P i (Summary)
4156 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
4157 Invert the list of process marked articles
4158 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
4161 @kindex M P R (Summary)
4162 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
4163 Mark articles by a regular expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
4166 @kindex M P r (Summary)
4167 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
4168 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
4171 @kindex M P t (Summary)
4172 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4173 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4174 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4177 @kindex M P T (Summary)
4178 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4179 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
4180 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4183 @kindex M P v (Summary)
4184 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
4185 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
4186 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
4189 @kindex M P s (Summary)
4190 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
4191 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4194 @kindex M P S (Summary)
4195 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
4196 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
4197 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
4200 @kindex M P a (Summary)
4201 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
4202 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
4205 @kindex M P b (Summary)
4206 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
4207 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
4208 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
4211 @kindex M P k (Summary)
4212 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
4213 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
4214 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
4217 @kindex M P y (Summary)
4218 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
4219 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
4220 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
4223 @kindex M P w (Summary)
4224 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
4225 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
4226 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
4235 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
4236 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
4237 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
4244 @kindex / / (Summary)
4245 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
4246 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
4247 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
4250 @kindex / a (Summary)
4251 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
4252 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
4253 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
4257 @kindex / u (Summary)
4259 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
4260 Limit the summary buffer to articles that are not marked as read
4261 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
4262 buffer to articles that are strictly unread. This means that ticked and
4263 dormant articles will also be excluded.
4266 @kindex / m (Summary)
4267 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
4268 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have not been marked
4269 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
4272 @kindex / t (Summary)
4273 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
4274 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles that are
4275 older than (or equal to) that number of days
4276 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}). If given a prefix, limit to
4277 articles that are younger than that number of days.
4280 @kindex / n (Summary)
4281 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
4282 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
4283 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
4284 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4287 @kindex / w (Summary)
4288 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
4289 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
4290 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
4294 @kindex / v (Summary)
4295 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
4296 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
4297 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
4301 @kindex M S (Summary)
4302 @kindex / E (Summary)
4303 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
4304 Display all expunged articles
4305 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
4308 @kindex / D (Summary)
4309 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
4310 Display all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
4313 @kindex / d (Summary)
4314 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
4315 Hide all dormant articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
4318 @kindex / c (Summary)
4319 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
4320 Hide all dormant articles that have no children
4321 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
4324 @kindex / C (Summary)
4325 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
4326 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
4327 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
4328 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
4336 @cindex article threading
4338 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
4339 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
4340 hierarchical fashion.
4343 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
4344 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
4348 @node Customizing Threading
4349 @subsection Customizing Threading
4350 @cindex customizing threading
4356 @item gnus-show-threads
4357 @vindex gnus-show-threads
4358 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
4359 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
4360 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
4361 slower and more awkward.
4363 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
4364 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
4365 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
4366 more old headers---headers to articles that are marked as read. If you
4367 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
4368 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
4369 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
4370 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
4371 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
4372 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
4373 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
4374 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
4376 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
4377 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
4378 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
4379 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
4380 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
4381 articles that belong in the same thread together. This will leave
4382 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
4383 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
4384 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
4385 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
4386 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
4387 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
4388 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
4389 @code{nil} by default.
4391 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4392 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
4393 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
4394 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
4395 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
4396 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
4397 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subjects lines. If
4398 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
4399 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
4400 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
4401 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
4403 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
4404 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
4405 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
4408 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4409 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
4410 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
4411 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
4412 simplification is used.
4414 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4415 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4416 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
4417 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
4419 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
4421 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
4427 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
4428 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
4429 "answer" "reference" "announce"
4430 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
4435 (mapconcat 'identity
4436 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
4438 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
4441 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
4444 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4445 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
4446 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
4447 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
4448 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
4449 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
4450 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process. The
4451 default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
4453 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4454 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4455 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
4456 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
4457 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
4458 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
4459 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever includes unrelated
4460 articles, but it's also means that people who have posted with broken
4461 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
4465 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4466 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
4467 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
4468 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
4470 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4471 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
4472 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
4475 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
4479 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
4480 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
4483 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
4484 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
4485 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
4486 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
4487 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
4488 read or killed the root in a previous session.
4490 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
4491 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
4492 There are four possible values:
4494 @cindex adopting articles
4499 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
4500 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
4501 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
4502 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
4505 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
4506 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
4507 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
4508 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
4509 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
4510 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
4511 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
4514 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
4515 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
4516 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
4520 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
4521 display them after one another.
4524 Don't gather loose threads.
4527 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4528 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
4529 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
4532 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
4533 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
4534 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
4535 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
4536 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
4537 threads are expunged.
4539 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
4540 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
4541 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
4544 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4545 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
4546 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
4547 this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subject change is ignored. If it
4548 is @code{nil}, which is the default, a change in the subject will result
4551 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
4552 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
4553 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
4556 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
4557 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
4558 Hook run before parsing any headers. The default value is
4559 @code{(gnus-decode-rfc1522)}, which means that QPized headers will be
4560 slightly decoded in a hackish way. This is likely to change in the
4561 future when Gnus becomes @sc{MIME}ified.
4566 @node Thread Commands
4567 @subsection Thread Commands
4568 @cindex thread commands
4574 @kindex T k (Summary)
4575 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
4576 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
4577 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
4578 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
4579 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
4584 @kindex T l (Summary)
4585 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
4586 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
4587 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
4588 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
4591 @kindex T i (Summary)
4592 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
4593 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
4594 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
4597 @kindex T # (Summary)
4598 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
4599 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
4600 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
4603 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
4604 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
4605 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
4606 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
4609 @kindex T T (Summary)
4610 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
4611 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
4614 @kindex T s (Summary)
4615 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
4616 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
4617 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
4620 @kindex T h (Summary)
4621 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
4622 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
4625 @kindex T S (Summary)
4626 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
4627 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
4630 @kindex T H (Summary)
4631 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
4632 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
4635 @kindex T t (Summary)
4636 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
4637 Re-thread the thread the current article is part of
4638 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
4639 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
4642 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
4643 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
4644 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
4645 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}.
4649 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
4650 understand the numeric prefix.
4655 @kindex T n (Summary)
4656 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
4657 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
4660 @kindex T p (Summary)
4661 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
4662 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
4665 @kindex T d (Summary)
4666 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
4667 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
4670 @kindex T u (Summary)
4671 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
4672 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
4675 @kindex T o (Summary)
4676 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
4677 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
4680 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
4681 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
4682 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
4683 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
4684 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
4685 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
4686 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If is
4687 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
4688 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
4689 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
4690 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
4691 that have subjects that are fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
4698 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
4699 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
4700 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
4701 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4702 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
4703 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4704 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
4705 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
4706 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which is a list of functions.
4707 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
4708 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
4709 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
4710 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
4711 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
4713 Each function takes two threads and return non-@code{nil} if the first
4714 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
4715 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread. If you use
4716 more than one function, the primary sort key should be the last function
4717 in the list. You should probably always include
4718 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
4719 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
4720 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
4721 ascending article order.
4723 If you would like to sort by score, then by subject, and finally by
4724 number, you could do something like:
4727 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4728 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
4729 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
4730 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
4733 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
4734 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
4735 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
4736 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
4737 which the articles arrived.
4739 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
4743 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
4745 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
4746 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
4749 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
4750 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
4751 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
4752 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
4755 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
4756 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
4757 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
4758 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
4759 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
4760 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
4761 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
4762 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
4763 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
4764 is uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
4765 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
4766 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
4767 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
4769 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
4773 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
4774 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
4775 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
4780 @node Asynchronous Fetching
4781 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
4782 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
4783 @cindex article pre-fetch
4786 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
4787 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
4788 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
4789 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
4790 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
4792 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
4793 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
4795 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
4796 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
4797 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
4798 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
4799 connection is blocked.
4801 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
4802 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
4803 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
4804 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
4806 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
4807 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
4808 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
4809 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
4812 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
4815 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
4816 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
4817 happen automatically.
4819 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
4820 You can control how many articles that are to be pre-fetched by setting
4821 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
4822 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
4823 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
4824 pre-fetch all the articles that it can without bound. If it is
4825 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be made.
4827 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
4828 @findex gnus-async-read-p
4829 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
4830 articles, for instance. Which articles to pre-fetch is controlled by
4831 the @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable. This function should
4832 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
4833 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
4834 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
4835 data structure as the only parameter.
4837 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles that are
4838 shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
4841 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
4842 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
4843 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
4844 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
4847 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
4850 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
4851 preferrably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
4852 It's also probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
4854 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
4855 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
4856 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
4857 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
4861 Remove articles when they are read.
4864 Remove articles when exiting the group.
4867 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
4869 @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
4870 If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
4871 from the next group.
4874 @node Article Caching
4875 @section Article Caching
4876 @cindex article caching
4879 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
4880 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
4881 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
4882 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
4883 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
4885 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
4887 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
4888 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
4889 @vindex gnus-use-cache
4890 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
4891 all articles that are ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
4892 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
4893 cache is flat or hierarchal is controlled by the
4894 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
4896 When re-select a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
4897 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
4898 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
4899 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
4900 as dormant, and don't worry.
4902 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
4904 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
4905 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
4906 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
4907 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
4908 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
4909 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
4910 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
4911 articles that are marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
4912 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
4913 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
4915 @findex gnus-jog-cache
4916 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
4917 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
4918 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, and store them in
4919 the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this command if 1)
4920 your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really, really slow
4921 and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk. Seriously.
4923 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
4924 It is likely that you do not want caching on some groups. For instance,
4925 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
4926 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
4927 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space. To limit the caching,
4928 you could set the @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to
4929 @samp{^nnml}, for instance. This variable is @code{nil} by
4932 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
4933 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
4934 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
4935 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
4936 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
4937 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
4938 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
4939 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
4940 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
4944 @node Persistent Articles
4945 @section Persistent Articles
4946 @cindex persistent articles
4948 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
4949 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
4950 useful in my opinion.
4952 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
4953 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
4954 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
4955 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
4956 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
4957 the expiry going on at the news server.
4959 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
4960 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
4961 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
4967 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
4968 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
4971 @kindex M-* (Summary)
4972 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
4973 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
4974 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
4978 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
4980 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
4981 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
4982 interested in persistent articles:
4985 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
4989 @node Article Backlog
4990 @section Article Backlog
4992 @cindex article backlog
4994 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
4995 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
4996 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
4997 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
4998 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
4999 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
5000 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
5001 increase memory usage some.
5003 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
5004 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
5005 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
5006 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
5007 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
5008 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
5009 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
5011 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
5014 @node Saving Articles
5015 @section Saving Articles
5016 @cindex saving articles
5018 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
5019 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
5020 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
5021 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
5022 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
5024 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
5025 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
5026 unwanted headers before saving the article.
5028 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
5029 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
5030 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
5031 deleted before saving.
5037 @kindex O o (Summary)
5039 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
5040 Save the current article using the default article saver
5041 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
5044 @kindex O m (Summary)
5045 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
5046 Save the current article in mail format
5047 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
5050 @kindex O r (Summary)
5051 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
5052 Save the current article in rmail format
5053 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
5056 @kindex O f (Summary)
5057 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
5058 Save the current article in plain file format
5059 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
5062 @kindex O F (Summary)
5063 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
5064 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
5065 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
5068 @kindex O b (Summary)
5069 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
5070 Save the current article body in plain file format
5071 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
5074 @kindex O h (Summary)
5075 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
5076 Save the current article in mh folder format
5077 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
5080 @kindex O v (Summary)
5081 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
5082 Save the current article in a VM folder
5083 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
5086 @kindex O p (Summary)
5087 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
5088 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
5089 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
5092 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
5093 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
5094 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
5095 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
5096 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
5097 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
5098 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
5099 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
5100 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
5101 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
5102 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
5103 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
5107 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
5108 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
5109 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the four ready-made
5110 functions below, or you can create your own.
5114 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5115 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
5116 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
5117 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5118 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
5119 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5120 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5122 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5123 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
5124 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
5125 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
5126 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5127 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
5129 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
5130 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
5131 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
5132 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5133 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
5134 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5135 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5137 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5138 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
5139 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
5140 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
5141 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
5143 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5144 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
5145 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
5146 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
5147 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
5150 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
5151 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
5152 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
5153 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
5154 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}. The former creates capitalized names, and
5155 the latter does not.
5157 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5158 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
5159 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
5160 reader to use this setting.
5163 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
5164 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
5165 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
5166 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
5169 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
5170 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
5171 available functions that generate names:
5175 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
5176 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
5177 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5179 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
5180 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
5181 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
5183 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
5184 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
5185 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5187 @item gnus-plain-save-name
5188 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
5189 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
5192 @vindex gnus-split-methods
5193 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
5194 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
5195 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
5196 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
5200 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
5201 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
5202 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
5203 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
5206 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
5207 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
5208 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
5209 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
5210 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
5211 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
5212 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
5213 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
5214 called returns a string or a list of strings.
5216 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
5217 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
5218 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
5219 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
5221 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
5222 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
5223 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
5226 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
5227 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
5228 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
5229 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
5230 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
5231 all the files in the toplevel directory
5232 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
5233 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
5234 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
5235 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
5237 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
5238 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
5239 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
5240 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
5241 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
5244 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
5248 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
5249 (setq gnus-default-article-save 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
5252 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
5253 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
5254 the toplevel directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
5255 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
5258 @node Decoding Articles
5259 @section Decoding Articles
5260 @cindex decoding articles
5262 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
5263 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
5266 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
5267 * Shared Articles:: Unshar articles.
5268 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
5269 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
5270 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
5273 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
5274 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
5275 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
5276 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
5277 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
5279 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
5280 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
5281 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
5283 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
5284 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
5285 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
5287 Subjects that are nonstandard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
5288 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
5289 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
5292 @node Uuencoded Articles
5293 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
5295 @cindex uuencoded articles
5300 @kindex X u (Summary)
5301 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
5302 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
5305 @kindex X U (Summary)
5306 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
5307 Uudecodes and saves the current series
5308 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5311 @kindex X v u (Summary)
5312 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
5313 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
5316 @kindex X v U (Summary)
5317 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
5318 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
5319 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
5322 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
5323 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
5324 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
5325 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
5326 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
5328 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
5329 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
5330 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
5331 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
5334 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
5335 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
5336 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
5337 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
5338 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
5339 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
5343 @node Shared Articles
5344 @subsection Shared Articles
5346 @cindex shared articles
5351 @kindex X s (Summary)
5352 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
5353 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
5356 @kindex X S (Summary)
5357 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
5358 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
5361 @kindex X v s (Summary)
5362 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
5363 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
5366 @kindex X v S (Summary)
5367 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
5368 Unshars, views and saves the current series
5369 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
5373 @node PostScript Files
5374 @subsection PostScript Files
5380 @kindex X p (Summary)
5381 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
5382 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
5385 @kindex X P (Summary)
5386 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
5387 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
5388 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
5391 @kindex X v p (Summary)
5392 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
5393 View the current PostScript series
5394 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
5397 @kindex X v P (Summary)
5398 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
5399 View and save the current PostScript series
5400 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
5404 @node Decoding Variables
5405 @subsection Decoding Variables
5407 Adjective, not verb.
5410 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
5411 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
5412 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
5416 @node Rule Variables
5417 @subsubsection Rule Variables
5418 @cindex rule variables
5420 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
5421 variables are on the form
5424 (list '(regexp1 command2)
5431 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5432 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5434 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
5435 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
5438 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
5439 (list '(\"\\\\.au$\" \"sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio\")))
5442 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5443 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
5444 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
5445 user and default view rules.
5447 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5448 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
5449 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
5454 @node Other Decode Variables
5455 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
5458 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5460 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
5461 All functions in this list will be called right each file has been
5462 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
5463 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
5464 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
5468 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
5469 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
5472 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
5473 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
5474 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
5477 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5478 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
5479 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
5480 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
5481 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
5484 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5485 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
5486 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
5488 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5489 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
5490 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
5491 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
5492 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
5495 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5496 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
5497 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
5499 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5500 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
5501 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
5502 looking for files to display.
5504 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
5505 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
5506 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
5509 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5510 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
5511 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
5514 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5515 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
5516 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
5519 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5520 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
5521 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
5524 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5525 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
5526 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark articles that were
5527 unsuccessfully decoded as unread.
5529 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5530 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
5531 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
5532 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
5534 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5535 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
5537 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
5538 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
5539 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
5540 @code{metamail} for viewing.
5542 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5543 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
5544 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
5545 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
5546 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
5547 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC1153---no easy way
5548 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
5549 simply dropped them.
5554 @node Uuencoding and Posting
5555 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
5559 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5560 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
5561 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
5562 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
5563 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
5564 for you when you post the article.
5566 @item gnus-uu-post-length
5567 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
5568 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
5569 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
5571 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
5572 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
5573 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
5574 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen are able
5575 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
5576 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
5577 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
5579 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5580 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
5581 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
5582 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
5583 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
5584 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
5585 Default is @code{t}.
5591 @subsection Viewing Files
5592 @cindex viewing files
5593 @cindex pseudo-articles
5595 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
5596 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
5597 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
5598 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
5599 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
5600 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
5601 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
5603 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
5604 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
5605 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
5606 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
5608 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
5609 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
5610 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
5612 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
5613 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
5614 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
5615 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
5616 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
5618 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
5619 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
5620 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
5621 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
5622 a list of parameters to that command.
5624 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
5625 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
5626 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
5628 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
5629 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
5630 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
5633 @node Article Treatment
5634 @section Article Treatment
5636 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
5637 object of newsreaders are to actually, like, read what people have
5638 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
5639 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
5640 these articles easier.
5643 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
5644 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look niced.
5645 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
5646 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
5647 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
5648 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
5649 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
5653 @node Article Highlighting
5654 @subsection Article Highlighting
5657 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
5658 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
5663 @kindex W H a (Summary)
5664 @findex gnus-article-highlight
5665 Highlight the current article (@code{gnus-article-highlight}).
5668 @kindex W H h (Summary)
5669 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
5670 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
5671 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
5672 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
5673 variable, which is a list where each element has the form @var{(regexp
5674 name content)}. @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
5675 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name and
5676 @var{content} is the face for highlighting the header value. The first
5677 match made will be used. Note that @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^}
5678 prepended---Gnus will add one.
5681 @kindex W H c (Summary)
5682 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
5683 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
5685 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
5688 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5690 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
5691 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
5692 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
5694 @item gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5695 @vindex gnus-cite-prefix-regexp
5696 Regexp matching the longest possible citation prefix on a line.
5698 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
5699 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
5700 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
5702 @item gnus-cite-face-list
5703 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
5704 List of faces used for highlighting citations. When there are citations
5705 from multiple articles in the same message, Gnus will try to give each
5706 citation from each article its own face. This should make it easier to
5709 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
5710 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
5711 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
5713 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5714 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
5715 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
5717 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5718 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
5719 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
5720 that it's a citation.
5722 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5723 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
5724 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
5726 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5727 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
5728 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
5730 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
5731 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
5732 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
5733 cited text belonging to the attribution.
5739 @kindex W H s (Summary)
5740 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
5741 @vindex gnus-signature-face
5742 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
5743 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
5744 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
5745 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
5746 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
5752 @node Article Fontisizing
5753 @subsection Article Fontisizing
5755 @cindex article emphasis
5757 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
5758 @kindex W e (Summary)
5759 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
5760 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*}. Gnus can make this look nicer by
5761 running the article through the @kbd{W e}
5762 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
5764 @vindex gnus-article-emphasis
5765 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
5766 @code{gnus-article-emphasis} variable. This is an alist where the first
5767 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
5768 that says what regular expression grouping used to find the entire
5769 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
5770 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
5771 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
5775 (setq gnus-article-emphasis
5776 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
5777 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
5780 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
5781 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
5782 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
5783 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
5784 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
5785 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
5786 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
5787 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
5788 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
5789 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
5790 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
5791 @code{gnus-emphasis-undeline-bold}, and
5792 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
5794 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
5795 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
5796 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
5800 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
5804 @node Article Hiding
5805 @subsection Article Hiding
5806 @cindex article hiding
5808 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
5809 too much cruft in most articles.
5814 @kindex W W a (Summary)
5815 @findex gnus-article-hide
5816 Do maximum hiding on the summary buffer (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}).
5819 @kindex W W h (Summary)
5820 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
5821 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
5825 @kindex W W b (Summary)
5826 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
5827 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
5828 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
5831 @kindex W W s (Summary)
5832 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
5833 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
5837 @kindex W W p (Summary)
5838 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
5839 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}).
5842 @kindex W W P (Summary)
5843 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
5844 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) gruft
5845 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
5848 @kindex W W c (Summary)
5849 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
5850 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
5851 customizing the hiding:
5855 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
5856 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
5857 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
5858 50), hide the cited text.
5860 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
5861 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
5862 The cited text must be have at least this length (default 10) before it
5865 @item gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
5866 @vindex gnus-cited-text-button-line-format
5867 Gnus adds buttons show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
5868 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
5869 by this format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
5874 Start point of the hidden text.
5876 End point of the hidden text.
5878 Length of the hidden text.
5881 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
5882 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
5883 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave shown.
5888 @kindex W W C (Summary)
5889 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
5890 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
5891 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
5892 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
5893 in @code{gnus-article-display-hook} (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
5897 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
5898 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
5899 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
5901 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
5902 citation customization.
5905 @node Article Washing
5906 @subsection Article Washing
5908 @cindex article washing
5910 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
5911 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
5913 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
5914 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
5920 @kindex W l (Summary)
5921 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
5922 Remove page breaks from the current article
5923 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}).
5926 @kindex W r (Summary)
5927 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
5928 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
5929 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
5932 @kindex W t (Summary)
5933 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
5934 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
5935 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
5938 @kindex W v (Summary)
5939 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
5940 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
5941 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
5944 @kindex W m (Summary)
5945 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-mime
5946 Toggle whether to run the article through @sc{mime} before displaying
5947 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-mime}).
5950 @kindex W o (Summary)
5951 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
5952 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
5955 @kindex W w (Summary)
5956 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
5957 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}). If you use this
5958 function in @code{gnus-article-display-hook}, it should be run fairly
5959 late and certainly after any highlighting.
5961 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
5965 @kindex W c (Summary)
5966 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
5967 Remove CR (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
5970 @kindex W q (Summary)
5971 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
5972 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
5975 @kindex W f (Summary)
5977 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
5978 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
5979 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
5980 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
5981 Look for and display any X-Face headers
5982 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
5983 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
5984 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
5985 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
5986 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
5987 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
5988 The default action under Emacs is to fork off an @code{xv} to view the
5989 face; under XEmacs the default action is to display the face before the
5990 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
5991 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
5992 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
5993 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and friends.) If you
5994 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
5998 @kindex W b (Summary)
5999 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
6000 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
6003 @kindex W B (Summary)
6004 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
6005 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
6006 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
6009 @kindex W E l (Summary)
6010 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
6011 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
6012 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
6015 @kindex W E m (Summary)
6016 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
6017 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
6018 lines with a single empty line.
6019 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
6022 @kindex W E t (Summary)
6023 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
6024 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
6025 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
6028 @kindex W E a (Summary)
6029 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
6030 Do all the three commands above
6031 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
6034 @kindex W E s (Summary)
6035 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
6036 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
6037 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
6042 @node Article Buttons
6043 @subsection Article Buttons
6046 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
6047 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
6048 with the minimum of fuzz.
6050 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
6051 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
6052 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
6057 @item gnus-button-alist
6058 @vindex gnus-button-alist
6059 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
6062 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6068 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
6069 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that match embedded URLs:
6070 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
6073 Gnus has to know which parts of the match is to be highlighted. This is
6074 a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp that is to be
6075 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
6078 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
6079 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
6080 avoid false matches.
6083 This function will be called when you click on this button.
6086 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
6087 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
6091 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
6094 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
6097 @item gnus-header-button-alist
6098 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
6099 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
6100 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
6101 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
6104 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
6107 @var{header} is a regular expression.
6109 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
6110 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
6111 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
6112 default values of the variables above.
6114 @item gnus-article-button-face
6115 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
6116 Face used on buttons.
6118 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
6119 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
6120 Face is used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
6126 @subsection Article Date
6128 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
6129 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
6130 when the article was sent.
6135 @kindex W T u (Summary)
6136 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
6137 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
6138 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
6141 @kindex W T l (Summary)
6142 @findex gnus-article-date-local
6143 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
6146 @kindex W T s (Summary)
6147 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
6148 @findex gnus-article-date-user
6149 @findex format-time-string
6150 Display the date using a user-defined format
6151 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
6152 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
6153 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
6154 for a list possible format specs.
6157 @kindex W T e (Summary)
6158 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
6159 Say how much time has (e)lapsed between the article was posted and now
6160 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}).
6163 @kindex W T o (Summary)
6164 @findex gnus-article-date-original
6165 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
6166 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and is
6167 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
6168 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
6169 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
6174 @node Article Signature
6175 @subsection Article Signature
6177 @cindex article signature
6179 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
6180 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
6181 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
6182 that says what is to be considered a signature is
6183 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
6184 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
6185 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
6186 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
6187 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
6190 (setq gnus-signature-separator
6191 '("^-- $" ; The standard
6192 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
6193 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
6194 ; line of dashes. Shame!
6195 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
6196 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
6197 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
6200 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
6203 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
6204 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
6209 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
6212 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
6215 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
6216 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
6218 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
6219 in question is not a signature.
6222 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
6226 @node Article Commands
6227 @section Article Commands
6234 @kindex A P (Summary)
6235 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
6236 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
6237 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
6238 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
6239 run just before printing the buffer.
6244 @node Summary Sorting
6245 @section Summary Sorting
6246 @cindex summary sorting
6248 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
6249 can't really see why you'd want that.
6254 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
6255 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
6256 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
6259 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
6260 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
6261 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
6264 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
6265 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
6266 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
6269 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
6270 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
6271 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
6274 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
6275 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
6276 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
6279 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
6280 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
6281 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
6284 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
6285 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
6286 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
6287 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
6288 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
6292 @node Finding the Parent
6293 @section Finding the Parent
6294 @cindex parent articles
6295 @cindex referring articles
6297 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
6299 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
6300 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
6301 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
6302 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
6303 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
6304 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
6305 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
6306 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
6308 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
6309 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
6310 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
6311 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
6312 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
6315 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
6316 @kindex A R (Summary)
6317 You can have Gnus fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References}
6318 header of the article by pushing @kbd{A R}
6319 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
6321 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
6322 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
6324 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
6325 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
6326 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
6327 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
6328 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
6329 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
6330 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
6332 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
6333 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
6334 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
6335 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
6336 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the same
6337 as the one that keeps the spool you are reading from updated, but that's
6338 not really necessary.
6340 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
6341 not do a particularly excellent job of it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
6342 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
6343 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
6344 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
6345 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
6348 @node Alternative Approaches
6349 @section Alternative Approaches
6351 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
6352 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
6355 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
6356 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
6361 @subsection Pick and Read
6362 @cindex pick and read
6364 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{nn}) use a two-phased
6365 reading interface. The user first marks the articles she wants to read
6366 from a summary buffer. Then she starts reading the articles with just
6367 an article buffer displayed.
6369 @findex gnus-pick-mode
6370 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
6371 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
6372 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
6373 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
6374 it makes one additional command for switching to the summary buffer
6377 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
6382 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
6383 Pick the article on the current line
6384 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}). If given a numerical prefix,
6385 go to the article on that line and pick that article. (The line number
6386 is normally displayed on the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
6389 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
6390 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
6391 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
6392 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
6396 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
6397 Unpick the article (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
6401 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
6402 Unpick all articles (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
6406 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6407 Pick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6411 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6412 Unpick the thread (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6416 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
6417 Pick the region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
6421 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-region
6422 Unpick the region (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-region}).
6426 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
6427 Pick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
6431 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
6432 Unpick articles that match a regexp (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
6436 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
6437 Pick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
6441 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-buffer
6442 Unpick the buffer (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-buffer}).
6446 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
6447 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
6448 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
6449 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
6450 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
6451 will still be visible when you are reading.
6455 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
6458 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
6461 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
6462 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
6464 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
6465 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
6466 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
6468 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
6469 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different than the
6470 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
6471 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
6472 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
6473 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
6474 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
6478 @subsection Binary Groups
6479 @cindex binary groups
6481 @findex gnus-binary-mode
6482 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
6483 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
6484 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
6485 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
6486 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
6487 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
6490 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
6491 In fact, the only way to see the actual articles if you have turned this
6492 mode on is the @kbd{g} command (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
6494 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
6495 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
6499 @section Tree Display
6502 @vindex gnus-use-trees
6503 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
6504 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
6505 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
6508 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
6511 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
6512 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
6513 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
6515 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6516 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
6517 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers. The default
6518 is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}. For a list of legal specs, @pxref{Summary
6521 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
6522 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
6523 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
6524 default is @code{modeline}.
6526 @item gnus-tree-line-format
6527 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
6528 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
6529 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
6530 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
6531 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
6532 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
6538 The name of the poster.
6540 The @code{From} header.
6542 The number of the article.
6544 The opening bracket.
6546 The closing bracket.
6551 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
6553 Variables related to the display are:
6556 @item gnus-tree-brackets
6557 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
6558 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
6559 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @var{((real-open . real-close)
6560 (sparse-open . sparse-close) (dummy-open . dummy-close))}, and the
6561 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}))}.
6563 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6564 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
6565 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
6566 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
6570 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
6571 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
6572 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
6573 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
6574 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
6575 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}.
6577 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
6578 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
6579 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
6580 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
6581 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
6582 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
6583 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
6587 Here's and example from a horizontal tree buffer:
6590 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
6600 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
6604 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
6605 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
6607 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
6609 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
6615 @node Mail Group Commands
6616 @section Mail Group Commands
6617 @cindex mail group commands
6619 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
6620 illegal in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
6622 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
6623 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6628 @kindex B e (Summary)
6629 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
6630 Expire all expirable articles in the group
6631 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}).
6634 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
6635 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
6636 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
6637 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
6638 articles that are eligible for expiry in the current group will
6639 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
6642 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
6643 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
6644 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
6645 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
6646 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
6649 @kindex B m (Summary)
6651 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
6652 Move the article from one mail group to another
6653 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6656 @kindex B c (Summary)
6658 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
6659 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
6660 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}).
6663 @kindex B C (Summary)
6664 @cindex crosspost mail
6665 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
6666 Crosspost the current article to some other group
6667 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
6668 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
6669 be properly updated.
6672 @kindex B i (Summary)
6673 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
6674 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
6675 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
6676 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
6679 @kindex B r (Summary)
6680 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
6681 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}).
6682 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
6683 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
6684 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
6688 @kindex B w (Summary)
6690 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
6691 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
6692 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
6693 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
6694 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}).
6697 @kindex B q (Summary)
6698 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
6699 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
6700 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
6701 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
6704 @kindex B p (Summary)
6705 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
6706 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
6707 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
6708 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
6709 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
6710 article from your news server (or rather, from
6711 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
6712 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
6713 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
6714 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
6715 just not have arrived yet.
6719 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
6720 @cindex moving articles
6721 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
6722 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
6723 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
6724 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
6725 suggestions you find reasonable.
6728 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
6729 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
6730 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
6731 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
6735 @node Various Summary Stuff
6736 @section Various Summary Stuff
6739 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
6740 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
6741 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
6742 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
6746 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
6747 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
6748 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
6750 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
6751 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
6752 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
6753 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
6754 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
6755 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
6758 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
6759 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
6760 Is is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
6761 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
6762 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
6764 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
6765 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
6766 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
6767 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
6768 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
6769 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
6770 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
6771 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
6772 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
6773 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
6778 @node Summary Group Information
6779 @subsection Summary Group Information
6784 @kindex H f (Summary)
6785 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
6786 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
6787 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
6788 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
6789 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
6790 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
6791 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
6792 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} probably will be used for
6796 @kindex H d (Summary)
6797 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
6798 Give a brief description of the current group
6799 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
6800 rereading the description from the server.
6803 @kindex H h (Summary)
6804 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
6805 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
6806 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
6809 @kindex H i (Summary)
6810 @findex gnus-info-find-node
6811 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
6815 @node Searching for Articles
6816 @subsection Searching for Articles
6821 @kindex M-s (Summary)
6822 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
6823 Search through all subsequent articles for a regexp
6824 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
6827 @kindex M-r (Summary)
6828 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
6829 Search through all previous articles for a regexp
6830 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
6834 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
6835 This command will prompt you for a header field, a regular expression to
6836 match on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
6837 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}).
6840 @kindex M-& (Summary)
6841 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
6842 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
6843 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
6846 @node Summary Generation Commands
6847 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
6852 @kindex Y g (Summary)
6853 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
6854 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
6857 @kindex Y c (Summary)
6858 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
6859 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
6860 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
6865 @node Really Various Summary Commands
6866 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
6871 @kindex C-d (Summary)
6872 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
6873 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
6874 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
6875 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
6876 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
6877 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
6878 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages on
6879 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
6883 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
6884 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
6885 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
6886 several documents into one biiig group
6887 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
6888 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
6889 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
6890 command understands the process/prefix convention
6891 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
6894 @kindex C-t (Summary)
6895 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
6896 Toggle truncation of summary lines
6897 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
6898 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
6899 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
6903 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
6904 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
6905 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
6910 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
6911 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
6912 @cindex summary exit
6913 @cindex exiting groups
6915 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
6916 group and return you to the group buffer.
6922 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
6924 @findex gnus-summary-exit
6925 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
6926 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
6927 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
6928 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
6929 called before doing much of the exiting, and calls
6930 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
6931 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exiting
6932 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
6933 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
6937 @kindex Z E (Summary)
6939 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
6940 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
6941 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
6945 @kindex Z c (Summary)
6947 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
6948 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
6949 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
6952 @kindex Z C (Summary)
6953 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
6954 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
6955 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
6958 @kindex Z n (Summary)
6959 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
6960 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
6961 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
6964 @kindex Z R (Summary)
6965 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
6966 Exit this group, and then enter it again
6967 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
6968 all articles, both read and unread.
6972 @kindex Z G (Summary)
6973 @kindex M-g (Summary)
6974 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
6975 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
6976 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
6977 articles, both read and unread.
6980 @kindex Z N (Summary)
6981 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
6982 Exit the group and go to the next group
6983 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
6986 @kindex Z P (Summary)
6987 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
6988 Exit the group and go to the previous group
6989 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
6992 @kindex Z s (Summary)
6993 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
6994 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
6995 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
6996 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
6997 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
7000 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
7001 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current
7004 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
7005 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
7006 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
7007 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
7008 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
7009 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
7010 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
7011 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
7012 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
7013 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
7014 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
7015 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
7017 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
7019 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
7020 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
7021 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
7022 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
7023 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
7024 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
7025 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
7026 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
7027 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
7030 @node Crosspost Handling
7031 @section Crosspost Handling
7035 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
7036 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
7037 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
7038 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
7039 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
7040 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
7043 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
7044 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
7045 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
7046 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
7047 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
7049 @cindex cross-posting
7052 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
7053 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
7054 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
7055 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
7056 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
7057 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
7058 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
7059 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
7060 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
7061 the cross reference mechanism.
7063 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
7064 @cindex overview.fmt
7065 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
7066 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
7067 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
7068 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
7069 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
7070 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
7073 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
7074 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
7075 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
7080 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
7083 @node Duplicate Suppression
7084 @section Duplicate Suppression
7086 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
7087 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
7088 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
7089 approach may not work satisfactorily for some users for various
7094 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
7095 is evil and not very common.
7098 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
7099 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
7102 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
7103 different @sc{nntp} servers.
7106 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
7109 I'm sure there are other situations that @code{Xref} handling fails as
7110 well, but these four are the most common situations.
7112 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
7113 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
7114 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
7115 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
7116 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
7117 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
7118 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
7121 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
7122 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
7123 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
7124 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
7125 article as read the the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
7129 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
7130 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
7131 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
7133 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
7134 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
7135 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
7136 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
7137 However, this means that only duplicate articles that is read in a
7138 single Gnus session are suppressed.
7140 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
7141 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
7142 This variables says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
7143 suppression list. The default is 10000.
7145 @item gnus-duplicate-file
7146 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
7147 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list. The
7148 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
7151 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
7152 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
7153 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
7154 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
7155 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
7156 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
7157 to you to figure out, I think.
7160 @node The Article Buffer
7161 @chapter The Article Buffer
7162 @cindex article buffer
7164 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
7165 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
7166 tell Gnus otherwise.
7169 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
7170 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
7171 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
7172 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
7173 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
7177 @node Hiding Headers
7178 @section Hiding Headers
7179 @cindex hiding headers
7180 @cindex deleting headers
7182 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
7183 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
7185 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
7186 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
7187 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
7188 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
7189 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
7190 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
7191 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
7192 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
7193 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
7195 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
7199 @item gnus-visible-headers
7200 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
7201 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
7202 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
7203 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
7205 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
7206 the article and the subject, you'd say:
7209 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
7212 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers that are to
7215 @item gnus-ignored-headers
7216 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
7217 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
7218 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
7219 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
7220 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
7222 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
7223 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
7226 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
7229 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers that are to
7232 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
7233 variable will have no effect.
7237 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
7238 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
7239 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
7240 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
7241 the headers are to be displayed.
7243 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
7244 and then the subject, you might say something like:
7247 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
7250 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
7251 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers that
7252 are listed in this variable.
7254 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7255 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7256 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
7257 You can hide further boring headers by entering
7258 @code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers} into
7259 @code{gnus-article-display-hook}. What this function does depends on
7260 the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a list, but this
7261 list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is lists various
7262 @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove from sight.
7264 These conditions are:
7267 Remove all empty headers.
7269 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
7272 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
7273 @code{Newsgroups} header.
7275 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
7278 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
7282 To include the four first elements, you could say something like;
7285 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
7286 '(empty newsgroups followup-to reply-to))
7289 This is also the default value for this variable.
7293 @section Using @sc{mime}
7296 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
7297 while people stand around yawning.
7299 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
7300 while all newsreaders die of fear.
7302 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
7303 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
7304 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
7306 @vindex gnus-show-mime
7307 @vindex gnus-show-mime-method
7308 @vindex gnus-strict-mime
7309 @findex metamail-buffer
7310 Gnus handles @sc{mime} by pushing the articles through
7311 @code{gnus-show-mime-method}, which is @code{metamail-buffer} by
7312 default. Set @code{gnus-show-mime} to @code{t} if you want to use
7313 @sc{mime} all the time. However, if @code{gnus-strict-mime} is
7314 non-@code{nil}, the @sc{mime} method will only be used if there are
7315 @sc{mime} headers in the article. If you have @code{gnus-show-mime}
7316 set, then you'll see some unfortunate display glitches in the article
7317 buffer. These can't be avoided.
7319 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the summary
7320 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
7321 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
7322 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
7323 comes streaming out out your speakers, and you can't find the volume
7324 button, because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you,
7325 and you try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the
7326 program to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly
7327 decides to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
7329 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
7332 @node Customizing Articles
7333 @section Customizing Articles
7334 @cindex article customization
7336 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7337 The @code{gnus-article-display-hook} is called after the article has
7338 been inserted into the article buffer. It is meant to handle all
7339 treatment of the article before it is displayed.
7341 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7342 By default this hook just contains @code{gnus-article-hide-headers},
7343 @code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}, and
7344 @code{gnus-article-maybe-highlight}, but there are thousands, nay
7345 millions, of functions you can put in this hook. For an overview of
7346 functions @pxref{Article Highlighting}, @pxref{Article Hiding},
7347 @pxref{Article Washing}, @pxref{Article Buttons} and @pxref{Article
7348 Date}. Note that the order of functions in this hook might affect
7349 things, so you may have to fiddle a bit to get the desired results.
7351 You can, of course, write your own functions. The functions are called
7352 from the article buffer, and you can do anything you like, pretty much.
7353 There is no information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can
7354 change everything. However, you shouldn't delete any headers. Instead
7355 make them invisible if you want to make them go away.
7358 @node Article Keymap
7359 @section Article Keymap
7361 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
7362 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
7363 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
7364 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
7367 A few additional keystrokes are available:
7372 @kindex SPACE (Article)
7373 @findex gnus-article-next-page
7374 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
7377 @kindex DEL (Article)
7378 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
7379 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
7382 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
7383 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
7384 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
7385 @kbd{r}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
7386 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
7389 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
7390 @findex gnus-article-mail
7391 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
7392 given a prefix, include the mail.
7396 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
7397 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
7398 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
7402 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
7403 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
7404 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
7407 @kindex TAB (Article)
7408 @findex gnus-article-next-button
7409 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}. This
7410 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
7413 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
7414 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
7415 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}.
7421 @section Misc Article
7425 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
7426 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
7427 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
7428 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
7431 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
7432 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
7433 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
7434 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
7435 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
7436 the contents of the article buffer.
7438 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
7439 @item gnus-article-display-hook
7440 This hook is called as the last thing when displaying an article, and is
7441 intended for modifying the contents of the buffer, doing highlights,
7442 hiding headers, and the like.
7444 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
7445 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
7446 Hook called in article mode buffers.
7448 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7449 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
7450 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
7451 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
7453 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
7454 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
7455 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
7456 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. It accepts the same
7457 format specifications as that variable, with one extension:
7461 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
7462 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
7466 @vindex gnus-break-pages
7468 @item gnus-break-pages
7469 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
7470 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
7471 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
7472 paging will not be done.
7474 @item gnus-page-delimiter
7475 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
7476 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
7481 @node Composing Messages
7482 @chapter Composing Messages
7487 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
7488 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
7489 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the article
7490 by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The Message
7491 Manual}. If you are in a foreign news group, and you wish to post the
7492 article using the foreign server, you can give a prefix to @kbd{C-c C-c}
7493 to make Gnus try to post using the foreign server.
7496 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
7497 * Post:: Posting and following up.
7498 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
7499 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
7500 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
7501 @c * Posting Styles:: An easier way to configure some key elements.
7502 @c * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
7503 @c * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
7506 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
7507 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
7513 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
7516 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
7517 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
7518 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
7519 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
7521 @item gnus-add-to-list
7522 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
7523 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
7524 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
7532 Variables for composing news articles:
7535 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7536 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-file
7537 Gnus will keep a @code{Message-ID} history file of all the mails it has
7538 sent. If it discovers that it has already sent a mail, it will ask the
7539 user whether to re-send the mail. (This is primarily useful when
7540 dealing with @sc{soup} packets and the like where one is apt to sent the
7541 same packet multiple times.) This variable says what the name of this
7542 history file is. It is @file{~/News/Sent-Message-IDs} by default. Set
7543 this variable to @code{nil} if you don't want Gnus to keep a history
7546 @item gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7547 @vindex gnus-sent-message-ids-length
7548 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the history
7549 file. It is 1000 by default.
7554 @node Posting Server
7555 @section Posting Server
7557 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
7558 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
7560 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
7562 @vindex gnus-post-method
7564 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will use the same native
7565 server. However. If your native server doesn't allow posting, just
7566 reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
7567 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
7568 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
7571 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
7574 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
7575 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
7576 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
7577 the ``current'' server for posting.
7579 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
7580 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
7582 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
7583 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
7588 @section Mail and Post
7590 Here's a list of variables that are relevant to both mailing and
7594 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
7595 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
7596 @cindex mailing lists
7598 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists that are
7599 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
7600 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
7601 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
7602 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
7603 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that match the groups that
7604 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
7605 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
7606 still a pain, though.
7610 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
7611 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
7612 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
7615 @findex ispell-message
7617 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
7621 @node Archived Messages
7622 @section Archived Messages
7623 @cindex archived messages
7624 @cindex sent messages
7626 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
7627 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
7628 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
7629 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
7632 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
7633 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
7634 use to store sent messages. The default is:
7638 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive/"))
7641 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
7642 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likeable select method
7643 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
7644 directory chosen, you could say something like:
7647 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
7648 '(nnfolder "archive"
7649 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
7650 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
7651 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
7654 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
7656 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
7657 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
7658 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
7660 This variable can be:
7664 Messages will be saved in that group.
7665 @item a list of strings
7666 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
7667 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
7668 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
7670 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
7675 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
7677 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
7680 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
7682 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
7685 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
7687 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7688 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
7689 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
7690 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
7695 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7696 '((if (message-news-p)
7701 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
7702 messages in one file per month:
7705 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
7706 '((if (message-news-p)
7708 (concat "mail." (format-time-string
7709 "%Y-%m" (current-time))))))
7712 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
7713 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
7714 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
7715 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
7716 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
7717 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
7718 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
7719 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
7720 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
7721 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
7723 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus also a
7724 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
7725 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
7726 this will disable archiving.
7728 XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
7729 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.
7732 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
7733 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
7734 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
7735 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
7736 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
7739 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
7740 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
7741 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
7744 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
7745 but the latter is the preferred method.
7749 @c @node Posting Styles
7750 @c @section Posting Styles
7751 @c @cindex posting styles
7754 @c All them variables, they make my head swim.
7756 @c So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
7757 @c on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
7758 @c and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
7761 @c @vindex gnus-posting-styles
7762 @c One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
7763 @c variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
7764 @c came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
7765 @c a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
7770 @c (signature . "Peace and happiness")
7771 @c (organization . "What me?"))
7773 @c (signature . "Death to everybody"))
7774 @c ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
7775 @c (organization . "Emacs is it")))
7778 @c As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
7779 @c @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
7780 @c ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
7781 @c over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
7782 @c applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
7783 @c the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
7784 @c @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
7785 @c signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
7787 @c The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
7788 @c string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
7789 @c If it's a function symbol, that function will be called with no
7790 @c arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the variable will be
7791 @c referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be @code{eval}ed. In
7792 @c any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value, then the style is said
7795 @c Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
7796 @c attribute consists of a @var{(name . value)} pair. The attribute name
7797 @c can be one of @code{signature}, @code{organization} or @code{from}. The
7798 @c attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
7799 @c a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
7802 @c The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function (the
7803 @c return value will be used), a variable (its value will be used) or a
7804 @c list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value will be used).
7806 @c So here's a new example:
7809 @c (setq gnus-posting-styles
7811 @c (signature . "~/.signature")
7812 @c (from . "user@@foo (user)")
7813 @c ("X-Home-Page" . (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
7814 @c (organization . "People's Front Against MWM"))
7816 @c (signature . my-funny-signature-randomizer))
7817 @c ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
7818 @c (signature . my-quote-randomizer))
7819 @c (posting-from-work-p
7820 @c (signature . "~/.work-signature")
7821 @c (from . "user@@bar.foo (user)")
7822 @c (organization . "Important Work, Inc"))
7824 @c (signature . "~/.mail-signature"))))
7831 @c If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
7832 @c you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
7833 @c craazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save the
7834 @c message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some other
7835 @c day, and send it when you feel its finished.
7837 @c Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
7838 @c some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
7839 @c automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
7840 @c If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
7841 @c article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
7845 @c @vindex gnus-draft-group-directory
7846 @c The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
7847 @c @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
7848 @c @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{gnus-draft-group-directory}
7849 @c controls both the name of the group and the location---the leaf element
7850 @c in the path will be used as the name of the group. What makes this
7851 @c group special is that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any
7852 @c articles as read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
7854 @c If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
7857 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
7858 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
7859 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
7860 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
7861 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
7862 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
7863 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
7864 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
7865 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
7866 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
7867 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
7868 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
7869 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
7870 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
7872 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
7873 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
7874 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
7876 @c @findex gnus-summary-send-draft
7877 @c @kindex S D c (Summary)
7878 @c When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
7879 @c draft group and push @kbd{S D c} (@code{gnus-summary-send-draft}) to do
7880 @c that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
7882 @c Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
7885 @c @findex gnus-summary-send-all-drafts
7886 @c If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
7887 @c doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{S D a} command
7888 @c (@code{gnus-summary-send-all-drafts}). This command understands the
7889 @c process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
7892 @c @node Rejected Articles
7893 @c @section Rejected Articles
7894 @c @cindex rejected articles
7896 @c Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
7897 @c doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
7898 @c @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
7899 @c Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
7901 @c These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
7902 @c (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
7903 @c fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
7904 @c you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
7905 @c articles until some later time when the server feels better.
7907 @c The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
7908 @c (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
7909 @c typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
7912 @node Select Methods
7913 @chapter Select Methods
7914 @cindex foreign groups
7915 @cindex select methods
7917 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group that is not read by the usual (or
7918 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
7919 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
7920 personal mail group.
7922 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
7923 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
7924 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
7925 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
7926 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
7927 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
7929 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
7930 we do just that (@pxref{The Server Buffer}).
7932 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
7935 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
7936 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
7937 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
7938 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
7939 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
7941 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
7944 * The Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
7945 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
7946 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
7947 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
7948 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
7952 @node The Server Buffer
7953 @section The Server Buffer
7955 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
7956 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
7957 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
7958 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
7959 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
7960 backend represents a virtual server.
7962 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
7963 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
7964 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
7965 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
7967 These select methods specifications can sometimes become quite
7968 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
7969 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
7970 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
7971 Anyways, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
7972 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
7973 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
7975 To enter the server buffer, user the @kbd{^}
7976 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
7979 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
7980 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
7981 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
7982 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
7983 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
7984 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
7985 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
7988 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
7989 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
7992 @node Server Buffer Format
7993 @subsection Server Buffer Format
7994 @cindex server buffer format
7996 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
7997 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
7998 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
7999 variable, with some simple extensions:
8004 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
8007 The name of this server.
8010 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
8013 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
8016 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
8017 The mode line can also be customized by using the
8018 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable. The following specs are
8029 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
8032 @node Server Commands
8033 @subsection Server Commands
8034 @cindex server commands
8040 @findex gnus-server-add-server
8041 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
8045 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
8046 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
8049 @kindex SPACE (Server)
8050 @findex gnus-server-read-server
8051 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
8055 @findex gnus-server-exit
8056 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
8060 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
8061 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
8065 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
8066 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
8070 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
8071 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
8075 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
8076 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
8080 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
8081 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
8082 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
8087 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
8088 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
8089 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
8090 a mail backend that has gotten out of synch.
8095 @node Example Methods
8096 @subsection Example Methods
8098 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
8101 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
8104 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
8110 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
8111 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
8114 After these two elements, there may be a arbitrary number of
8115 @var{(variable form)} pairs.
8117 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
8118 port 15 from that machine. This is what the select method should
8122 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
8125 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
8126 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example.
8128 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
8129 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
8130 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
8134 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
8137 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
8140 Here's the method for a public spool:
8144 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
8145 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
8148 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
8149 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
8150 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
8151 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
8152 should probably look something like this:
8156 (nntp-address "the.firewall.machine")
8157 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-rlogin)
8158 (nntp-end-of-line "\n")
8159 (nntp-rlogin-parameters
8160 ("telnet" "the.real.nntp.host" "nntp")))
8165 @node Creating a Virtual Server
8166 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
8168 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
8169 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
8171 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
8172 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
8173 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
8175 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
8177 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
8178 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
8179 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
8180 will contain the following:
8190 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
8191 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
8192 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
8195 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
8196 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
8197 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
8200 @node Server Variables
8201 @subsection Server Variables
8203 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
8204 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
8205 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
8206 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
8207 won't change the "derived" variables.
8209 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
8210 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
8211 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
8212 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
8213 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
8214 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
8215 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
8216 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
8217 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
8221 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
8222 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
8223 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
8227 @node Servers and Methods
8228 @subsection Servers and Methods
8230 Wherever you would normally use a select method
8231 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
8232 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
8233 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
8237 @node Unavailable Servers
8238 @subsection Unavailable Servers
8240 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
8241 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
8242 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
8243 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
8244 actually the case or not.
8246 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
8247 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to the server
8248 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
8249 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
8250 to find out that it refuses connection from you today. If Gnus were to
8251 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
8252 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
8253 it will regard that server as ``down''.
8255 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
8256 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
8258 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{The Server Buffer}) and poke it
8259 with the following commands:
8265 @findex gnus-server-open-server
8266 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
8267 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
8271 @findex gnus-server-close-server
8272 Close the connection (if any) to the server
8273 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
8277 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
8278 Mark the current server as unreachable
8279 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
8282 @kindex M-o (Server)
8283 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
8284 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
8285 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
8288 @kindex M-c (Server)
8289 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
8290 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
8291 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
8295 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
8296 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from all servers
8297 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
8303 @section Getting News
8304 @cindex reading news
8305 @cindex news backends
8307 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
8308 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
8309 or it can read from a local spool.
8312 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
8313 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
8318 @subsection @sc{nntp}
8321 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
8322 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
8323 server as the, uhm, address.
8325 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
8326 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
8327 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
8328 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
8330 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
8331 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
8332 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
8334 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
8339 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
8340 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
8341 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
8343 @cindex authentification
8344 @cindex nntp authentification
8345 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8346 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
8347 @code{nntp-server-opened-hook} is run after a connection has been made.
8348 It can be used to send commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has
8349 been contacted. By default is sends the command @code{MODE READER} to
8350 the server with the @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function.
8352 @item nntp-authinfo-function
8353 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
8354 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
8355 server. Available functions include:
8358 @item nntp-send-authinfo
8359 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
8360 This function will used you current login name as the user name and will
8361 prompt you for the password. This is the default.
8363 @item nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8364 @findex nntp-send-nosy-authinfo
8365 This function will prompt you for both user name and password.
8367 @item nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8368 @findex nntp-send-authinfo-from-file
8369 This function will use your current login name as the user name and will
8370 read the @sc{nntp} password from @file{~/.nntp-authinfo}.
8373 @item nntp-server-action-alist
8374 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
8375 This is an list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
8376 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
8377 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
8380 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
8384 You probably don't want to do that, though.
8386 The default value is
8389 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
8390 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook nntp-send-mode-reader)))
8393 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
8394 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
8396 @item nntp-maximum-request
8397 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
8398 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
8399 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
8400 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
8401 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
8402 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
8403 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
8405 @item nntp-connection-timeout
8406 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
8407 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
8408 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
8409 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
8410 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
8411 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
8412 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
8413 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
8414 no timeouts are done.
8416 @item nntp-command-timeout
8417 @vindex nntp-command-timeout
8418 @cindex PPP connections
8419 @cindex dynamic IP addresses
8420 If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
8421 address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
8422 changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
8423 waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
8424 unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
8425 then, if it sits waiting longer than that number of seconds for a reply
8426 from the server, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
8427 the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
8428 likely number is 30 seconds.
8430 @item nntp-retry-on-break
8431 @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
8432 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
8433 hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
8436 @item nntp-server-hook
8437 @vindex nntp-server-hook
8438 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
8441 @findex nntp-open-rlogin
8442 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
8443 @item nntp-open-connection-function
8444 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
8445 This function is used to connect to the remote system. Two pre-made
8446 functions are @code{nntp-open-network-stream}, which is the default, and
8447 simply connects to some port or other on the remote system. The other
8448 is @code{nntp-open-rlogin}, which does an rlogin on the remote system,
8449 and then does a telnet to the @sc{nntp} server available there.
8451 @item nntp-rlogin-parameters
8452 @vindex nntp-rlogin-parameters
8453 If you use @code{nntp-open-rlogin} as the
8454 @code{nntp-open-connection-function}, this list will be used as the
8455 parameter list given to @code{rsh}.
8457 @item nntp-end-of-line
8458 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
8459 String to use as end-of-line markers when talking to the @sc{nntp}
8460 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
8461 using @code{rlogin} to talk to the server.
8463 @item nntp-rlogin-user-name
8464 @vindex nntp-rlogin-user-name
8465 User name on the remote system when using the @code{rlogin} connect
8469 @vindex nntp-address
8470 The address of the remote system running the @sc{nntp} server.
8472 @item nntp-port-number
8473 @vindex nntp-port-number
8474 Port number to connect to when using the @code{nntp-open-network-stream}
8477 @item nntp-buggy-select
8478 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
8479 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
8481 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
8482 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
8483 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
8484 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks whether @sc{nov}
8485 can be used automatically.
8487 @item nntp-xover-commands
8488 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
8491 List of strings that are used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
8492 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
8496 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
8497 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
8498 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
8499 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
8500 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
8501 lines that you do not want, and will not use. This variable says how
8502 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
8503 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
8504 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
8505 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
8506 @code{nntp} will never split requests.
8508 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
8509 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
8510 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
8512 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8513 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
8514 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
8515 server closes connection.
8521 @subsection News Spool
8525 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
8526 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
8527 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
8530 Anyways, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @samp{} (or
8531 anything else) as the address.
8533 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
8534 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
8535 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
8536 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
8540 @item nnspool-inews-program
8541 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
8542 Program used to post an article.
8544 @item nnspool-inews-switches
8545 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
8546 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
8548 @item nnspool-spool-directory
8549 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
8550 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
8551 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
8553 @item nnspool-nov-directory
8554 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
8555 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
8556 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
8558 @item nnspool-lib-dir
8559 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
8560 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
8562 @item nnspool-active-file
8563 @vindex nnspool-active-file
8564 The path of the active file.
8566 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
8567 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
8568 The path of the group descriptions file.
8570 @item nnspool-history-file
8571 @vindex nnspool-history-file
8572 The path of the news history file.
8574 @item nnspool-active-times-file
8575 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
8576 The path of the active date file.
8578 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
8579 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
8580 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
8583 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8584 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
8586 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
8587 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
8588 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
8594 @section Getting Mail
8595 @cindex reading mail
8598 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
8602 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
8603 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
8604 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
8605 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
8606 * Mail and Procmail:: Reading mail groups that procmail create.
8607 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
8608 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
8609 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
8610 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
8611 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
8612 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
8616 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
8617 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
8619 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
8620 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
8621 and things will happen automatically.
8623 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a one file per
8624 mail backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
8627 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
8628 '((nnml "private")))
8631 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
8632 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
8633 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
8634 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
8635 like any other group.
8637 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
8640 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8641 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8642 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8646 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
8647 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
8648 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
8651 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
8652 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though,
8653 especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
8656 @node Splitting Mail
8657 @subsection Splitting Mail
8658 @cindex splitting mail
8659 @cindex mail splitting
8661 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
8662 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
8663 to be split into groups.
8666 (setq nnmail-split-methods
8667 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
8668 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
8672 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
8673 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
8674 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
8675 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
8676 determine if it belongs in this mail group.
8678 If the first element is the special symbol @code{junk}, then messages
8679 that match the regexp will disappear into the aether. Use with
8682 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
8683 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
8684 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
8685 mail belongs in that group.
8687 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
8688 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
8689 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
8690 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
8691 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
8692 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
8694 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
8695 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
8696 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
8697 message. The function should return a list of groups names that it
8698 thinks should carry this mail message.
8700 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent
8701 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
8702 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
8703 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
8705 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
8706 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
8707 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
8708 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
8709 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
8711 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
8714 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
8715 the crossposted articles. However, not all files systems support hard
8716 links. If that's the case for you, set
8717 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
8718 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
8720 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
8721 @kindex nnmail-split-history
8722 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
8723 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command.
8725 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
8726 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
8727 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
8728 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
8729 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
8730 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
8731 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
8732 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
8736 @node Mail Backend Variables
8737 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
8739 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
8743 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
8744 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
8745 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
8746 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
8748 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
8749 @item nnmail-spool-file
8753 @vindex nnmail-pop-password
8754 @vindex nnmail-pop-password-required
8755 The backends will look for new mail in this file. If this variable is
8756 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
8757 themselves. If you are using a POP mail server and your name is
8758 @samp{larsi}, you should set this variable to @samp{po:larsi}. If
8759 your name is not @samp{larsi}, you should probably modify that
8760 slightly, but you may have guessed that already, you smart & handsome
8761 devil! You can also set this variable to @code{pop}, and Gnus will try
8762 to figure out the POP mail string by itself. In any case, Gnus will
8763 call @code{movemail} which will contact the POP server named in the
8764 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable. If the POP server needs a
8765 password, you can either set @code{nnmail-pop-password-required} to
8766 @code{t} and be prompted for the password, or set
8767 @code{nnmail-pop-password} to the password itself.
8769 @code{nnmail-spool-file} can also be a list of mailboxes.
8771 Your Emacs has to have been configured with @samp{--with-pop} before
8772 compilation. This is the default, but some installations have it
8775 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
8776 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
8777 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
8778 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
8779 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
8780 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
8782 @vindex nnmail-use-procmail
8783 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
8784 @item nnmail-use-procmail
8785 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will look in
8786 @code{nnmail-procmail-directory} for incoming mail. All the files in
8787 that directory that have names ending in @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix}
8788 will be considered incoming mailboxes, and will be searched for new
8791 @vindex nnmail-crash-box
8792 @item nnmail-crash-box
8793 When the mail backends read a spool file, it is first moved to this
8794 file, which is @file{~/.gnus-crash-box} by default. If this file
8795 already exists, it will always be read (and incorporated) before any
8798 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
8799 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
8800 This is run in a buffer that holds all the new incoming mail, and can be
8801 used for, well, anything, really.
8803 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
8804 @item nnmail-split-hook
8805 @findex article-decode-rfc1522
8806 @findex RFC1522 decoding
8807 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
8808 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
8809 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
8810 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
8811 in the buffer will show up in any files. @code{gnus-article-decode-rfc1522}
8812 is one likely function to add to this hook.
8814 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8815 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
8816 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8817 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
8818 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
8819 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
8820 starting to handle the new mail) and
8821 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
8822 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
8823 default file modes the new mail files get:
8826 (add-hook 'gnus-pre-get-new-mail-hook
8827 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
8829 (add-hook 'gnus-post-get-new-mail-hook
8830 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
8833 @item nnmail-tmp-directory
8834 @vindex nnmail-tmp-directory
8835 This variable says where to move the incoming mail to while processing
8836 it. This is usually done in the same directory that the mail backend
8837 inhabits (i.e., @file{~/Mail/}), but if this variable is non-@code{nil},
8838 it will be used instead.
8840 @item nnmail-movemail-program
8841 @vindex nnmail-movemail-program
8842 This program is executed to move mail from the user's inbox to her home
8843 directory. The default is @samp{movemail}.
8845 This can also be a function. In that case, the function will be called
8846 with two parameters -- the name of the inbox, and the file to be moved
8849 @item nnmail-delete-incoming
8850 @vindex nnmail-delete-incoming
8851 @cindex incoming mail files
8852 @cindex deleting incoming files
8853 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will delete the temporary incoming
8854 file after splitting mail into the proper groups. This is @code{t} by
8857 @c This is @code{nil} by
8858 @c default for reasons of security.
8860 @c Since Red Gnus is an alpha release, it is to be expected to lose mail.
8861 (No Gnus release since (ding) Gnus 0.10 (or something like that) have
8862 lost mail, I think, but that's not the point. (Except certain versions
8863 of Red Gnus.)) By not deleting the Incoming* files, one can be sure to
8864 not lose mail -- if Gnus totally whacks out, one can always recover what
8867 Delete the @file{Incoming*} files at will.
8869 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
8870 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
8871 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
8872 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories like
8873 @file{mail.misc/}. If it is @code{nil}, the same group will end up in
8876 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
8877 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
8879 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
8881 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
8882 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
8883 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
8884 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
8885 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
8890 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
8891 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
8892 @cindex mail splitting
8893 @cindex fancy mail splitting
8895 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
8896 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
8897 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
8898 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
8899 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
8900 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
8902 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
8905 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
8906 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
8907 ;; from real errors.
8908 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
8910 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
8911 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
8912 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
8913 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
8914 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
8915 ;; Other mailing lists...
8916 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
8917 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
8919 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
8920 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
8924 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
8925 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
8926 the five possible split syntaxes:
8931 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group name.
8934 @var{(FIELD VALUE SPLIT)}: If the split is a list, and the first
8935 element is a string, then that means that if header FIELD (a regexp)
8936 contains VALUE (also a regexp), then store the message as specified by
8940 @var{(| SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
8941 @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each SPLIT until one of them
8942 matches. A SPLIT is said to match if it will cause the mail message to
8943 be stored in one or more groups.
8946 @var{(& SPLIT...)}: If the split is a list, and the first element is
8947 @code{&}, then process all SPLITs in the list.
8950 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
8951 this message anywhere.
8954 @var{(: function arg1 arg2 ...)}: If the split is a list, and the first
8955 element is @code{:}, then the second element will be called as a
8956 function with @var{args} given as arguments. The function should return
8961 In these splits, @var{FIELD} must match a complete field name.
8962 @var{VALUE} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
8963 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
8964 field names or words. In other words, all @var{VALUE}'s are wrapped in
8965 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
8967 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
8968 @var{FIELD} and @var{VALUE} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
8969 are expanded as specified by the variable
8970 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
8971 the car of the cells contains the key, and the cdr contains a string.
8973 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
8974 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
8975 when all this splitting is performed.
8977 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
8978 information in the headers, you can say things like:
8981 (any "debian-\(\\w*\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
8984 That is, do @code{replace-match}-like substitions in the group names.
8987 @node Mail and Procmail
8988 @subsection Mail and Procmail
8993 Many people use @code{procmail} (or some other mail filter program or
8994 external delivery agent---@code{slocal}, @code{elm}, etc) to split
8995 incoming mail into groups. If you do that, you should set
8996 @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{procmail} to ensure that the mail
8997 backends never ever try to fetch mail by themselves.
8999 This also means that you probably don't want to set
9000 @code{nnmail-split-methods} either, which has some, perhaps, unexpected
9003 When a mail backend is queried for what groups it carries, it replies
9004 with the contents of that variable, along with any groups it has figured
9005 out that it carries by other means. None of the backends (except
9006 @code{nnmh}) actually go out to the disk and check what groups actually
9007 exist. (It's not trivial to distinguish between what the user thinks is
9008 a basis for a newsgroup and what is just a plain old file or directory.)
9010 This means that you have to tell Gnus (and the backends) what groups
9013 Let's take the @code{nnmh} backend as an example.
9015 The folders are located in @code{nnmh-directory}, say, @file{~/Mail/}.
9016 There are three folders, @file{foo}, @file{bar} and @file{mail.baz}.
9018 Go to the group buffer and type @kbd{G m}. When prompted, answer
9019 @samp{foo} for the name and @samp{nnmh} for the method. Repeat
9020 twice for the two other groups, @samp{bar} and @samp{mail.baz}. Be sure
9021 to include all your mail groups.
9023 That's it. You are now set to read your mail. An active file for this
9024 method will be created automatically.
9026 @vindex nnmail-procmail-suffix
9027 @vindex nnmail-procmail-directory
9028 If you use @code{nnfolder} or any other backend that store more than a
9029 single article in each file, you should never have procmail add mails to
9030 the file that Gnus sees. Instead, procmail should put all incoming mail
9031 in @code{nnmail-procmail-directory}. To arrive at the file name to put
9032 the incoming mail in, append @code{nnmail-procmail-suffix} to the group
9033 name. The mail backends will read the mail from these files.
9035 @vindex nnmail-resplit-incoming
9036 When Gnus reads a file called @file{mail.misc.spool}, this mail will be
9037 put in the @code{mail.misc}, as one would expect. However, if you want
9038 Gnus to split the mail the normal way, you could set
9039 @code{nnmail-resplit-incoming} to @code{t}.
9041 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9042 If you use @code{procmail} to split things directory into an @code{nnmh}
9043 directory (which you shouldn't do), you should set
9044 @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} to non-@code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
9045 ever expiring the final article (i. e., the article with the highest
9046 article number) in a mail newsgroup. This is quite, quite important.
9048 Here's an example setup: The incoming spools are located in
9049 @file{~/incoming/} and have @samp{""} as suffixes (i. e., the incoming
9050 spool files have the same names as the equivalent groups). The
9051 @code{nnfolder} backend is to be used as the mail interface, and the
9052 @code{nnfolder} directory is @file{~/fMail/}.
9055 (setq nnfolder-directory "~/fMail/")
9056 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
9057 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/incoming/")
9058 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnfolder "")))
9059 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "")
9063 @node Incorporating Old Mail
9064 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
9066 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
9067 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
9068 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
9071 Doing so can be quite easy.
9073 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
9074 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
9075 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
9076 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
9077 your @code{nnml} groups.
9083 Go to the group buffer.
9086 Type `G f' and give the path of the mbox file when prompted to create an
9087 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
9090 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
9093 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group (@pxref{Setting
9097 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
9098 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
9101 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
9102 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
9103 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
9104 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
9105 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
9107 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
9108 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
9109 using the new mail backend.
9113 @subsection Expiring Mail
9114 @cindex article expiry
9116 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
9117 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
9118 different approach to mail reading.
9120 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
9121 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
9122 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
9123 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
9124 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
9125 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
9128 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
9129 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
9130 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
9131 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
9132 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
9133 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
9134 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
9135 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
9137 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9138 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
9139 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
9140 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
9141 articles that are marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
9142 column in the summary buffer.
9144 Note that making a group auto-expirable don't mean that all read
9145 articles are expired---only the articles that are marked as expirable
9146 will be expired. Also note the using the @kbd{d} command won't make
9147 groups expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
9148 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
9150 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
9151 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
9154 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
9155 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
9158 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
9159 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
9161 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
9162 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
9163 doesn't really mix very well.
9165 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
9166 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
9167 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
9168 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
9171 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
9172 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
9173 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
9174 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
9177 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9179 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
9181 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
9183 ((string= group "mail.junk")
9185 ((string= group "important")
9191 The group names that this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
9192 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
9194 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
9195 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can be either a number (not
9196 necessarily an integer) or the symbols @code{immediate} or
9199 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
9200 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
9202 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
9203 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
9204 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
9205 easier for procmail users.
9207 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
9208 By the way, that line up there about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
9209 articles is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
9210 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
9211 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
9212 caution. Even more dangerous is the
9213 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
9214 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
9215 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
9216 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
9217 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
9218 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
9219 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
9222 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
9226 @subsection Washing Mail
9227 @cindex mail washing
9228 @cindex list server brain damage
9229 @cindex incoming mail treatment
9231 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
9232 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC822 doesn't explicitly
9233 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
9234 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
9235 Yes, but RFC822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
9236 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
9238 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
9239 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
9240 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
9243 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
9244 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
9245 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
9246 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
9249 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9250 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
9251 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
9252 grand, sweeping gestures. Functions to be used include:
9255 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9256 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
9257 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
9258 Emacs running on MS machines.
9262 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9263 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
9264 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
9265 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
9268 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9269 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
9270 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
9271 headers too make them look nice. Aaah.
9273 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9274 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
9275 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
9276 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
9277 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
9278 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
9279 also be a list of regexp.
9281 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
9282 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
9285 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
9286 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
9289 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
9290 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
9291 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
9295 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9296 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
9297 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
9301 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
9302 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
9303 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
9310 @subsection Duplicates
9312 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
9313 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
9314 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
9315 @cindex duplicate mails
9316 If you are a member of a couple of mailing list, you will sometime
9317 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
9318 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
9319 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
9320 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
9321 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
9322 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
9323 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
9324 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
9325 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
9326 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
9327 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
9328 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
9330 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
9331 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
9332 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
9333 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
9335 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
9338 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
9339 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
9343 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
9344 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
9345 ("gnus-warning" "duplication of message" "duplicate")
9346 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
9347 (any mail "mail.misc")
9354 (setq nnmail-split-methods
9355 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:")
9360 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
9361 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
9362 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
9363 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
9364 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
9367 @node Not Reading Mail
9368 @subsection Not Reading Mail
9370 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
9371 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
9372 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
9374 If you set @code{nnmail-spool-file} to @code{nil}, none of the backends
9375 will ever attempt to read incoming mail, which should help.
9377 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9378 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9379 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9380 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9381 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9382 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
9383 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
9384 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
9385 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
9386 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
9387 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
9389 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
9390 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
9394 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
9395 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
9397 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
9398 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
9399 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
9402 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
9403 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
9404 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
9405 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
9406 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
9411 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
9413 @cindex unix mail box
9415 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9416 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9417 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
9418 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
9419 which group it belongs in.
9421 Virtual server settings:
9424 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
9425 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
9426 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory.
9428 @item nnmbox-active-file
9429 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
9430 The name of the active file for the mail box.
9432 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
9433 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
9434 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
9440 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
9444 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9445 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9446 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
9447 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each mail
9448 article to say which group it belongs in.
9450 Virtual server settings:
9453 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
9454 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
9455 The name of the rmail mbox file.
9457 @item nnbabyl-active-file
9458 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
9459 The name of the active file for the rmail box.
9461 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9462 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
9463 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail.
9468 @subsubsection Mail Spool
9470 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
9472 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
9473 format. It should be used with some caution.
9475 @vindex nnml-directory
9476 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files;
9477 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the correct
9478 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
9479 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
9481 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
9484 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
9485 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
9486 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
9487 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
9488 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
9489 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
9490 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
9491 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
9493 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
9494 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
9495 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes is the fastest
9496 backend when it comes to reading mail.
9498 Virtual server settings:
9501 @item nnml-directory
9502 @vindex nnml-directory
9503 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
9505 @item nnml-active-file
9506 @vindex nnml-active-file
9507 The active file for the @code{nnml} server.
9509 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
9510 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
9511 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
9514 @item nnml-get-new-mail
9515 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
9516 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail.
9518 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
9519 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
9520 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files.
9522 @item nnml-nov-file-name
9523 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
9524 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
9526 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9527 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
9528 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
9532 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
9533 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
9534 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
9535 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
9536 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
9537 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
9538 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
9543 @subsubsection MH Spool
9545 @cindex mh-e mail spool
9547 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
9548 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
9549 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
9550 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
9552 Virtual server settings:
9555 @item nnmh-directory
9556 @vindex nnmh-directory
9557 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory.
9559 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
9560 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
9561 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail.
9564 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
9565 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
9566 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
9567 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
9568 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
9569 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
9570 to set this variable to @code{t}.
9575 @subsubsection Mail Folders
9577 @cindex mbox folders
9578 @cindex mail folders
9580 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
9581 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
9582 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
9585 Virtual server settings:
9588 @item nnfolder-directory
9589 @vindex nnfolder-directory
9590 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
9592 @item nnfolder-active-file
9593 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
9594 The name of the active file.
9596 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9597 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
9598 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File Format}.
9600 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
9601 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
9602 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail.
9605 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
9606 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
9607 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
9608 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
9609 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
9610 @code{nnfolder-directory}.
9614 @section Other Sources
9616 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
9617 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
9621 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
9622 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
9623 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
9624 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{SOUP} packets ``offline''.
9625 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
9626 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
9630 @node Directory Groups
9631 @subsection Directory Groups
9633 @cindex directory groups
9635 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
9636 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
9639 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp}, that most
9640 wonderful of all wonderful Emacs packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I
9641 didn't think much about it---a backend to read directories. Big deal.
9643 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
9644 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
9645 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the the directory name,
9646 @code{ange-ftp} will actually allow you to read this directory over at
9647 @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
9649 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
9651 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
9652 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
9653 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
9654 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
9657 @node Anything Groups
9658 @subsection Anything Groups
9661 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
9662 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
9663 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
9666 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
9667 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
9668 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
9669 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're
9670 forgetting. @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it
9671 snoops each file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e.,
9672 the first few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head.
9673 If this is just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source
9674 file), @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It
9675 will use file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
9678 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
9679 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
9680 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
9681 in the article buffer, just as usual.
9683 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
9684 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
9685 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
9686 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
9688 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
9689 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
9690 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
9691 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
9692 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
9693 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
9694 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
9695 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
9700 @item nneething-map-file-directory
9701 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
9702 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
9703 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
9705 @item nneething-exclude-files
9706 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
9707 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
9708 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
9710 @item nneething-map-file
9711 @vindex nneething-map-file
9712 Name of the map files.
9716 @node Document Groups
9717 @subsection Document Groups
9719 @cindex documentation group
9722 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
9723 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
9730 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
9735 The standard Unix mbox file.
9737 @cindex MMDF mail box
9739 The MMDF mail box format.
9742 Several news articles appended into a file.
9745 @cindex rnews batch files
9746 The rnews batch transport format.
9747 @cindex forwarded messages
9756 @cindex RFC 1153 digest
9757 @cindex RFC 341 digest
9758 MIME (RFC 1341) digest format.
9760 @item standard-digest
9761 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
9764 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
9767 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
9768 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
9769 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
9772 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
9773 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
9774 group. And that's it.
9776 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
9777 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
9778 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
9779 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
9780 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
9781 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
9782 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
9783 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
9784 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
9785 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
9787 Virtual server variables:
9790 @item nndoc-article-type
9791 @vindex nndoc-article-type
9792 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
9793 @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward},
9794 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mime-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, or
9797 @item nndoc-post-type
9798 @vindex nndoc-post-type
9799 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
9800 a mail group. There are two legal values: @code{mail} (the default)
9805 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
9809 @node Document Server Internals
9810 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
9812 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
9813 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
9814 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
9815 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
9817 First, here's an example document type definition:
9821 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
9822 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
9825 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
9826 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
9827 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
9828 types can be defined with very few settings:
9832 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
9833 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
9837 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
9838 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
9840 @item head-begin-function
9841 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
9844 @item nndoc-head-begin
9845 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
9848 @item nndoc-head-end
9849 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
9850 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
9852 @item body-begin-function
9853 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
9857 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
9860 @item body-end-function
9861 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
9865 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
9867 @item nndoc-file-end
9868 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
9869 regexp will be totally ignored.
9873 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
9874 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
9875 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
9876 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
9877 something that's palatable for Gnus:
9880 @item prepare-body-function
9881 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
9882 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
9883 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
9885 @item article-transform-function
9886 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
9887 meant to be used how more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
9888 body of the article.
9890 @item generate-head-function
9891 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
9892 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
9893 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
9894 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
9898 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
9903 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
9904 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
9905 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
9906 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
9908 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
9909 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
9910 (subtype digest guess))
9913 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
9914 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
9915 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
9916 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
9917 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
9919 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
9920 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
9921 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
9922 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
9923 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for each
9924 type. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
9925 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
9926 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
9927 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
9928 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
9929 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest legal number.
9937 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
9938 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
9939 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
9941 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
9942 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
9943 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
9946 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something a that's a bit
9947 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
9948 that interested in doing things properly.
9950 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
9951 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
9954 First some terminology:
9959 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
9960 get news and/or mail from.
9963 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
9964 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
9967 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
9971 @item message packets
9972 These are packets made at the server, and typically contains lots of
9973 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
9974 default, where @var{X} is a number.
9976 @item response packets
9977 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
9978 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
9979 default, where @var{X} is a number.
9989 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
9990 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
9991 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
9992 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
9995 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
9998 You put the packet in your home directory.
10001 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
10002 the native or secondary server.
10005 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
10006 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
10009 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
10013 You transfer this packet to the server.
10016 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
10019 You then repeat until you die.
10023 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
10024 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
10027 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
10028 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
10029 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
10033 @node SOUP Commands
10034 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
10036 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
10040 @kindex G s b (Group)
10041 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
10042 Pack all unread articles in the current group
10043 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
10044 process/prefix convention.
10047 @kindex G s w (Group)
10048 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
10049 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
10052 @kindex G s s (Group)
10053 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
10054 Send all replies from the replies packet
10055 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
10058 @kindex G s p (Group)
10059 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
10060 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
10063 @kindex G s r (Group)
10064 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
10065 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
10068 @kindex O s (Summary)
10069 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
10070 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
10071 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
10072 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
10077 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
10082 @item gnus-soup-directory
10083 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
10084 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
10085 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
10087 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
10088 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
10089 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
10090 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
10092 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
10093 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
10094 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
10095 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
10097 @item gnus-soup-packer
10098 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
10099 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10100 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
10102 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
10103 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
10104 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
10105 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10107 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
10108 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
10109 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
10111 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10112 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
10113 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
10114 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
10120 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
10123 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
10124 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
10125 you can read them at leisure.
10127 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
10131 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
10132 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
10133 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
10134 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
10136 @item nnsoup-directory
10137 @vindex nnsoup-directory
10138 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
10139 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
10141 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
10142 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
10143 All replies will stored in this directory before being packed into a
10144 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
10146 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
10147 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
10148 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
10149 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
10150 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
10152 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
10153 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
10154 The index type of the replies packet. The is @samp{?n}, which means
10155 ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
10157 @item nnsoup-active-file
10158 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
10159 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
10160 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
10161 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
10162 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
10164 @item nnsoup-packer
10165 @vindex nnsoup-packer
10166 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
10167 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
10169 @item nnsoup-unpacker
10170 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
10171 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
10172 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
10174 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
10175 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
10176 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
10179 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
10180 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
10181 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
10188 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
10190 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
10191 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
10192 more for that to happen.
10194 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
10195 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
10196 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
10199 In specific, this is what it does:
10202 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
10203 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
10206 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
10207 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
10208 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
10212 @subsection Web Searches
10216 @cindex InReference
10217 @cindex Usenet searches
10218 @cindex searching the Usenet
10220 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
10221 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
10222 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
10223 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
10224 searches without having to use a browser.
10226 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
10227 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
10228 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
10229 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
10230 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
10232 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
10233 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
10234 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
10235 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
10236 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@code{Duplicate
10237 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
10238 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
10239 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
10240 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
10241 header---mark all articles that were posted before the last date you
10242 read the group as read.
10244 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
10245 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
10246 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
10247 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
10248 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
10249 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
10251 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
10252 to use @code{nnweb}.
10254 Virtual server variables:
10259 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
10260 are @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
10263 @vindex nnweb-search
10264 The search string to feed to the search engine.
10266 @item nnweb-max-hits
10267 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
10268 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
10271 @item nnweb-type-definition
10272 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
10273 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
10274 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
10279 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
10283 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
10286 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
10289 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
10293 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
10300 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
10301 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
10302 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
10305 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
10306 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
10307 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
10309 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
10315 @item nngateway-address
10316 @vindex nngateway-address
10317 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
10319 @item nngateway-header-transformation
10320 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
10321 News headers have often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
10322 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
10323 transformation should be called, and defaults to
10324 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
10325 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
10328 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
10329 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address---an article with this
10330 @code{Newsgroups} header:
10333 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
10336 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
10339 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
10344 So, to use this, simply say something like:
10347 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
10351 @node Combined Groups
10352 @section Combined Groups
10354 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
10358 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
10359 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
10363 @node Virtual Groups
10364 @subsection Virtual Groups
10366 @cindex virtual groups
10368 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
10371 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small group, you can
10372 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
10373 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
10375 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
10376 regexp to match component groups.
10378 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
10379 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
10380 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
10381 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
10382 the virtual group.)
10384 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
10385 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
10388 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
10391 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
10392 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
10394 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
10395 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
10396 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
10397 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
10400 "^nntp+some.server.jp:soc.motss$\\|^nntp+some.server.no:soc.motss$"
10403 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
10404 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
10405 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
10406 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
10407 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}.
10409 One limitation, however---all groups that are included in a virtual
10410 group has to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
10411 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
10413 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
10414 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
10415 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
10416 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
10417 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
10418 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
10419 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
10420 effect if you have two virtual groups that contain the same component
10421 group. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
10422 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
10423 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
10426 @node Kibozed Groups
10427 @subsection Kibozed Groups
10431 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
10432 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
10433 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
10434 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
10436 @kindex G k (Group)
10437 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
10440 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
10441 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
10442 @code{nnkiboze} group. There most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
10443 and @code{nnvirtual} ends.
10445 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
10446 must have a score file to say what articles that are to be included in
10447 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
10449 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
10450 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
10451 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
10452 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
10453 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
10454 all the articles in all the components groups and run them through the
10455 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
10456 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
10458 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
10459 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
10460 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
10461 Stranger things have happened.
10463 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
10464 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
10466 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
10467 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
10468 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
10469 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
10470 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
10471 on what groups that have been searched through to find component
10474 Articles that are marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have their
10475 @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
10482 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
10483 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
10484 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
10487 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
10488 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
10489 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
10490 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
10491 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
10493 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
10494 before generating the summary buffer.
10496 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
10497 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
10498 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
10500 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
10501 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
10502 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
10503 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
10506 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
10507 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
10508 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
10509 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
10510 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
10511 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
10512 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
10513 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
10514 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
10515 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
10516 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
10517 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
10518 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
10519 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
10520 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
10521 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
10525 @node Summary Score Commands
10526 @section Summary Score Commands
10527 @cindex score commands
10529 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
10530 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
10531 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
10532 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
10533 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
10535 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
10536 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
10537 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
10538 score file the current one.
10540 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
10545 @kindex V s (Summary)
10546 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
10547 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
10550 @kindex V S (Summary)
10551 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
10552 Display the score of the current article
10553 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
10556 @kindex V t (Summary)
10557 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
10558 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
10559 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
10562 @kindex V R (Summary)
10563 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
10564 Run the current summary through the scoring process
10565 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
10566 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
10567 effect you're having.
10570 @kindex V a (Summary)
10571 @findex gnus-summary-score-entry
10572 Add a new score entry, and allow specifying all elements
10573 (@code{gnus-summary-score-entry}).
10576 @kindex V c (Summary)
10577 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
10578 Make a different score file the current
10579 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
10582 @kindex V e (Summary)
10583 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
10584 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
10585 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
10589 @kindex V f (Summary)
10590 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
10591 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
10592 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
10595 @kindex V F (Summary)
10596 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
10597 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
10598 after editing score files.
10601 @kindex V C (Summary)
10602 @findex gnus-score-customize
10603 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
10604 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
10607 @kindex I C-i (Summary)
10608 @findex gnus-summary-raise-score
10609 Increase the score of the current article
10610 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-score}).
10613 @kindex L C-l (Summary)
10614 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
10615 Lower the score of the current article
10616 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-score}).
10619 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
10624 @kindex V m (Summary)
10625 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
10626 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
10627 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
10630 @kindex V x (Summary)
10631 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
10632 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
10633 expunge all articles below this score
10634 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
10637 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
10638 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
10643 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
10644 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
10646 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
10647 keys are available:
10651 Score on the author name.
10654 Score on the subject line.
10657 Score on the Xref line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
10660 Score on thread---the References line.
10666 Score on the number of lines.
10669 Score on the Message-ID.
10672 Score on followups.
10682 The third key is the match type. Which match types are legal depends on
10683 what headers you are scoring on.
10695 Substring matching.
10698 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
10727 Greater than number.
10732 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
10733 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
10734 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
10738 Temporary score entry.
10741 Permanent score entry.
10744 Immediately scoring.
10749 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
10750 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
10751 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
10752 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
10754 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
10755 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
10756 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
10757 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
10758 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
10760 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
10761 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
10762 pretend they are keymaps or not.
10765 @node Group Score Commands
10766 @section Group Score Commands
10767 @cindex group score commands
10769 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
10774 @kindex W f (Group)
10775 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
10776 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
10777 all the time. This command will flush the cache
10778 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
10783 @node Score Variables
10784 @section Score Variables
10785 @cindex score variables
10789 @item gnus-use-scoring
10790 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
10791 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
10792 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
10794 @item gnus-kill-killed
10795 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
10796 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
10797 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
10798 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
10799 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
10800 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
10801 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
10803 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
10804 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
10805 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
10806 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
10807 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
10809 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
10810 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
10811 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
10812 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
10814 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
10815 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
10816 @cindex score cache
10817 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
10818 score files. However, if this might make you Emacs grow big and
10819 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files that are
10820 unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
10821 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
10822 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
10823 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
10826 @item gnus-save-score
10827 @vindex gnus-save-score
10828 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
10829 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
10830 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
10832 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
10833 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
10834 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
10835 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
10836 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
10837 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
10838 manually entered data.
10840 @item gnus-summary-default-score
10841 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
10842 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
10844 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
10845 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
10846 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
10847 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
10848 articles will be hidden.
10850 @item gnus-score-over-mark
10851 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
10852 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
10853 default. Default is @samp{+}.
10855 @item gnus-score-below-mark
10856 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
10857 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
10858 default. Default is @samp{-}.
10860 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
10861 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
10862 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
10863 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
10865 Predefined functions available are:
10868 @item gnus-score-find-single
10869 @findex gnus-score-find-single
10870 Only apply the group's own score file.
10872 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
10873 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
10874 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
10875 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
10876 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
10877 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
10878 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
10879 then a regexp match is done.
10881 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
10882 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
10884 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
10885 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
10886 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
10887 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
10889 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
10890 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
10891 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
10892 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
10893 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE}.
10896 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
10897 functions will be called, and all the returned lists of score files will
10898 be applied. These functions can also return lists of score alists
10899 directly. In that case, the functions that return these non-file score
10900 alists should probably be placed before the ``real'' score file
10901 functions, to ensure that the last score file returned is the local
10904 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
10905 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
10906 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
10907 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
10908 are expired. It's 7 by default.
10910 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
10911 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
10912 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
10913 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
10914 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
10915 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
10916 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
10919 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
10920 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
10921 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
10926 @node Score File Format
10927 @section Score File Format
10928 @cindex score file format
10930 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
10931 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
10932 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
10934 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
10938 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
10940 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
10942 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
10944 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
10949 (mark-and-expunge -10)
10953 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
10954 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
10955 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
10956 (gnus-summary-make-false-root 'empty))
10960 This example demonstrates absolutely everything about a score file.
10962 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
10963 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
10964 has to be legal syntactically, if not semantically.
10966 Six keys are supported by this alist:
10971 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
10972 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
10973 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
10974 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
10975 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
10976 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
10977 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
10978 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
10979 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
10980 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
10981 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
10982 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
10983 to articles that matches these score entries.
10985 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
10986 score entry has one to four elements.
10990 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
10991 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
10995 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
10996 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
10997 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
10998 is successful. If this element is not present, the
10999 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
11000 instead. This is 1000 by default.
11003 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
11004 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
11005 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
11006 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
11007 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
11010 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
11011 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
11012 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
11013 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
11016 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
11017 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
11018 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
11019 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
11020 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
11021 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
11022 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
11023 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
11024 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
11025 instead, if you feel like.
11028 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
11029 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}. When matching on @code{Lines}, be
11030 careful because some backends (like @code{nndir}) do not generate
11031 @code{Lines} header, so every article ends up being marked as having 0
11032 lines. This can lead to strange results if you happen to lower score of
11033 the articles with few lines.
11036 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
11037 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
11038 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
11039 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
11040 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
11041 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
11042 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
11046 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
11047 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
11048 ISO8601 compact format first---@samp{YYYYMMDDTHHMMSS}. If you want to
11049 match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in every year, you
11050 could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string, for instance.
11051 (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so this will
11052 match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where the article
11053 was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the whole
11056 @item Head, Body, All
11057 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
11061 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
11062 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
11063 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
11064 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
11065 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
11066 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
11070 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
11071 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread that is
11072 started by an article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{X}, then you add a
11073 @samp{thread} match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each
11074 article that has @var{X} in its @code{References} header. (These new
11075 @samp{thread} matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching
11076 articles.) This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an
11077 entire thread, even though some articles in the thread may not have
11078 complete @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
11079 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread.
11084 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11085 lower than this number will be marked as read.
11088 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11089 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
11091 @item mark-and-expunge
11092 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
11093 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
11096 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
11097 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
11098 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
11099 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
11100 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
11103 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
11104 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
11107 @item exclude-files
11108 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
11109 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
11113 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
11114 ignored when handling global score files.
11117 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
11118 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}).
11121 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
11122 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
11123 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
11124 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
11126 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
11130 (mark-and-expunge -100)
11133 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
11134 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
11135 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
11136 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
11137 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
11139 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where there
11140 exist a few interesting threads which can't be found automatically by
11141 ordinary scoring rules.
11144 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
11145 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
11146 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
11147 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
11148 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
11149 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
11150 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
11151 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
11152 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
11153 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
11154 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
11158 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
11159 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
11160 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
11161 file for a number of groups.
11164 @cindex local variables
11165 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
11166 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
11167 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
11168 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
11173 @node Score File Editing
11174 @section Score File Editing
11176 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
11177 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
11178 with a mode for that.
11180 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
11181 additional commands:
11186 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
11187 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
11188 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
11189 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
11192 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
11193 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
11194 Insert the current date in numerical format
11195 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
11196 you were wondering.
11199 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
11200 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
11201 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
11202 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
11203 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
11208 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
11210 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
11211 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
11213 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
11214 e} to begin editing score files.
11217 @node Adaptive Scoring
11218 @section Adaptive Scoring
11219 @cindex adaptive scoring
11221 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
11222 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
11223 stupidity, to be precise.
11225 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
11226 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
11227 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
11228 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
11229 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
11230 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
11231 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
11232 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
11233 variable to @code{(word line)}.
11235 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
11236 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
11237 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
11238 might look something like this:
11241 (defvar gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
11242 '((gnus-unread-mark)
11243 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
11244 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
11245 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
11246 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
11247 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
11248 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
11249 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
11250 (gnus-ancient-mark)
11251 (gnus-low-score-mark)
11252 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
11255 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
11256 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
11257 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
11258 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
11259 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
11260 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
11263 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
11264 will be applied to each article.
11266 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
11267 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
11268 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
11269 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
11271 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
11272 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
11273 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
11274 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
11276 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
11277 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
11278 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
11279 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
11281 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
11282 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
11283 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
11284 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
11285 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
11286 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
11288 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
11289 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
11290 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
11291 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
11292 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
11293 aspirins afterwards.)
11295 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
11296 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
11297 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
11299 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
11300 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
11301 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
11303 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
11304 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
11305 let you use different rules in different groups.
11307 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
11308 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
11309 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
11312 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
11313 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
11314 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
11315 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
11316 the length of the match is less than
11317 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
11318 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
11321 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
11322 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
11323 headers. If you adapt on words, the
11324 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
11325 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
11328 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
11329 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
11330 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
11331 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
11332 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
11335 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
11336 word that appears in subjects of articles that are marked with
11337 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
11338 score with 30 points.
11340 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
11341 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
11342 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
11343 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
11344 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
11346 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
11347 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
11348 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
11349 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
11351 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
11352 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
11353 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
11355 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
11356 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
11357 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
11358 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
11361 @node Home Score File
11362 @section Home Score File
11364 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
11365 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
11366 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
11367 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
11369 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
11370 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
11371 could perhaps use the same home score file.
11373 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
11374 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
11379 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
11383 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
11384 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
11388 A list. The elements in this list can be:
11392 @var{(regexp file-name)}. If the @var{regexp} matches the group name,
11393 the @var{file-name} will will be used as the home score file.
11396 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
11397 the home score file.
11400 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
11403 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
11408 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
11411 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11412 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
11415 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
11416 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
11419 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11420 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
11423 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
11425 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
11426 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
11427 their own home score files:
11430 (setq gnus-home-score-file
11431 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
11432 '("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
11433 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
11434 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE"))
11437 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
11438 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
11439 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
11440 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
11441 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
11443 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
11444 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
11445 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
11446 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
11447 precedence over this variable.
11450 @node Followups To Yourself
11451 @section Followups To Yourself
11453 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
11454 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
11455 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
11456 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
11457 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
11458 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
11462 @item gnus-score-followup-article
11463 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
11464 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
11467 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
11468 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
11469 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
11473 @vindex message-sent-hook
11474 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
11475 @code{message-sent-hook}.
11477 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
11478 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
11482 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
11483 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
11486 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
11487 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
11492 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf@@.*eyesore.no>" 1000 nil r))
11495 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
11496 is system-dependent.
11500 @section Scoring Tips
11501 @cindex scoring tips
11507 @cindex scoring crossposts
11508 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
11509 the @code{Xref} header.
11511 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
11514 @item Multiple crossposts
11515 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
11516 more than, say, 3 groups:
11518 ("xref" ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+" -1000 nil r))
11521 @item Matching on the body
11522 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
11523 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
11524 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
11525 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
11526 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
11527 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
11528 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
11531 @item Marking as read
11532 You will probably want to mark articles that has a score below a certain
11533 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
11534 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
11538 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
11540 @item Negated character classes
11541 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
11542 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
11543 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
11547 @node Reverse Scoring
11548 @section Reverse Scoring
11549 @cindex reverse scoring
11551 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
11552 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
11553 like this in your score file:
11557 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
11562 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
11563 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
11566 @node Global Score Files
11567 @section Global Score Files
11568 @cindex global score files
11570 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
11571 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
11572 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
11574 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
11575 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
11576 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
11578 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
11579 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
11580 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
11581 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
11582 files are applicable to which group.
11584 Say you want to use the score file
11585 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
11586 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory:
11589 (setq gnus-global-score-files
11590 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
11591 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
11594 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
11595 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
11596 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
11597 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
11598 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
11600 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
11601 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
11603 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
11604 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
11605 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
11606 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
11607 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
11608 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
11610 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
11616 Articles that are heavily crossposted are probably junk.
11618 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
11620 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
11622 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
11623 lowered out of existence.
11625 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
11626 articles completely.
11629 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
11630 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
11631 old articles for a long time.
11634 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
11635 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
11636 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
11637 holding our breath yet?
11641 @section Kill Files
11644 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
11645 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
11646 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
11648 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
11649 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
11650 files into score files.
11652 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
11653 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
11654 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
11655 that isn't a very good idea.
11657 Normal kill files look like this:
11660 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11661 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
11665 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove them from
11666 the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
11668 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
11669 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
11672 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
11677 @kindex M-k (Summary)
11678 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
11679 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
11682 @kindex M-K (Summary)
11683 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
11684 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
11687 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
11692 @kindex M-k (Group)
11693 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
11694 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
11697 @kindex M-K (Group)
11698 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
11699 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
11702 Kill file variables:
11705 @item gnus-kill-file-name
11706 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
11707 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
11708 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
11709 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
11710 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
11711 course) is called just @file{KILL}.
11713 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
11714 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
11715 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
11716 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
11719 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
11720 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
11721 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
11722 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
11723 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
11724 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
11725 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
11726 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
11727 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
11729 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
11730 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
11731 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
11736 @node Converting Kill Files
11737 @section Converting Kill Files
11739 @cindex converting kill files
11741 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
11742 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
11743 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
11746 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
11747 You can fetch it from
11748 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-other/gnus-kill-to-score}.
11750 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
11751 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
11752 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
11760 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
11761 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
11762 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
11764 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
11765 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
11766 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
11767 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
11768 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
11769 Once it has found for you some people you agree with it tells you, in
11770 the form of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use
11771 this prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
11775 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
11776 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
11777 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
11778 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
11782 @node Using GroupLens
11783 @subsection Using GroupLens
11785 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
11787 @samp{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
11788 better bit in town is at the moment.
11790 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
11794 @item gnus-use-grouplens
11795 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
11796 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
11797 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
11799 @item grouplens-pseudonym
11800 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
11801 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
11802 with the Better Bit Bureau.
11804 @item grouplens-newsgroups
11805 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
11806 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
11810 Thats the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
11811 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
11812 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
11813 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
11814 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
11815 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
11818 @node Rating Articles
11819 @subsection Rating Articles
11821 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
11822 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
11823 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
11824 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
11827 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
11832 @kindex r (GroupLens)
11833 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
11834 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
11837 @kindex k (GroupLens)
11838 @findex grouplens-score-thread
11839 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
11840 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
11841 threads in rec.humor.
11845 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
11846 the score of the article you're reading.
11851 @kindex n (GroupLens)
11852 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
11853 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
11856 @kindex , (GroupLens)
11857 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
11858 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
11862 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
11863 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
11866 @node Displaying Predictions
11867 @subsection Displaying Predictions
11869 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
11870 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
11871 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
11872 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
11873 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
11875 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
11876 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
11877 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
11878 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
11879 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
11880 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
11881 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
11882 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
11883 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
11884 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
11885 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
11886 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
11887 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
11889 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
11890 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
11891 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
11892 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
11894 The following are legal values for that variable.
11897 @item prediction-spot
11898 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
11901 @item confidence-interval
11902 A numeric confidence interval.
11904 @item prediction-bar
11905 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
11907 @item confidence-bar
11908 Numerical confidence.
11910 @item confidence-spot
11911 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
11913 @item prediction-num
11914 Plain-old numeric value.
11916 @item confidence-plus-minus
11917 Prediction +/i confidence.
11922 @node GroupLens Variables
11923 @subsection GroupLens Variables
11927 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
11928 The summary line format used in summary buffers that are GroupLens
11929 enhanced. It accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format
11930 (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}). The default is
11931 @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-20,20n%]%) %s\n}.
11933 @item grouplens-bbb-host
11934 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
11937 @item grouplens-bbb-port
11938 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
11940 @item grouplens-score-offset
11941 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
11942 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
11945 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
11946 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
11947 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
11952 @node Advanced Scoring
11953 @section Advanced Scoring
11955 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
11956 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
11957 about a particular subject? Or what about if you really don't want to
11958 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
11959 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
11961 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
11965 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
11966 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
11967 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
11971 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
11972 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
11974 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
11975 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
11976 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
11977 non-@code{nil} value.
11979 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
11980 operator, and various match operators.
11987 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
11988 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
11989 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
11994 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
11995 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
11996 then this operator will return @code{false}.
12001 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
12002 inverse of the value of its argument.
12006 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
12007 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
12008 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
12009 current article. @code{2-} will make score fules apply to the
12010 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
12011 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) say how far back into
12012 the ancestry you want to go.
12014 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
12015 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
12016 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
12017 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
12018 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
12021 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
12022 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
12024 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
12025 when he's talking about Gnus:
12029 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12030 ("subject" "Gnus"))
12036 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
12040 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12047 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
12048 really don't want to read what he's written:
12052 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
12053 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
12057 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
12058 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
12059 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
12066 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
12067 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
12068 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
12069 ("body" "white.*socks"))
12073 The possibilities are endless.
12076 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
12077 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
12079 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
12080 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
12081 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
12082 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
12083 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
12084 (@samp{body}, @code{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
12085 @samp{subject}) first.
12087 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
12088 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
12099 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
12100 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
12106 ("subject" "Gnus")))
12113 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
12114 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
12119 @section Score Decays
12120 @cindex score decays
12123 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
12124 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
12125 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
12126 use them in any sensible way.
12128 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
12129 @findex gnus-decay-score
12130 @vindex gnus-score-decay-function
12131 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
12132 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
12133 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
12134 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
12135 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-score-decay-function}
12136 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
12137 definition of that function:
12140 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
12143 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
12145 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
12147 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
12150 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
12151 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
12152 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
12153 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
12157 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
12160 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
12163 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
12167 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
12168 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
12169 the new score, which should be an integer.
12171 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
12172 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
12179 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
12180 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
12181 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
12182 * Windows Configuration:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
12183 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
12184 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
12185 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
12186 * Buttons:: Get tendonitis in ten easy steps!
12187 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
12188 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
12189 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
12190 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
12191 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
12192 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
12193 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
12194 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolited commercial email.
12195 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
12199 @node Process/Prefix
12200 @section Process/Prefix
12201 @cindex process/prefix convention
12203 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
12204 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
12206 This is a method for figuring out what articles that the user wants the
12207 command to be performed on.
12211 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
12212 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
12213 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
12214 with the current one.
12216 @vindex transient-mark-mode
12217 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
12218 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
12220 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
12221 process mark, perform the operation on the articles that are marked with
12224 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
12225 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
12227 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
12230 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
12231 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
12232 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
12233 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12235 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
12236 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
12237 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
12238 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
12239 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
12240 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
12241 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
12242 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
12246 @section Interactive
12247 @cindex interaction
12251 @item gnus-novice-user
12252 @vindex gnus-novice-user
12253 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
12254 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
12255 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
12256 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
12259 @item gnus-expert-user
12260 @vindex gnus-expert-user
12261 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will never ever be asked any
12262 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
12263 matter how strange.
12265 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
12266 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
12267 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
12268 is @code{t} by default.
12270 @item gnus-interactive-exit
12271 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
12272 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
12277 @node Formatting Variables
12278 @section Formatting Variables
12279 @cindex formatting variables
12281 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables that
12282 are called things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
12283 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
12284 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
12285 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
12288 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
12289 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
12290 lots of percentages everywhere.
12293 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
12294 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
12295 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
12296 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
12299 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
12300 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
12301 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
12302 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
12303 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
12304 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
12305 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
12306 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
12308 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
12309 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
12311 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
12312 @findex gnus-update-format
12313 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
12314 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
12315 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
12316 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
12320 @node Formatting Basics
12321 @subsection Formatting Basics
12323 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
12324 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
12325 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
12327 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
12328 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
12329 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
12330 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
12331 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
12334 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
12335 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
12336 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
12337 less than 4 characters wide.
12340 @node Advanced Formatting
12341 @subsection Advanced Formatting
12343 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
12344 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
12345 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
12346 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
12348 These are the legal modifiers:
12353 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
12357 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
12362 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
12365 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
12370 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
12373 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
12376 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
12379 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
12383 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
12384 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
12385 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
12386 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
12387 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
12388 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
12389 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
12391 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
12392 last operation, padding.
12394 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
12395 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
12396 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
12397 @xref{Compilation}.
12400 @node User-Defined Specs
12401 @subsection User-Defined Specs
12403 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
12404 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
12405 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
12406 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
12407 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
12408 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
12409 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
12410 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
12411 should protect against that.
12413 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
12414 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
12415 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
12416 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
12420 @node Formatting Fonts
12421 @subsection Formatting Fonts
12423 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
12424 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
12425 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
12426 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
12429 Text inside the @samp{%[} and @samp{%]} specifiers will have their
12430 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
12431 default. If you say @samp{%1[} instead, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1}
12432 instead, and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes
12433 for the @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
12434 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
12436 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
12439 ;; Create three face types.
12440 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
12441 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
12443 ;; We want the article count to be in
12444 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
12445 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
12446 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
12448 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
12449 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
12451 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
12452 (setq gnus-group-line-format
12453 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
12456 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
12457 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
12459 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
12460 mode-line variables.
12463 @node Windows Configuration
12464 @section Windows Configuration
12465 @cindex windows configuration
12467 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
12469 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
12470 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
12471 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
12472 @code{t} by default.
12474 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
12475 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
12476 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
12479 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
12480 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
12481 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
12485 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
12486 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
12487 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
12488 possible names is listed below.
12490 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
12491 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
12494 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
12498 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
12499 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
12500 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
12501 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
12502 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
12503 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
12504 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
12505 size spec per split.
12507 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
12510 Here's a more complicated example:
12513 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
12514 (summary 0.25 point)
12515 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
12519 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
12520 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
12521 occupy, not a percentage.
12523 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
12524 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
12525 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
12526 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
12527 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
12530 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
12533 (article (horizontal 1.0
12538 (summary 0.25 point)
12543 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
12544 @code{horizontal} thingie?
12546 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
12547 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
12548 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
12549 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
12550 the screen is to be given to this strip.
12552 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
12553 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
12554 lines from the splits.
12556 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a legal split
12560 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
12561 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
12562 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
12563 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
12564 buffer = "(" buffer-name " " size *[ "point" ] ")"
12565 size = number | frame-params
12566 buffer-name = group | article | summary ...
12569 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
12570 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
12571 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
12572 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
12574 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
12575 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
12576 @cindex window height
12577 @cindex window width
12578 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
12579 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
12580 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
12581 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
12582 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
12583 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
12585 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
12586 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
12587 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
12588 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
12590 @findex gnus-configure-frame
12591 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
12592 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
12593 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
12594 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
12595 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
12596 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
12597 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
12598 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
12599 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
12600 configuration list.
12603 (gnus-configure-frame
12607 (article 0.3 point))
12615 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
12616 @code{frame} split:
12619 (gnus-configure-frame
12622 (summary 0.25 point)
12624 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
12625 (user-position . t)
12626 (left . -1) (top . 1))
12631 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
12632 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
12633 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
12634 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
12635 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
12636 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
12639 Here's a list of all possible keys for
12640 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration}:
12642 @code{group}, @code{summary}, @code{article}, @code{server},
12643 @code{browse}, @code{message}, @code{pick}, @code{info},
12644 @code{summary-faq}, @code{edit-group}, @code{edit-server},
12645 @code{edit-score}, @code{post}, @code{reply}, @code{forward},
12646 @code{reply-yank}, @code{mail-bounce}, @code{draft}, @code{pipe},
12647 @code{bug}, @code{compose-bounce}.
12649 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
12650 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
12651 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
12655 (message (horizontal 1.0
12656 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
12658 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
12663 @findex gnus-add-configuration
12664 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
12665 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
12666 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
12667 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
12670 (gnus-add-configuration
12671 '(article (vertical 1.0
12673 (summary .25 point)
12677 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
12678 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
12679 Gnus has been loaded.
12681 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
12682 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
12683 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
12684 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
12685 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
12689 @section Compilation
12690 @cindex compilation
12691 @cindex byte-compilation
12693 @findex gnus-compile
12695 Remember all those line format specification variables?
12696 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
12697 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
12698 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
12699 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
12700 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
12703 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
12704 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
12705 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
12706 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
12707 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
12708 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
12709 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
12713 @section Mode Lines
12716 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
12717 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
12718 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
12719 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
12720 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
12721 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
12722 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
12725 @cindex display-time
12727 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
12728 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
12729 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
12730 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
12731 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
12732 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
12733 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
12734 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
12737 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
12739 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
12740 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
12742 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
12743 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
12744 (length display-time-string)))))
12747 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
12748 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either.
12749 Note that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the
12750 percentage complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line;
12751 the user should configure this variable appropriately for their
12755 @node Highlighting and Menus
12756 @section Highlighting and Menus
12758 @cindex highlighting
12761 @vindex gnus-visual
12762 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the prettifying Gnus
12763 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
12764 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
12767 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
12768 following elements are legal, and are all included by default:
12771 @item group-highlight
12772 Do highlights in the group buffer.
12773 @item summary-highlight
12774 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
12775 @item article-highlight
12776 Do highlights in the article buffer.
12778 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
12780 Create menus in the group buffer.
12782 Create menus in the summary buffers.
12784 Create menus in the article buffer.
12786 Create menus in the browse buffer.
12788 Create menus in the server buffer.
12790 Create menus in the score buffers.
12792 Create menus in all buffers.
12795 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
12796 buffers, you could say something like:
12799 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
12802 If you want only highlighting and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
12805 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
12808 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
12809 in all Gnus buffers.
12811 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
12814 @item gnus-mouse-face
12815 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
12816 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
12817 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
12821 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
12825 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
12826 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
12827 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
12829 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
12830 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
12831 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
12833 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
12834 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
12835 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
12837 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
12838 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
12839 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
12841 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
12842 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
12843 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
12845 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
12846 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
12847 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
12858 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
12859 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
12860 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
12861 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
12862 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
12866 @vindex gnus-carpal
12867 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
12868 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
12869 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
12874 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
12875 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
12876 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
12878 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
12879 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
12880 Face used on buttons.
12882 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
12883 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
12884 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
12886 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
12887 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
12888 Buttons in the group buffer.
12890 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
12891 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
12892 Buttons in the summary buffer.
12894 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
12895 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
12896 Buttons in the server buffer.
12898 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
12899 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
12900 Buttons in the browse buffer.
12903 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
12904 is either a cons cell where the car contains a text to be displayed and
12905 the cdr contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
12913 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
12914 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
12915 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
12916 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
12917 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
12919 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
12920 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
12921 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
12923 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
12924 been idle for thirty minutes:
12927 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
12930 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
12934 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
12937 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter works together
12938 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
12939 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
12941 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
12942 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
12943 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
12944 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
12946 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
12947 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
12948 @var{idle} minutes.
12950 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
12951 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
12954 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
12955 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
12956 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
12958 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
12959 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
12960 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
12961 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
12963 @vindex gnus-use-demon
12964 To set the whole thing in motion, though, you have to set
12965 @code{gnus-use-demon} to @code{t}.
12967 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
12968 your @file{.gnus} file:
12970 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
12972 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
12975 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
12976 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
12977 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
12978 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
12979 Some ready-made functions to do this has been created:
12980 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
12981 @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just
12982 put those functions in your @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
12984 @findex gnus-demon-init
12985 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
12986 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
12987 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
12988 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
12989 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
12991 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you overdo it. Adding
12992 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
12993 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
13002 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
13003 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
13005 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
13006 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
13007 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
13008 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
13011 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
13012 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
13013 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
13014 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
13016 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
13017 this will make spam disappear.
13019 There are some variables to customize, of course:
13022 @item gnus-use-nocem
13023 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
13024 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
13027 @item gnus-nocem-groups
13028 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
13029 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
13030 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
13031 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
13033 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
13034 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
13035 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
13036 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
13037 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;" "jem@@xpat.com;" "red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us
13038 (Richard E. Depew)")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
13040 Known despammers that you can put in this list include:
13043 @item clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca;
13044 @cindex Chris Lewis
13045 Chris Lewis---Major Canadian despammer who has probably canceled more
13046 usenet abuse than anybody else.
13049 @cindex CancelMoose[tm]
13050 The CancelMoose[tm] on autopilot. The CancelMoose[tm] is reputed to be
13051 Norwegian, and was the person(s) who invented NoCeM.
13053 @item jem@@xpat.com;
13055 John Milburn---despammer located in Korea who is getting very busy these
13058 @item red@@redpoll.mrfs.oh.us (Richard E. Depew)
13059 Richard E. Depew---lone American despammer. He mostly cancels binary
13060 postings to non-binary groups and removes spews (regurgitated articles).
13063 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
13064 ones you want to listen to.
13066 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
13067 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
13069 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
13070 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
13071 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
13072 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
13074 @item gnus-nocem-directory
13075 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
13076 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
13077 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
13079 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
13080 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
13081 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
13082 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
13083 might then see old spam.
13091 So... You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
13092 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
13093 over your shoulder as you read news.
13096 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
13097 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
13098 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
13099 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
13100 * Picon Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
13105 @subsection Picon Basics
13107 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
13110 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
13111 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
13112 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
13113 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
13114 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
13115 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
13116 @code{GIF} formats.
13119 For instructions on obtaining and installing the picons databases, point
13120 your Web browser at
13121 @file{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}.
13123 @vindex gnus-picons-database
13124 Gnus expects picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
13125 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
13128 @node Picon Requirements
13129 @subsection Picon Requirements
13131 To use have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
13132 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
13135 Additionally, you must have @code{xpm} support compiled into XEmacs.
13137 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
13138 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you must have
13139 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
13140 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
13144 @subsection Easy Picons
13146 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
13147 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
13150 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
13151 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
13152 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-prepare-hook 'gnus-group-display-picons t)
13153 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-picons-article-display-x-face)
13158 @subsection Hard Picons
13160 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
13161 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
13162 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
13163 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
13164 feature, you need to first decide where to display them.
13168 @item gnus-picons-display-where
13169 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
13170 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
13171 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
13172 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
13173 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
13174 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
13175 routines---@pxref{Windows Configuration}.
13179 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
13180 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
13182 Now that you've made that decision, you need to add the following
13183 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get
13184 displayed at the right time.
13186 @vindex gnus-article-display-hook
13187 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
13189 @item gnus-article-display-picons
13190 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
13191 Looks up and display the picons for the author and the author's domain
13192 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer. Should be added to
13193 the @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
13195 @item gnus-group-display-picons
13196 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
13197 Displays picons representing the current group. This function should
13198 be added to the @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook} or to the
13199 @code{gnus-article-display-hook} if @code{gnus-picons-display-where}
13200 is set to @code{article}.
13202 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
13203 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
13204 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present. This function
13205 should be added to @code{gnus-article-display-hook}.
13209 Note: You must append them to the hook, so make sure to specify 't'
13210 to the append flag of @code{add-hook}:
13213 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-display-picons t)
13217 @node Picon Configuration
13218 @subsection Picon Configuration
13220 The following variables offer further control over how things are
13221 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
13222 don't need to worry about.
13225 @item gnus-picons-database
13226 @vindex gnus-picons-database
13227 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
13228 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
13229 subdirectories. Defaults to @file{/usr/local/faces}.
13231 @item gnus-picons-news-directory
13232 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directory
13233 Sub-directory of the faces database containing the icons for
13236 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
13237 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
13238 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
13239 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc/MISC")} is the default.
13241 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
13242 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
13243 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
13244 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
13245 want to add @samp{unknown} to this list.
13247 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
13248 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
13249 The command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
13250 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
13251 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
13252 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
13254 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
13255 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
13256 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
13257 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
13259 @item gnus-picons-buffer
13260 @vindex gnus-picons-buffer
13261 The name of the buffer that @code{picons} points to. Defaults to
13262 @samp{*Icon Buffer*}.
13271 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
13272 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
13273 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
13275 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
13276 Gnus---it's all just data that is designed to look nice to the user.
13277 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
13278 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
13279 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
13280 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
13281 @code{undo} function.
13283 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
13284 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
13285 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
13286 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
13287 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
13288 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
13289 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
13290 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
13291 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
13292 never be totally undoable.
13294 @findex gnus-undo-mode
13295 @vindex gnus-use-undo
13297 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
13298 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
13299 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo} command
13300 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
13305 @section Moderation
13308 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
13309 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
13310 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
13313 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
13317 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
13320 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
13322 If you are the moderation of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
13327 You split your incoming mail by matching on
13328 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
13329 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
13332 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
13333 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
13336 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
13337 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
13341 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
13344 (setq gnus-moderated-list
13345 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
13349 @node XEmacs Enhancements
13350 @section XEmacs Enhancements
13353 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
13354 advantage of that. Relevant variables include:
13357 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
13358 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
13359 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
13360 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
13361 unusual directory structure.
13363 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
13364 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
13365 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
13366 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
13368 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
13369 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
13370 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
13371 Legal values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
13372 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
13373 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
13375 @item gnus-use-toolbar
13376 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
13377 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
13378 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
13379 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
13381 @item gnus-group-toolbar
13382 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
13383 The toolbar in the group buffer.
13385 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
13386 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
13387 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
13389 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
13390 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
13391 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
13393 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
13394 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
13395 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
13401 @node Fuzzy Matching
13402 @section Fuzzy Matching
13403 @cindex fuzzy matching
13405 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
13406 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
13408 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
13409 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
13410 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
13412 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
13413 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
13414 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
13415 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
13416 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
13419 @node Thwarting Email Spam
13420 @section Thwarting Email Spam
13424 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
13426 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
13427 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
13428 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
13429 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
13430 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
13431 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
13432 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
13433 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
13436 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
13437 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
13438 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and selects the
13439 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
13440 ``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrouos hair on your toes!''
13441 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
13445 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
13446 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
13448 First, pick one (1) legal mail address that you can be reached at, and
13449 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
13450 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}.)
13453 (setq message-default-news-headers
13454 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
13457 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
13458 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
13463 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
13464 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
13465 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
13471 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
13472 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
13473 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
13474 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
13476 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
13477 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
13478 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
13479 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
13480 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
13482 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
13483 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
13484 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
13485 to non-existant domains is yucky, in my opinion.
13488 @node Various Various
13489 @section Various Various
13495 @item gnus-home-directory
13496 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
13497 defaults to @file{~/}.
13499 @item gnus-directory
13500 @vindex gnus-directory
13501 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
13502 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
13503 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
13505 @item gnus-default-directory
13506 @vindex gnus-default-directory
13507 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
13508 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
13509 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
13510 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
13511 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
13512 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
13515 @vindex gnus-verbose
13516 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
13517 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
13518 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
13519 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
13520 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
13522 @item gnus-verbose-backends
13523 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
13524 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
13525 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
13527 @item nnheader-max-head-length
13528 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
13529 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
13530 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
13531 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
13532 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
13533 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
13534 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
13535 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
13538 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
13539 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
13540 This variable says how big a piece of each article to read when doing
13541 the operation described above.
13543 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13544 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13546 @cindex illegal characters in file names
13547 @cindex characters in file names
13548 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
13549 For instance, if @samp{:} is illegal as a file character in file names
13550 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
13553 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
13557 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
13558 Windows (phooey) systems.
13560 @item gnus-hidden-properties
13561 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
13562 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
13563 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
13564 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
13566 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
13567 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
13568 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
13569 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
13570 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
13572 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
13573 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
13574 String used to separate to shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
13583 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
13584 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
13586 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
13588 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
13594 Not because of victories @*
13597 but for the common sunshine,@*
13599 the largess of the spring.
13603 but for the day's work done@*
13604 as well as I was able;@*
13605 not for a seat upon the dais@*
13606 but at the common table.@*
13611 @chapter Appendices
13614 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
13615 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
13616 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
13617 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
13618 * A Programmers Guide to Gnus:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
13619 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
13620 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
13628 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
13629 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
13631 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage, you
13632 can point your (feh!) web browser to
13633 @file{http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/}. This is also the primary
13634 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is known
13635 as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
13637 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
13638 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
13639 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
13640 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
13641 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
13642 appropriate name, don't you think?)
13644 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
13645 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
13646 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
13647 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
13649 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
13650 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
13651 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
13653 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
13654 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
13656 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
13657 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4''.
13659 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a name that is prefixed --
13660 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'' --
13661 don't panic. Don't let it know that you're frightened. Back away.
13662 Slowly. Whatever you do, don't run. Walk away, calmly, until you're
13663 out of its reach. Find a proper released version of Gnus and snuggle up
13667 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
13668 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
13669 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
13670 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
13671 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
13672 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
13673 * Newest Features:: Features so new that they haven't been written yet.
13680 What's the point of Gnus?
13682 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
13683 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
13684 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
13685 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
13686 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
13687 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
13688 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
13689 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
13690 keep track of millions of people who post?
13692 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
13693 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
13694 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
13695 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
13696 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
13697 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
13698 everywhere I could imagine useful. By doing so, I'm inviting every one
13699 of you to explore and invent.
13701 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x hail-emacs}.
13704 @node Compatibility
13705 @subsection Compatibility
13707 @cindex compatibility
13708 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
13709 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
13710 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
13715 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
13719 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
13722 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @pxref{Decoding
13725 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
13726 buffers. All variables that are relevant while reading a group are
13727 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
13728 important variables have their values copied into their global
13729 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
13730 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
13732 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
13733 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
13734 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
13735 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
13736 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
13740 @cindex highlighting
13741 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
13742 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
13743 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
13744 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
13745 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
13746 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
13749 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
13750 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
13751 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
13752 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
13754 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
13755 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
13756 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
13757 to stop doing it the old way.
13759 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
13761 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
13763 @cindex reporting bugs
13765 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
13766 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
13767 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
13771 @subsection Conformity
13773 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
13774 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
13781 There are no known breaches of this standard.
13785 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
13787 @item Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
13788 @cindex Good Net-Keeping Seal of Approval
13789 Gnus has been through the Seal process and failed. I think it'll pass
13790 the next inspection.
13792 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
13793 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
13794 We do have some breaches to this one.
13799 Gnus does no MIME handling, and this standard-to-be seems to think that
13800 MIME is the bees' knees, so we have major breakage here.
13803 This is considered to be a ``vanity header'', while I consider it to be
13804 consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted articles
13805 coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use either of
13806 those for posting articles. I would not have known that if it wasn't
13807 for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
13812 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliantly with regards to the texts
13813 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
13818 @subsection Emacsen
13824 Gnus should work on :
13829 Emacs 19.32 and up.
13832 XEmacs 19.14 and up.
13835 Mule versions based on Emacs 19.32 and up.
13839 Gnus will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than that. Not
13840 reliably, at least.
13842 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
13843 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
13844 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
13849 @subsection Contributors
13850 @cindex contributors
13852 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
13853 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
13854 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
13855 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
13856 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
13857 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
13858 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
13859 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
13860 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
13861 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
13863 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
13869 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
13872 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
13873 well as numerous other things).
13876 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
13879 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
13882 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
13883 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
13886 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
13887 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
13890 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
13893 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
13896 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
13899 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
13902 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinsky---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
13903 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
13906 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
13909 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
13912 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
13915 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
13919 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
13922 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
13925 Ricardo Nassif, Mark Borges, and Jost Krieger---proof-reading.
13928 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
13931 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports.
13935 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
13944 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
13948 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
13963 Massimo Campostrini,
13967 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
13981 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
13983 François Felix Ingrand,
13984 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
13991 Peter Skov Knudsen,
13992 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
13993 Thor Kristoffersen,
14008 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
14009 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
14015 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
14020 John McClary Prevost,
14027 Philippe Schnoebelen,
14028 Randal L. Schwartz,
14046 Katsumi Yamaoka. @c Yamaoka
14048 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
14049 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
14050 (550kB and counting).
14052 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
14055 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
14056 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
14060 @subsection New Features
14061 @cindex new features
14064 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
14065 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.3/5.3.
14066 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
14069 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
14070 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
14071 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
14075 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
14077 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
14082 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
14083 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
14086 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
14087 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
14090 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
14093 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
14094 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
14095 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
14098 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
14099 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
14100 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
14101 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
14104 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
14105 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
14108 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
14109 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
14110 (@pxref{The Active File}).
14113 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
14114 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
14117 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
14118 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
14119 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
14122 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
14123 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
14124 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
14127 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
14128 the @file{.emacs} file.
14131 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
14132 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
14135 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
14136 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
14139 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
14140 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
14143 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
14144 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
14147 Gnus can fetch articles asynchronously on a second connection to the
14148 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
14151 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
14154 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
14155 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
14158 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
14159 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
14162 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
14163 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
14166 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
14169 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
14170 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
14173 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
14177 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
14181 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
14182 configuration (@pxref{Windows Configuration}).
14185 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
14191 @node September Gnus
14192 @subsubsection September Gnus
14194 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
14199 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
14200 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
14204 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
14205 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
14209 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
14213 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
14214 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
14217 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
14221 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
14224 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
14227 A @code{trn}-line tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
14230 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
14234 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
14235 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
14238 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
14242 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
14246 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
14250 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
14254 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
14257 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
14258 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
14261 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
14265 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
14266 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
14269 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
14272 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
14273 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
14274 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
14277 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
14281 The Gnus cache is much faster.
14284 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
14288 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-address and
14289 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
14292 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
14293 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
14296 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
14297 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
14300 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
14301 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
14302 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
14305 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
14306 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
14309 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
14312 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
14315 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
14316 'gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head)
14320 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
14323 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
14326 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
14327 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
14330 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Windows
14334 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
14337 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
14340 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
14344 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
14347 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
14351 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
14354 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
14357 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
14358 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
14361 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
14362 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
14366 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
14367 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
14370 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
14374 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
14375 buffer to allow easier treatment.
14378 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
14381 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
14385 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
14389 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
14390 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
14393 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
14397 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
14398 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
14401 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
14402 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
14405 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
14409 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
14412 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook
14413 'gnus-article-hide-boring-headers t)
14417 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
14420 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
14426 @subsubsection Red Gnus
14428 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
14433 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
14436 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
14437 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
14440 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
14441 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
14445 Article washing status can be displayed in the
14446 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
14449 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
14452 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
14453 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
14456 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
14460 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
14461 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}).
14464 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
14465 Server Internals}).
14468 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
14472 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
14475 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
14476 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
14479 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
14480 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
14481 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
14484 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
14485 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
14488 A way to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed when
14489 generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
14492 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
14496 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
14497 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
14500 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
14501 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
14504 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
14508 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
14511 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
14515 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
14516 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
14519 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
14520 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
14523 A new command for reading collections of documents
14524 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
14525 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
14528 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
14532 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the NNTP
14533 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
14536 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
14537 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
14538 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
14541 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
14542 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
14546 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
14550 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
14554 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
14558 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
14562 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
14563 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
14566 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
14569 (add-hook 'gnus-article-display-hook 'gnus-article-emphasize)
14575 @node Newest Features
14576 @subsection Newest Features
14579 Also known as the @dfn{todo list}. Sure to be implemented before the
14582 Be afraid. Be very afraid.
14586 Native @sc{mime} support is something that should be done.
14588 Really do unbinhexing.
14591 And much, much, much more. There is more to come than has already been
14592 implemented. (But that's always true, isn't it?)
14594 @file{<URL:http://www.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/rgnus/todo>} is where the actual
14595 up-to-the-second todo list is located, so if you're really curious, you
14596 could point your Web browser over that-a-way.
14601 @section The Manual
14605 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
14606 either @code{texi2dvi}
14608 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
14609 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
14611 to get what you hold in your hands now.
14613 The following conventions have been used:
14618 This is a @samp{string}
14621 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
14624 This is a @file{file}
14627 This is a @code{symbol}
14631 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
14635 (setq flargnoze "yes")
14638 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
14641 (setq flumphel 'yes)
14644 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
14645 ever get them confused.
14649 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
14650 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
14651 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
14652 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
14653 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
14654 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
14655 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
14662 @section Terminology
14664 @cindex terminology
14669 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
14670 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
14671 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
14672 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
14673 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
14677 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
14678 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
14679 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
14680 not posting, and replying is not following up.
14684 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
14688 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
14693 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
14694 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
14695 is all done by the backends.
14699 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
14700 default, way of getting news.
14704 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
14705 These are groups that use different backends for getting news.
14709 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
14710 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
14714 A message that has been posted as news.
14717 @cindex mail message
14718 A message that has been mailed.
14722 A mail message or news article
14726 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
14731 The rest of an article. Everything that is not in the head is in the
14736 A line from the head of an article.
14740 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
14741 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
14745 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
14746 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
14747 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
14748 normal @sc{head} format.
14752 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
14753 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
14754 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
14755 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
14756 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
14757 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
14759 @item killed groups
14760 @cindex killed groups
14761 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
14762 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
14764 @item zombie groups
14765 @cindex zombie groups
14766 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
14769 @cindex active file
14770 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
14771 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
14772 is rather large, as you might surmise.
14775 @cindex bogus groups
14776 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
14777 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
14778 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
14782 A machine than one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
14784 @item select method
14785 @cindex select method
14786 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
14789 @item virtual server
14790 @cindex virtual server
14791 A named select method. Since a select methods defines all there is to
14792 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the things as a
14793 whole is a virtual server.
14797 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
14798 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
14801 @item ephemeral groups
14802 @cindex ephemeral groups
14803 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
14804 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
14805 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
14808 @cindex solid groups
14809 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
14810 group buffer are solid groups.
14812 @item sparse articles
14813 @cindex sparse articles
14814 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
14815 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
14820 @node Customization
14821 @section Customization
14822 @cindex general customization
14824 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
14825 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
14826 for some quite common situations.
14829 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
14830 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
14831 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
14832 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
14836 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
14837 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
14839 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
14840 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
14841 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
14845 @item gnus-read-active-file
14846 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
14847 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
14848 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
14849 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
14850 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
14852 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
14853 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
14854 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
14855 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
14859 @node Slow Terminal Connection
14860 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
14862 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that
14863 runs Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce the
14864 amount of data that is sent over the wires as much as possible.
14868 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
14869 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
14870 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
14871 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
14872 horizontal and vertical recentering.
14874 @item gnus-visible-headers
14875 Cut down on the headers that are included in the articles to the
14876 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
14877 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
14878 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
14880 @item gnus-article-display-hook
14881 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
14883 (setq gnus-article-display-hook
14884 '(gnus-article-hide-headers gnus-article-hide-signature
14885 gnus-article-hide-citation))
14888 @item gnus-use-full-window
14889 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
14890 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
14891 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
14892 want to read them anyway.
14894 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
14895 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
14898 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
14899 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
14900 lines, which might save some time.
14904 @node Little Disk Space
14905 @subsection Little Disk Space
14908 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
14909 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
14913 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
14914 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
14915 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
14916 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
14919 @item gnus-save-killed-list
14920 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
14921 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
14922 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
14923 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
14929 @subsection Slow Machine
14930 @cindex slow machine
14932 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
14933 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
14935 Set@code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
14936 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
14938 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
14939 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
14940 summary buffer faster.
14942 Set @code{gnus-article-display-hook} to @code{nil} to make article
14943 processing a bit faster.
14946 @node Troubleshooting
14947 @section Troubleshooting
14948 @cindex troubleshooting
14950 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
14958 Make sure your computer is switched on.
14961 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
14962 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
14966 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
14967 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
14968 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
14969 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
14972 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
14976 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
14977 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
14978 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
14979 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
14980 something like that.
14983 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
14986 @cindex reporting bugs
14988 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
14990 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
14991 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
14992 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
14993 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
14995 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
14996 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
14997 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
14998 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
15001 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
15002 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you send back
15003 just ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
15004 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
15005 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
15006 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
15008 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
15009 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
15010 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
15013 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
15014 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
15016 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
15017 @cindex ding mailing list
15018 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
15019 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
15022 @node A Programmers Guide to Gnus
15023 @section A Programmer@'s Guide to Gnus
15025 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
15026 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
15027 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
15028 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
15031 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
15032 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
15033 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
15034 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
15035 and general method of operations.
15038 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
15039 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
15040 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
15041 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
15042 * Group Info:: The group info format.
15043 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
15044 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
15048 @node Backend Interface
15049 @subsection Backend Interface
15051 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
15052 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
15053 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
15054 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
15055 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
15056 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
15058 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
15059 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
15060 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
15061 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
15062 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
15063 been opened, the function should fail.
15065 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
15066 name. Take this example:
15070 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
15071 (nntp-port-number 4324))
15074 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
15075 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
15077 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
15078 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
15079 server environments that it pulls down/pushes up when needed.
15081 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
15082 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
15083 always check whether are present before attempting to call.
15085 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
15086 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
15087 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
15088 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
15089 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
15090 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
15093 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
15094 some might be said to not be. The latter are backends that generally
15095 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
15096 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
15099 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
15102 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
15105 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
15106 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
15107 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
15108 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
15109 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
15110 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
15114 @node Required Backend Functions
15115 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
15119 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
15121 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
15122 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
15123 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
15124 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
15126 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
15127 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
15128 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
15129 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
15131 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try to fetch "extra
15132 headers, in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
15133 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
15134 article number in @code{articles}, and fill in the gaps as well. The
15135 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
15136 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
15137 number, do maximum fetches.
15139 Here's an example HEAD:
15142 221 1056 Article retrieved.
15143 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
15144 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
15145 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
15146 Subject: Re: Something very droll
15147 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
15148 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
15150 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
15151 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
15152 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
15156 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
15157 these in the data buffer.
15159 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
15163 head = error / valid-head
15164 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
15165 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
15166 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
15167 header = <text> eol
15170 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
15171 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
15175 nov-buffer = *nov-line
15176 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
15177 field = <text except TAB>
15180 For a closer explanation what should be in those fields,
15184 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
15186 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
15187 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that defines this virtual server.
15189 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
15190 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
15191 server. In fact, it should do so.
15193 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
15194 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
15197 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
15199 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
15200 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
15203 There should be no data returned.
15206 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
15208 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
15209 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
15210 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
15211 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
15213 There should be no data returned.
15216 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
15218 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
15219 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
15220 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
15221 attempt to reconnect to a server that is has lost connection to.
15223 There should be no data returned.
15226 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
15228 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
15230 There should be no data returned.
15233 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
15235 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
15236 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
15237 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
15238 it would be nice if that were possible.
15240 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
15241 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
15242 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
15243 another, and Gnus mainly request articles to be inserted directly into
15244 its article buffer.
15246 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
15247 the car is the group name the article was fetched from, and the cdr is
15248 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
15249 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
15250 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
15251 on successful article retrievement.
15254 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
15256 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
15257 making @var{group} the current group.
15259 If @var{FAST}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
15262 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
15265 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
15268 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
15269 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
15270 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
15271 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
15272 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
15273 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
15274 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
15275 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
15278 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
15279 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
15280 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
15284 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
15286 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
15287 a no-op on most backends.
15289 There should be no data returned.
15292 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
15294 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
15297 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
15300 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
15301 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
15304 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
15305 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
15308 active-file = *active-line
15309 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
15311 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
15314 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
15315 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
15316 (@samp{=other-group} or none of the above (@samp{y}).
15319 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
15321 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
15322 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
15323 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
15324 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
15325 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
15326 clear if the posting could not be completed.
15328 There should be no result data from this function.
15333 @node Optional Backend Functions
15334 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
15338 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
15340 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
15341 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
15342 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
15344 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
15345 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
15346 former is in the same format as the data from
15347 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
15348 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
15351 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
15355 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
15357 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
15358 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
15359 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
15360 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
15361 should return the (altered) group info.
15363 There should be no result data from this function.
15366 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
15368 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
15369 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
15370 user is following up is news or mail. This function should return
15371 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
15372 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
15373 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
15374 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
15375 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
15377 There should be no result data from this function.
15380 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
15382 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
15383 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
15384 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
15385 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
15386 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
15388 The only use for this that I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
15389 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
15390 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
15393 There should be no result data from this function.
15396 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
15398 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
15399 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
15400 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
15401 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
15402 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
15403 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
15404 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
15406 There should be no result data from this function.
15409 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
15411 The result data from this function should be a description of
15415 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
15417 description = <text>
15420 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
15422 The result data from this function should be the description of all
15423 groups available on the server.
15426 description-buffer = *description-line
15430 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
15432 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
15433 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
15434 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
15437 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
15439 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
15441 There should be no return data.
15444 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
15446 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
15447 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
15448 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
15449 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
15450 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
15453 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
15456 There should be no result data returned.
15459 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
15462 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
15463 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
15465 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
15466 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
15467 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
15468 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
15469 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
15470 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
15472 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
15473 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
15476 The function should return a cons where the car is the group name and
15477 the cdr is the article number that the article was entered as.
15479 There should be no data returned.
15482 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
15484 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
15485 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
15486 this function in short order.
15488 The function should return a cons where the car is the group name and
15489 the cdr is the article number that the article was entered as.
15491 There should be no data returned.
15494 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
15496 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
15497 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
15499 There should be no data returned.
15502 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
15504 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
15505 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
15506 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
15508 There should be no data returned.
15511 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
15513 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
15514 articles that are in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
15516 There should be no data returned.
15521 @node Error Messaging
15522 @subsubsection Error Messaging
15524 @findex nnheader-report
15525 @findex nnheader-get-report
15526 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
15527 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
15528 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
15529 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
15530 there are many of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
15531 This function always returns @code{nil}.
15534 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
15536 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
15539 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
15540 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
15541 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
15542 takes one argument---the server symbol.
15544 Internally, these function access @var{backend}@code{-status-string}, so
15545 the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
15546 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
15549 @node Writing New Backends
15550 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
15552 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
15553 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
15554 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
15555 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
15556 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
15559 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
15560 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
15561 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
15563 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
15564 package called @code{nnoo}.
15566 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
15567 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
15574 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
15575 parameters. For instance:
15578 (nnoo-declare nndir
15582 @code{nndir} has here declared that it intends to inherit functions from
15583 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
15586 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
15587 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
15588 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
15590 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
15591 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
15592 a function in those backends.
15595 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
15596 "Where nndir will look for groups."
15597 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
15600 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
15601 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
15602 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
15604 @item nnoo-define-basics
15605 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
15609 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
15613 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
15614 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
15615 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
15617 @item nnoo-map-functions
15618 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
15619 functions from the parent backends.
15622 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
15623 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15624 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
15627 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
15628 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
15629 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
15630 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
15633 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
15634 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
15635 haven't already been defined.
15641 nnmh-request-newgroups)
15645 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
15646 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
15647 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
15652 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
15655 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
15656 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
15660 (require 'nnheader)
15664 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
15666 (nnoo-declare nndir
15669 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
15670 "Where nndir will look for groups."
15671 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
15673 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
15674 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
15677 (defvoo nndir-current-group "" nil nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
15678 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
15679 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
15681 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
15682 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
15684 ;;; Interface functions.
15686 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
15688 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
15689 (setq nndir-directory
15690 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
15692 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
15693 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
15694 (push `(nndir-current-group
15695 ,(file-name-nondirectory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
15697 (push `(nndir-top-directory
15698 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
15700 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
15702 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
15703 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15704 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
15705 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
15706 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
15710 nnmh-status-message
15712 nnmh-request-newgroups))
15718 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
15719 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
15721 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
15722 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
15723 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
15724 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
15726 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
15727 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
15732 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
15735 The abilities can be:
15739 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
15741 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
15743 This backend supports both mail and news.
15745 This is neither a post or mail backend---it's something completely
15748 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
15749 articles and groups.
15751 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
15752 true for almost all backends.
15753 @item prompt-address
15754 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
15755 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
15756 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
15760 @node Mail-like Backends
15761 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
15763 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
15764 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
15765 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
15766 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
15769 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
15770 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
15771 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
15774 It simply just calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will a few parameters,
15775 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
15778 This function takes four parameters.
15782 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
15785 @item exit-function
15786 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
15788 @item temp-directory
15789 Where the temporary files should be stored.
15792 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
15793 performed for one group only.
15796 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
15797 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
15798 find the article number assigned to this article.
15800 The function also uses the following variables:
15801 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
15802 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
15803 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
15804 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
15808 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
15809 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
15813 @node Score File Syntax
15814 @subsection Score File Syntax
15816 Score files are meant to be easily parsable, but yet extremely
15817 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
15818 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
15820 Here's a typical score file:
15824 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
15831 BNF definition of a score file:
15834 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
15835 element = rule / atom
15836 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
15837 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
15838 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
15839 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
15841 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
15842 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
15843 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
15844 date-header = "date"
15845 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15846 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
15847 score = "nil" / <integer>
15848 date = "nil" / <natural number>
15849 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
15850 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
15851 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
15852 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
15853 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15854 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
15855 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
15856 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
15857 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
15858 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
15859 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
15860 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
15861 exclude-files / read-only / touched
15862 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
15863 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
15864 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
15865 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
15866 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
15867 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
15868 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
15869 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
15870 adapt = "adapt" [ space "nil" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
15871 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
15872 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
15873 eval = "eval" space <form>
15874 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
15877 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
15880 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
15881 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
15882 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
15883 one looong line, then that's ok.
15885 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
15890 @subsection Headers
15892 Gnus uses internally a format for storing article headers that
15893 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
15894 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
15895 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
15897 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
15898 RFC1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
15899 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
15900 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
15901 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
15902 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
15903 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
15905 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
15906 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
15907 @code{xref}. There are macros for accessing and setting these
15908 slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
15909 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
15911 The @code{xref} slot is really a @code{misc} slot. Any extra info will
15918 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
15919 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
15921 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
15922 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
15923 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
15924 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
15926 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
15930 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
15933 is transformed into
15936 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
15939 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
15940 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
15943 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
15946 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
15947 is slightly tricky:
15950 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
15956 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
15959 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
15965 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
15972 and is equal to the previous range.
15974 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
15975 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
15976 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
15980 range = simple-range / normal-range
15981 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
15982 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
15983 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
15984 number *[ " " contents ]
15987 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
15988 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
15989 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
15990 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
15991 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
15996 @subsection Group Info
15998 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
15999 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
16000 describes the group.
16002 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
16003 second is a more complex one:
16006 ("no.group" 5 (1 . 54324))
16008 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
16009 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
16011 (auto-expire (to-address "ding@@gnus.org")))
16014 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
16015 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
16016 normally is a small integer. The third element is a list of ranges of
16017 read articles. The fourth element is a list of lists of article marks
16018 of various kinds. The fifth element is the select method (or virtual
16019 server, if you like). The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group
16020 parameters}, which is what this section is about.
16022 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
16023 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
16024 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
16026 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
16029 info = "(" group space level space read
16030 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
16031 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
16032 group = quote <string> quote
16033 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
16035 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
16036 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
16037 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
16038 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
16041 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
16042 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
16046 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
16047 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
16051 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
16052 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
16053 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
16055 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
16056 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
16057 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
16058 Gnus, that's very useful.
16060 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
16061 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
16062 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
16063 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
16064 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
16065 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
16066 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
16067 following function:
16070 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
16074 (,function ,@@args))
16078 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
16079 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
16080 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
16083 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
16084 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
16085 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
16088 @node Various File Formats
16089 @subsection Various File Formats
16092 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
16093 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
16097 @node Active File Format
16098 @subsubsection Active File Format
16100 The active file lists all groups that are available on the server in
16101 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
16104 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
16107 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
16108 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
16109 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
16110 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
16111 no.general 1000 900 y
16114 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
16117 active = *group-line
16118 group-line = group space high-number space low-number space flag <NEWLINE>
16119 group = <non-white-space string>
16121 high-number = <non-negative integer>
16122 low-number = <positive integer>
16123 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
16127 @node Newsgroups File Format
16128 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
16130 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
16131 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
16132 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
16135 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
16136 Here's the definition:
16140 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
16141 group = <non-white-space string>
16143 description = <string>
16147 @node Emacs for Heathens
16148 @section Emacs for Heathens
16150 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
16151 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
16152 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
16153 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
16154 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
16155 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
16156 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
16160 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
16161 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
16166 @subsection Keystrokes
16170 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
16173 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
16176 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
16177 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
16178 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
16179 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
16180 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
16181 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
16183 The shift key is normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
16184 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
16185 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
16186 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
16187 keyboards. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
16188 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
16189 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
16191 Now, us Emacs people doesn't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
16192 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
16193 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
16194 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
16195 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
16196 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
16197 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
16199 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
16200 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
16201 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
16202 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
16203 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
16209 @subsection Emacs Lisp
16211 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
16212 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
16213 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
16214 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
16216 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
16217 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
16218 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
16219 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
16220 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
16221 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
16222 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
16225 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
16226 write the following:
16229 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
16232 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
16233 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
16234 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
16237 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
16238 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
16239 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
16240 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
16241 previous ``form'', which here is a simple @code{setq} statement.
16243 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
16244 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
16245 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
16249 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
16253 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
16256 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
16257 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
16260 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
16263 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
16264 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
16267 @include gnus-faq.texi