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10 * Gnus: (gnus). The newsreader Gnus.
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268 \gnusauthor{by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen}
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277 Copyright \copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000
278 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
281 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
282 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
283 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
284 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
285 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
286 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
287 License'' in the Emacs manual.
289 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
290 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
291 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
293 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
294 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
295 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
296 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
304 This file documents Gnus, the GNU Emacs newsreader.
306 Copyright (C) 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
308 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
309 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
310 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with the
311 Invariant Sections being none, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
312 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
313 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
314 License'' in the Emacs manual.
316 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
317 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
318 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
320 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
321 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
322 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
323 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
331 @author by Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen
334 @vskip 0pt plus 1filll
335 Copyright @copyright{} 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
337 Permission is granted to copy, distribute and/or modify this document
338 under the terms of the GNU Free Documentation License, Version 1.1 or
339 any later version published by the Free Software Foundation; with no
340 Invariant Sections, with the Front-Cover texts being ``A GNU
341 Manual'', and with the Back-Cover Texts as in (a) below. A copy of the
342 license is included in the section entitled ``GNU Free Documentation
343 License'' in the Emacs manual.
345 (a) The FSF's Back-Cover Text is: ``You have freedom to copy and modify
346 this GNU Manual, like GNU software. Copies published by the Free
347 Software Foundation raise funds for GNU development.''
349 This document is part of a collection distributed under the GNU Free
350 Documentation License. If you want to distribute this document
351 separately from the collection, you can do so by adding a copy of the
352 license to the document, as described in section 6 of the license.
361 @top The Gnus Newsreader
365 You can read news (and mail) from within Emacs by using Gnus. The news
366 can be gotten by any nefarious means you can think of---@sc{nntp}, local
367 spool or your mbox file. All at the same time, if you want to push your
370 This manual corresponds to Oort Gnus v.
381 Gnus is the advanced, self-documenting, customizable, extensible
382 unreal-time newsreader for GNU Emacs.
384 Oops. That sounds oddly familiar, so let's start over again to avoid
385 being accused of plagiarism:
387 Gnus is a message-reading laboratory. It will let you look at just
388 about anything as if it were a newsgroup. You can read mail with it,
389 you can browse directories with it, you can @code{ftp} with it---you
390 can even read news with it!
392 Gnus tries to empower people who read news the same way Emacs empowers
393 people who edit text. Gnus sets no limits to what the user should be
394 allowed to do. Users are encouraged to extend Gnus to make it behave
395 like they want it to behave. A program should not control people;
396 people should be empowered to do what they want by using (or abusing)
402 * Starting Up:: Finding news can be a pain.
403 * Group Buffer:: Selecting, subscribing and killing groups.
404 * Summary Buffer:: Reading, saving and posting articles.
405 * Article Buffer:: Displaying and handling articles.
406 * Composing Messages:: Information on sending mail and news.
407 * Select Methods:: Gnus reads all messages from various select methods.
408 * Scoring:: Assigning values to articles.
409 * Various:: General purpose settings.
410 * The End:: Farewell and goodbye.
411 * Appendices:: Terminology, Emacs intro, FAQ, History, Internals.
412 * Index:: Variable, function and concept index.
413 * Key Index:: Key Index.
416 --- The Detailed Node Listing ---
420 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
421 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
422 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
423 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
424 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
425 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
426 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
427 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
428 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
429 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
430 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
434 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
435 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
436 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
440 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
441 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
442 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
443 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
444 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
445 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
446 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
447 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
448 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
449 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
450 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
451 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
452 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
453 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
454 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
455 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
456 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
460 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
461 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
462 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
466 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
467 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
468 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
469 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
470 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
474 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
475 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
476 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
477 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
481 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
482 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
483 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
484 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
485 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
486 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
487 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
488 * Threading:: How threads are made.
489 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
490 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
491 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
492 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
493 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
494 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
495 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
496 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
497 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
498 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
499 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
500 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
501 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
502 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
503 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
504 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
505 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
506 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer.
507 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
508 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
509 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
510 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
512 Summary Buffer Format
514 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
515 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
516 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
517 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
521 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
522 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
524 Reply, Followup and Post
526 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
527 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
528 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
529 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
533 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
534 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
535 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
536 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
537 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
538 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
542 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
543 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
545 Customizing Threading
547 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
548 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
549 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
550 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
554 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
555 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
556 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
557 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
558 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
559 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
563 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
564 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
565 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
569 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
570 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
571 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
572 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
573 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
574 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
575 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
576 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
578 Alternative Approaches
580 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
581 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
583 Various Summary Stuff
585 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
586 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
587 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
588 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
592 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
593 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
594 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
595 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
596 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
600 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
601 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
602 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
603 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
604 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
605 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
606 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
607 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
611 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
612 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
613 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
614 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
615 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
616 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
617 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
621 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
622 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
623 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
624 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
625 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
626 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
627 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
631 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
632 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
636 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
637 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
638 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
639 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
640 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
641 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
642 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
643 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
644 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
645 * Washing Mail:: Removing cruft from the mail you get.
646 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
647 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
648 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
652 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
653 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
654 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
656 Choosing a Mail Backend
658 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
659 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
660 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
661 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
662 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
663 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
667 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
668 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
669 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
670 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
671 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
672 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
676 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
677 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
678 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
679 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
680 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
681 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
685 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
689 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
690 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
691 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
695 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
696 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
697 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
701 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
702 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
706 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
707 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
708 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
709 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
710 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
711 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
712 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
713 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
714 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
715 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
719 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
720 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
721 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
725 * Group Agent Commands::
726 * Summary Agent Commands::
727 * Server Agent Commands::
731 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
732 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
733 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
734 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
735 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
736 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
737 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
738 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
739 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
740 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
741 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
742 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
743 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
744 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
745 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
746 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
750 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
751 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
752 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
753 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
757 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
758 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
759 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
763 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
764 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
765 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
766 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
767 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
768 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
769 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
770 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
771 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
772 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
773 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
774 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
775 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
776 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
777 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
778 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
779 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
780 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
784 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
785 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
786 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
787 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
788 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
792 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
793 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
794 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
795 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
799 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
800 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
801 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
802 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
803 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
807 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
808 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
809 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
810 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
811 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
812 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
813 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
814 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
818 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
819 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
820 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
821 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
822 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
823 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
824 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
825 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
826 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
830 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
831 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
832 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
833 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
834 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
838 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
839 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
840 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
841 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
845 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
846 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
847 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
848 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
849 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
850 * Group Info:: The group info format.
851 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
852 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
853 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
857 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
858 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
859 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
860 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
861 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
862 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
866 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
867 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
871 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
872 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
878 @chapter Starting Gnus
883 If your system administrator has set things up properly, starting Gnus
884 and reading news is extremely easy---you just type @kbd{M-x gnus} in
887 @findex gnus-other-frame
888 @kindex M-x gnus-other-frame
889 If you want to start Gnus in a different frame, you can use the command
890 @kbd{M-x gnus-other-frame} instead.
892 If things do not go smoothly at startup, you have to twiddle some
893 variables in your @file{~/.gnus} file. This file is similar to
894 @file{~/.emacs}, but is read when gnus starts.
896 If you puzzle at any terms used in this manual, please refer to the
897 terminology section (@pxref{Terminology}).
900 * Finding the News:: Choosing a method for getting news.
901 * The First Time:: What does Gnus do the first time you start it?
902 * The Server is Down:: How can I read my mail then?
903 * Slave Gnusae:: You can have more than one Gnus active at a time.
904 * Fetching a Group:: Starting Gnus just to read a group.
905 * New Groups:: What is Gnus supposed to do with new groups?
906 * Startup Files:: Those pesky startup files---@file{.newsrc}.
907 * Auto Save:: Recovering from a crash.
908 * The Active File:: Reading the active file over a slow line Takes Time.
909 * Changing Servers:: You may want to move from one server to another.
910 * Startup Variables:: Other variables you might change.
914 @node Finding the News
915 @section Finding the News
918 @vindex gnus-select-method
920 The @code{gnus-select-method} variable says where Gnus should look for
921 news. This variable should be a list where the first element says
922 @dfn{how} and the second element says @dfn{where}. This method is your
923 native method. All groups not fetched with this method are
926 For instance, if the @samp{news.somewhere.edu} @sc{nntp} server is where
927 you want to get your daily dosage of news from, you'd say:
930 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.somewhere.edu"))
933 If you want to read directly from the local spool, say:
936 (setq gnus-select-method '(nnspool ""))
939 If you can use a local spool, you probably should, as it will almost
940 certainly be much faster.
942 @vindex gnus-nntpserver-file
944 @cindex @sc{nntp} server
945 If this variable is not set, Gnus will take a look at the
946 @code{NNTPSERVER} environment variable. If that variable isn't set,
947 Gnus will see whether @code{gnus-nntpserver-file}
948 (@file{/etc/nntpserver} by default) has any opinions on the matter. If
949 that fails as well, Gnus will try to use the machine running Emacs as an @sc{nntp} server. That's a long shot, though.
951 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
952 If @code{gnus-nntp-server} is set, this variable will override
953 @code{gnus-select-method}. You should therefore set
954 @code{gnus-nntp-server} to @code{nil}, which is what it is by default.
956 @vindex gnus-secondary-servers
957 @vindex gnus-nntp-server
958 You can also make Gnus prompt you interactively for the name of an
959 @sc{nntp} server. If you give a non-numerical prefix to @code{gnus}
960 (i.e., @kbd{C-u M-x gnus}), Gnus will let you choose between the servers
961 in the @code{gnus-secondary-servers} list (if any). You can also just
962 type in the name of any server you feel like visiting. (Note that this
963 will set @code{gnus-nntp-server}, which means that if you then @kbd{M-x
964 gnus} later in the same Emacs session, Gnus will contact the same
967 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
969 However, if you use one @sc{nntp} server regularly and are just
970 interested in a couple of groups from a different server, you would be
971 better served by using the @kbd{B} command in the group buffer. It will
972 let you have a look at what groups are available, and you can subscribe
973 to any of the groups you want to. This also makes @file{.newsrc}
974 maintenance much tidier. @xref{Foreign Groups}.
976 @vindex gnus-secondary-select-methods
978 A slightly different approach to foreign groups is to set the
979 @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods} variable. The select methods
980 listed in this variable are in many ways just as native as the
981 @code{gnus-select-method} server. They will also be queried for active
982 files during startup (if that's required), and new newsgroups that
983 appear on these servers will be subscribed (or not) just as native
986 For instance, if you use the @code{nnmbox} backend to read your mail, you
987 would typically set this variable to
990 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnmbox "")))
995 @section The First Time
996 @cindex first time usage
998 If no startup files exist, Gnus will try to determine what groups should
999 be subscribed by default.
1001 @vindex gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups
1002 If the variable @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is set, Gnus
1003 will subscribe you to just those groups in that list, leaving the rest
1004 killed. Your system administrator should have set this variable to
1007 Since she hasn't, Gnus will just subscribe you to a few arbitrarily
1008 picked groups (i.e., @samp{*.newusers}). (@dfn{Arbitrary} is defined
1009 here as @dfn{whatever Lars thinks you should read}.)
1011 You'll also be subscribed to the Gnus documentation group, which should
1012 help you with most common problems.
1014 If @code{gnus-default-subscribed-newsgroups} is @code{t}, Gnus will just
1015 use the normal functions for handling new groups, and not do anything
1019 @node The Server is Down
1020 @section The Server is Down
1021 @cindex server errors
1023 If the default server is down, Gnus will understandably have some
1024 problems starting. However, if you have some mail groups in addition to
1025 the news groups, you may want to start Gnus anyway.
1027 Gnus, being the trusting sort of program, will ask whether to proceed
1028 without a native select method if that server can't be contacted. This
1029 will happen whether the server doesn't actually exist (i.e., you have
1030 given the wrong address) or the server has just momentarily taken ill
1031 for some reason or other. If you decide to continue and have no foreign
1032 groups, you'll find it difficult to actually do anything in the group
1033 buffer. But, hey, that's your problem. Blllrph!
1035 @findex gnus-no-server
1036 @kindex M-x gnus-no-server
1038 If you know that the server is definitely down, or you just want to read
1039 your mail without bothering with the server at all, you can use the
1040 @code{gnus-no-server} command to start Gnus. That might come in handy
1041 if you're in a hurry as well. This command will not attempt to contact
1042 your primary server---instead, it will just activate all groups on level
1043 1 and 2. (You should preferably keep no native groups on those two
1044 levels.) Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
1048 @section Slave Gnusae
1051 You might want to run more than one Emacs with more than one Gnus at the
1052 same time. If you are using different @file{.newsrc} files (e.g., if you
1053 are using the two different Gnusae to read from two different servers),
1054 that is no problem whatsoever. You just do it.
1056 The problem appears when you want to run two Gnusae that use the same
1057 @code{.newsrc} file.
1059 To work around that problem some, we here at the Think-Tank at the Gnus
1060 Towers have come up with a new concept: @dfn{Masters} and
1061 @dfn{slaves}. (We have applied for a patent on this concept, and have
1062 taken out a copyright on those words. If you wish to use those words in
1063 conjunction with each other, you have to send $1 per usage instance to
1064 me. Usage of the patent (@dfn{Master/Slave Relationships In Computer
1065 Applications}) will be much more expensive, of course.)
1067 Anyway, you start one Gnus up the normal way with @kbd{M-x gnus} (or
1068 however you do it). Each subsequent slave Gnusae should be started with
1069 @kbd{M-x gnus-slave}. These slaves won't save normal @file{.newsrc}
1070 files, but instead save @dfn{slave files} that contain information only
1071 on what groups have been read in the slave session. When a master Gnus
1072 starts, it will read (and delete) these slave files, incorporating all
1073 information from them. (The slave files will be read in the sequence
1074 they were created, so the latest changes will have precedence.)
1076 Information from the slave files has, of course, precedence over the
1077 information in the normal (i.e., master) @code{.newsrc} file.
1080 @node Fetching a Group
1081 @section Fetching a Group
1082 @cindex fetching a group
1084 @findex gnus-fetch-group
1085 It is sometimes convenient to be able to just say ``I want to read this
1086 group and I don't care whether Gnus has been started or not''. This is
1087 perhaps more useful for people who write code than for users, but the
1088 command @code{gnus-fetch-group} provides this functionality in any case.
1089 It takes the group name as a parameter.
1095 @cindex subscription
1097 @vindex gnus-check-new-newsgroups
1098 If you are satisfied that you really never want to see any new groups,
1099 you can set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil}. This will
1100 also save you some time at startup. Even if this variable is
1101 @code{nil}, you can always subscribe to the new groups just by pressing
1102 @kbd{U} in the group buffer (@pxref{Group Maintenance}). This variable
1103 is @code{ask-server} by default. If you set this variable to
1104 @code{always}, then Gnus will query the backends for new groups even
1105 when you do the @kbd{g} command (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
1108 * Checking New Groups:: Determining what groups are new.
1109 * Subscription Methods:: What Gnus should do with new groups.
1110 * Filtering New Groups:: Making Gnus ignore certain new groups.
1114 @node Checking New Groups
1115 @subsection Checking New Groups
1117 Gnus normally determines whether a group is new or not by comparing the
1118 list of groups from the active file(s) with the lists of subscribed and
1119 dead groups. This isn't a particularly fast method. If
1120 @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} is @code{ask-server}, Gnus will ask the
1121 server for new groups since the last time. This is both faster and
1122 cheaper. This also means that you can get rid of the list of killed
1123 groups altogether, so you may set @code{gnus-save-killed-list} to
1124 @code{nil}, which will save time both at startup, at exit, and all over.
1125 Saves disk space, too. Why isn't this the default, then?
1126 Unfortunately, not all servers support this command.
1128 I bet I know what you're thinking now: How do I find out whether my
1129 server supports @code{ask-server}? No? Good, because I don't have a
1130 fail-safe answer. I would suggest just setting this variable to
1131 @code{ask-server} and see whether any new groups appear within the next
1132 few days. If any do, then it works. If none do, then it doesn't
1133 work. I could write a function to make Gnus guess whether the server
1134 supports @code{ask-server}, but it would just be a guess. So I won't.
1135 You could @code{telnet} to the server and say @code{HELP} and see
1136 whether it lists @samp{NEWGROUPS} among the commands it understands. If
1137 it does, then it might work. (But there are servers that lists
1138 @samp{NEWGROUPS} without supporting the function properly.)
1140 This variable can also be a list of select methods. If so, Gnus will
1141 issue an @code{ask-server} command to each of the select methods, and
1142 subscribe them (or not) using the normal methods. This might be handy
1143 if you are monitoring a few servers for new groups. A side effect is
1144 that startup will take much longer, so you can meditate while waiting.
1145 Use the mantra ``dingnusdingnusdingnus'' to achieve permanent bliss.
1148 @node Subscription Methods
1149 @subsection Subscription Methods
1151 @vindex gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method
1152 What Gnus does when it encounters a new group is determined by the
1153 @code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} variable.
1155 This variable should contain a function. This function will be called
1156 with the name of the new group as the only parameter.
1158 Some handy pre-fab functions are:
1162 @item gnus-subscribe-zombies
1163 @vindex gnus-subscribe-zombies
1164 Make all new groups zombies. This is the default. You can browse the
1165 zombies later (with @kbd{A z}) and either kill them all off properly
1166 (with @kbd{S z}), or subscribe to them (with @kbd{u}).
1168 @item gnus-subscribe-randomly
1169 @vindex gnus-subscribe-randomly
1170 Subscribe all new groups in arbitrary order. This really means that all
1171 new groups will be added at ``the top'' of the group buffer.
1173 @item gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1174 @vindex gnus-subscribe-alphabetically
1175 Subscribe all new groups in alphabetical order.
1177 @item gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1178 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchically
1179 Subscribe all new groups hierarchically. The difference between this
1180 function and @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} is slight.
1181 @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically} will subscribe new groups in a strictly
1182 alphabetical fashion, while this function will enter groups into its
1183 hierarchy. So if you want to have the @samp{rec} hierarchy before the
1184 @samp{comp} hierarchy, this function will not mess that configuration
1185 up. Or something like that.
1187 @item gnus-subscribe-interactively
1188 @vindex gnus-subscribe-interactively
1189 Subscribe new groups interactively. This means that Gnus will ask
1190 you about @strong{all} new groups. The groups you choose to subscribe
1191 to will be subscribed hierarchically.
1193 @item gnus-subscribe-killed
1194 @vindex gnus-subscribe-killed
1195 Kill all new groups.
1197 @item gnus-subscribe-topics
1198 @vindex gnus-subscribe-topics
1199 Put the groups into the topic that has a matching @code{subscribe} topic
1200 parameter (@pxref{Topic Parameters}). For instance, a @code{subscribe}
1201 topic parameter that looks like
1207 will mean that all groups that match that regex will be subscribed under
1210 If no topics match the groups, the groups will be subscribed in the
1215 @vindex gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive
1216 A closely related variable is
1217 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. (That's quite a
1218 mouthful.) If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will ask you in a
1219 hierarchical fashion whether to subscribe to new groups or not. Gnus
1220 will ask you for each sub-hierarchy whether you want to descend the
1223 One common mistake is to set the variable a few paragraphs above
1224 (@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method}) to
1225 @code{gnus-subscribe-hierarchical-interactive}. This is an error. This
1226 will not work. This is ga-ga. So don't do it.
1229 @node Filtering New Groups
1230 @subsection Filtering New Groups
1232 A nice and portable way to control which new newsgroups should be
1233 subscribed (or ignored) is to put an @dfn{options} line at the start of
1234 the @file{.newsrc} file. Here's an example:
1237 options -n !alt.all !rec.all sci.all
1240 @vindex gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method
1241 This line obviously belongs to a serious-minded intellectual scientific
1242 person (or she may just be plain old boring), because it says that all
1243 groups that have names beginning with @samp{alt} and @samp{rec} should
1244 be ignored, and all groups with names beginning with @samp{sci} should
1245 be subscribed. Gnus will not use the normal subscription method for
1246 subscribing these groups.
1247 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method} is used instead. This
1248 variable defaults to @code{gnus-subscribe-alphabetically}.
1250 @vindex gnus-options-not-subscribe
1251 @vindex gnus-options-subscribe
1252 If you don't want to mess with your @file{.newsrc} file, you can just
1253 set the two variables @code{gnus-options-subscribe} and
1254 @code{gnus-options-not-subscribe}. These two variables do exactly the
1255 same as the @file{.newsrc} @samp{options -n} trick. Both are regexps,
1256 and if the new group matches the former, it will be unconditionally
1257 subscribed, and if it matches the latter, it will be ignored.
1259 @vindex gnus-auto-subscribed-groups
1260 Yet another variable that meddles here is
1261 @code{gnus-auto-subscribed-groups}. It works exactly like
1262 @code{gnus-options-subscribe}, and is therefore really superfluous, but I
1263 thought it would be nice to have two of these. This variable is more
1264 meant for setting some ground rules, while the other variable is used
1265 more for user fiddling. By default this variable makes all new groups
1266 that come from mail backends (@code{nnml}, @code{nnbabyl},
1267 @code{nnfolder}, @code{nnmbox}, and @code{nnmh}) subscribed. If you
1268 don't like that, just set this variable to @code{nil}.
1270 New groups that match this regexp are subscribed using
1271 @code{gnus-subscribe-options-newsgroup-method}.
1274 @node Changing Servers
1275 @section Changing Servers
1276 @cindex changing servers
1278 Sometimes it is necessary to move from one @sc{nntp} server to another.
1279 This happens very rarely, but perhaps you change jobs, or one server is
1280 very flaky and you want to use another.
1282 Changing the server is pretty easy, right? You just change
1283 @code{gnus-select-method} to point to the new server?
1287 Article numbers are not (in any way) kept synchronized between different
1288 @sc{nntp} servers, and the only way Gnus keeps track of what articles
1289 you have read is by keeping track of article numbers. So when you
1290 change @code{gnus-select-method}, your @file{.newsrc} file becomes
1293 Gnus provides a few functions to attempt to translate a @file{.newsrc}
1294 file from one server to another. They all have one thing in
1295 common---they take a looong time to run. You don't want to use these
1296 functions more than absolutely necessary.
1298 @kindex M-x gnus-change-server
1299 @findex gnus-change-server
1300 If you have access to both servers, Gnus can request the headers for all
1301 the articles you have read and compare @code{Message-ID}s and map the
1302 article numbers of the read articles and article marks. The @kbd{M-x
1303 gnus-change-server} command will do this for all your native groups. It
1304 will prompt for the method you want to move to.
1306 @kindex M-x gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1307 @findex gnus-group-move-group-to-server
1308 You can also move individual groups with the @kbd{M-x
1309 gnus-group-move-group-to-server} command. This is useful if you want to
1310 move a (foreign) group from one server to another.
1312 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1313 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
1314 If you don't have access to both the old and new server, all your marks
1315 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use the @kbd{M-x
1316 gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups} command to clear out all data
1317 that you have on your native groups. Use with caution.
1319 After changing servers, you @strong{must} move the cache hierarchy away,
1320 since the cached articles will have wrong article numbers, which will
1321 affect which articles Gnus thinks are read.
1325 @section Startup Files
1326 @cindex startup files
1331 Now, you all know about the @file{.newsrc} file. All subscription
1332 information is traditionally stored in this file.
1334 Things got a bit more complicated with @sc{gnus}. In addition to
1335 keeping the @file{.newsrc} file updated, it also used a file called
1336 @file{.newsrc.el} for storing all the information that didn't fit into
1337 the @file{.newsrc} file. (Actually, it also duplicated everything in
1338 the @file{.newsrc} file.) @sc{gnus} would read whichever one of these
1339 files was the most recently saved, which enabled people to swap between
1340 @sc{gnus} and other newsreaders.
1342 That was kinda silly, so Gnus went one better: In addition to the
1343 @file{.newsrc} and @file{.newsrc.el} files, Gnus also has a file called
1344 @file{.newsrc.eld}. It will read whichever of these files that are most
1345 recent, but it will never write a @file{.newsrc.el} file. You should
1346 never delete the @file{.newsrc.eld} file---it contains much information
1347 not stored in the @file{.newsrc} file.
1349 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-file
1350 @vindex gnus-read-newsrc-file
1351 You can turn off writing the @file{.newsrc} file by setting
1352 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-file} to @code{nil}, which means you can delete
1353 the file and save some space, as well as exiting from Gnus faster.
1354 However, this will make it impossible to use other newsreaders than
1355 Gnus. But hey, who would want to, right? Similarly, setting
1356 @code{gnus-read-newsrc-file} to @code{nil} makes Gnus ignore the
1357 @file{.newsrc} file and any @file{.newsrc-SERVER} files, which is
1358 convenient if you have a tendency to use Netscape once in a while.
1360 @vindex gnus-save-killed-list
1361 If @code{gnus-save-killed-list} (default @code{t}) is @code{nil}, Gnus
1362 will not save the list of killed groups to the startup file. This will
1363 save both time (when starting and quitting) and space (on disk). It
1364 will also mean that Gnus has no record of what groups are new or old,
1365 so the automatic new groups subscription methods become meaningless.
1366 You should always set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{nil} or
1367 @code{ask-server} if you set this variable to @code{nil} (@pxref{New
1368 Groups}). This variable can also be a regular expression. If that's
1369 the case, remove all groups that do not match this regexp before
1370 saving. This can be useful in certain obscure situations that involve
1371 several servers where not all servers support @code{ask-server}.
1373 @vindex gnus-startup-file
1374 The @code{gnus-startup-file} variable says where the startup files are.
1375 The default value is @file{~/.newsrc}, with the Gnus (El Dingo) startup
1376 file being whatever that one is, with a @samp{.eld} appended.
1378 @vindex gnus-save-newsrc-hook
1379 @vindex gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook
1380 @vindex gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook
1381 @code{gnus-save-newsrc-hook} is called before saving any of the newsrc
1382 files, while @code{gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook} is called just before
1383 saving the @file{.newsrc.eld} file, and
1384 @code{gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook} is called just before saving the
1385 @file{.newsrc} file. The latter two are commonly used to turn version
1386 control on or off. Version control is on by default when saving the
1387 startup files. If you want to turn backup creation off, say something like:
1390 (defun turn-off-backup ()
1391 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
1393 (add-hook 'gnus-save-quick-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1394 (add-hook 'gnus-save-standard-newsrc-hook 'turn-off-backup)
1397 @vindex gnus-init-file
1398 When Gnus starts, it will read the @code{gnus-site-init-file}
1399 (@file{.../site-lisp/gnus} by default) and @code{gnus-init-file}
1400 (@file{~/.gnus} by default) files. These are normal Emacs Lisp files
1401 and can be used to avoid cluttering your @file{~/.emacs} and
1402 @file{site-init} files with Gnus stuff. Gnus will also check for files
1403 with the same names as these, but with @file{.elc} and @file{.el}
1404 suffixes. In other words, if you have set @code{gnus-init-file} to
1405 @file{~/.gnus}, it will look for @file{~/.gnus.elc}, @file{~/.gnus.el},
1406 and finally @file{~/.gnus} (in this order).
1412 @cindex dribble file
1415 Whenever you do something that changes the Gnus data (reading articles,
1416 catching up, killing/subscribing groups), the change is added to a
1417 special @dfn{dribble buffer}. This buffer is auto-saved the normal
1418 Emacs way. If your Emacs should crash before you have saved the
1419 @file{.newsrc} files, all changes you have made can be recovered from
1422 If Gnus detects this file at startup, it will ask the user whether to
1423 read it. The auto save file is deleted whenever the real startup file is
1426 @vindex gnus-use-dribble-file
1427 If @code{gnus-use-dribble-file} is @code{nil}, Gnus won't create and
1428 maintain a dribble buffer. The default is @code{t}.
1430 @vindex gnus-dribble-directory
1431 Gnus will put the dribble file(s) in @code{gnus-dribble-directory}. If
1432 this variable is @code{nil}, which it is by default, Gnus will dribble
1433 into the directory where the @file{.newsrc} file is located. (This is
1434 normally the user's home directory.) The dribble file will get the same
1435 file permissions as the @code{.newsrc} file.
1437 @vindex gnus-always-read-dribble-file
1438 If @code{gnus-always-read-dribble-file} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will
1439 read the dribble file on startup without querying the user.
1442 @node The Active File
1443 @section The Active File
1445 @cindex ignored groups
1447 When Gnus starts, or indeed whenever it tries to determine whether new
1448 articles have arrived, it reads the active file. This is a very large
1449 file that lists all the active groups and articles on the server.
1451 @vindex gnus-ignored-newsgroups
1452 Before examining the active file, Gnus deletes all lines that match the
1453 regexp @code{gnus-ignored-newsgroups}. This is done primarily to reject
1454 any groups with bogus names, but you can use this variable to make Gnus
1455 ignore hierarchies you aren't ever interested in. However, this is not
1456 recommended. In fact, it's highly discouraged. Instead, @pxref{New
1457 Groups} for an overview of other variables that can be used instead.
1460 @c @code{nil} by default, and will slow down active file handling somewhat
1461 @c if you set it to anything else.
1463 @vindex gnus-read-active-file
1465 The active file can be rather Huge, so if you have a slow network, you
1466 can set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{nil} to prevent Gnus from
1467 reading the active file. This variable is @code{some} by default.
1469 Gnus will try to make do by getting information just on the groups that
1470 you actually subscribe to.
1472 Note that if you subscribe to lots and lots of groups, setting this
1473 variable to @code{nil} will probably make Gnus slower, not faster. At
1474 present, having this variable @code{nil} will slow Gnus down
1475 considerably, unless you read news over a 2400 baud modem.
1477 This variable can also have the value @code{some}. Gnus will then
1478 attempt to read active info only on the subscribed groups. On some
1479 servers this is quite fast (on sparkling, brand new INN servers that
1480 support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command), on others this isn't fast
1481 at all. In any case, @code{some} should be faster than @code{nil}, and
1482 is certainly faster than @code{t} over slow lines.
1484 Some news servers (old versions of Leafnode and old versions of INN, for
1485 instance) do not support the @code{LIST ACTIVE group}. For these
1486 servers, @code{nil} is probably the most efficient value for this
1489 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will ask for group info in total
1490 lock-step, which isn't very fast. If it is @code{some} and you use an
1491 @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will pump out commands as fast as it can, and
1492 read all the replies in one swoop. This will normally result in better
1493 performance, but if the server does not support the aforementioned
1494 @code{LIST ACTIVE group} command, this isn't very nice to the server.
1496 If you think that starting up Gnus takes too long, try all the three
1497 different values for this variable and see what works best for you.
1499 In any case, if you use @code{some} or @code{nil}, you should definitely
1500 kill all groups that you aren't interested in to speed things up.
1502 Note that this variable also affects active file retrieval from
1503 secondary select methods.
1506 @node Startup Variables
1507 @section Startup Variables
1511 @item gnus-load-hook
1512 @vindex gnus-load-hook
1513 A hook run while Gnus is being loaded. Note that this hook will
1514 normally be run just once in each Emacs session, no matter how many
1515 times you start Gnus.
1517 @item gnus-before-startup-hook
1518 @vindex gnus-before-startup-hook
1519 A hook run after starting up Gnus successfully.
1521 @item gnus-startup-hook
1522 @vindex gnus-startup-hook
1523 A hook run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1525 @item gnus-started-hook
1526 @vindex gnus-started-hook
1527 A hook that is run as the very last thing after starting up Gnus
1530 @item gnus-setup-news-hook
1531 @vindex gnus-setup-news-hook
1532 A hook that is run after reading the @file{.newsrc} file(s), but before
1533 generating the group buffer.
1535 @item gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1536 @vindex gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups
1537 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will check for and delete all bogus groups at
1538 startup. A @dfn{bogus group} is a group that you have in your
1539 @file{.newsrc} file, but doesn't exist on the news server. Checking for
1540 bogus groups can take quite a while, so to save time and resources it's
1541 best to leave this option off, and do the checking for bogus groups once
1542 in a while from the group buffer instead (@pxref{Group Maintenance}).
1544 @item gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1545 @vindex gnus-inhibit-startup-message
1546 If non-@code{nil}, the startup message won't be displayed. That way,
1547 your boss might not notice as easily that you are reading news instead
1548 of doing your job. Note that this variable is used before
1549 @file{.gnus.el} is loaded, so it should be set in @code{.emacs} instead.
1551 @item gnus-no-groups-message
1552 @vindex gnus-no-groups-message
1553 Message displayed by Gnus when no groups are available.
1555 @item gnus-play-startup-jingle
1556 @vindex gnus-play-startup-jingle
1557 If non-@code{nil}, play the Gnus jingle at startup.
1559 @item gnus-startup-jingle
1560 @vindex gnus-startup-jingle
1561 Jingle to be played if the above variable is non-@code{nil}. The
1562 default is @samp{Tuxedomoon.Jingle4.au}.
1568 @chapter Group Buffer
1569 @cindex group buffer
1571 The @dfn{group buffer} lists all (or parts) of the available groups. It
1572 is the first buffer shown when Gnus starts, and will never be killed as
1573 long as Gnus is active.
1577 \gnusfigure{The Group Buffer}{320}{
1578 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group.ps,height=9cm}}
1579 \put(120,37){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Buffer name}}
1580 \put(120,38){\vector(1,2){10}}
1581 \put(40,60){\makebox(0,0)[r]{Mode line}}
1582 \put(40,58){\vector(1,0){30}}
1583 \put(200,28){\makebox(0,0)[t]{Native select method}}
1584 \put(200,26){\vector(-1,2){15}}
1590 * Group Buffer Format:: Information listed and how you can change it.
1591 * Group Maneuvering:: Commands for moving in the group buffer.
1592 * Selecting a Group:: Actually reading news.
1593 * Group Data:: Changing the info for a group.
1594 * Subscription Commands:: Unsubscribing, killing, subscribing.
1595 * Group Levels:: Levels? What are those, then?
1596 * Group Score:: A mechanism for finding out what groups you like.
1597 * Marking Groups:: You can mark groups for later processing.
1598 * Foreign Groups:: Creating and editing groups.
1599 * Group Parameters:: Each group may have different parameters set.
1600 * Listing Groups:: Gnus can list various subsets of the groups.
1601 * Sorting Groups:: Re-arrange the group order.
1602 * Group Maintenance:: Maintaining a tidy @file{.newsrc} file.
1603 * Browse Foreign Server:: You can browse a server. See what it has to offer.
1604 * Exiting Gnus:: Stop reading news and get some work done.
1605 * Group Topics:: A folding group mode divided into topics.
1606 * Misc Group Stuff:: Other stuff that you can to do.
1610 @node Group Buffer Format
1611 @section Group Buffer Format
1614 * Group Line Specification:: Deciding how the group buffer is to look.
1615 * Group Modeline Specification:: The group buffer modeline.
1616 * Group Highlighting:: Having nice colors in the group buffer.
1620 @node Group Line Specification
1621 @subsection Group Line Specification
1622 @cindex group buffer format
1624 The default format of the group buffer is nice and dull, but you can
1625 make it as exciting and ugly as you feel like.
1627 Here's a couple of example group lines:
1630 25: news.announce.newusers
1631 * 0: alt.fan.andrea-dworkin
1636 You can see that there are 25 unread articles in
1637 @samp{news.announce.newusers}. There are no unread articles, but some
1638 ticked articles, in @samp{alt.fan.andrea-dworkin} (see that little
1639 asterisk at the beginning of the line?).
1641 @vindex gnus-group-line-format
1642 You can change that format to whatever you want by fiddling with the
1643 @code{gnus-group-line-format} variable. This variable works along the
1644 lines of a @code{format} specification, which is pretty much the same as
1645 a @code{printf} specifications, for those of you who use (feh!) C.
1646 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
1648 @samp{%M%S%5y: %(%g%)\n} is the value that produced those lines above.
1650 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
1651 the colon after performing an operation. Nothing else is required---not
1652 even the group name. All displayed text is just window dressing, and is
1653 never examined by Gnus. Gnus stores all real information it needs using
1656 (Note that if you make a really strange, wonderful, spreadsheet-like
1657 layout, everybody will believe you are hard at work with the accounting
1658 instead of wasting time reading news.)
1660 Here's a list of all available format characters:
1665 An asterisk if the group only has marked articles.
1668 Whether the group is subscribed.
1671 Level of subscribedness.
1674 Number of unread articles.
1677 Number of dormant articles.
1680 Number of ticked articles.
1683 Number of read articles.
1686 Estimated total number of articles. (This is really @var{max-number}
1687 minus @var{min-number} plus 1.)
1689 Gnus uses this estimation because the NNTP protocol provides efficient
1690 access to @var{max-number} and @var{min-number} but getting the true
1691 unread message count is not possible efficiently. For hysterical
1692 raisins, even the mail backends, where the true number of unread
1693 messages might be available efficiently, use the same limited
1694 interface. To remove this restriction from Gnus means that the
1695 backend interface has to be changed, which is not an easy job. If you
1696 want to work on this, please contact the Gnus mailing list.
1699 Number of unread, unticked, non-dormant articles.
1702 Number of ticked and dormant articles.
1711 Newsgroup description.
1714 @samp{m} if moderated.
1717 @samp{(m)} if moderated.
1726 A string that looks like @samp{<%s:%n>} if a foreign select method is
1730 Indentation based on the level of the topic (@pxref{Group Topics}).
1733 @vindex gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels
1734 Short (collapsed) group name. The @code{gnus-group-uncollapsed-levels}
1735 variable says how many levels to leave at the end of the group name.
1736 The default is 1---this will mean that group names like
1737 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} will be shortened to @samp{g.e.gnus}.
1740 @vindex gnus-new-mail-mark
1742 @samp{%} (@code{gnus-new-mail-mark}) if there has arrived new mail to
1746 @samp{#} (@code{gnus-process-mark}) if the group is process marked.
1749 A string that says when you last read the group (@pxref{Group
1753 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
1754 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
1755 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
1756 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed a single dummy
1757 parameter as argument. The function should return a string, which will
1758 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
1763 All the ``number-of'' specs will be filled with an asterisk (@samp{*})
1764 if no info is available---for instance, if it is a non-activated foreign
1765 group, or a bogus native group.
1768 @node Group Modeline Specification
1769 @subsection Group Modeline Specification
1770 @cindex group modeline
1772 @vindex gnus-group-mode-line-format
1773 The mode line can be changed by setting
1774 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
1775 doesn't understand that many format specifiers:
1779 The native news server.
1781 The native select method.
1785 @node Group Highlighting
1786 @subsection Group Highlighting
1787 @cindex highlighting
1788 @cindex group highlighting
1790 @vindex gnus-group-highlight
1791 Highlighting in the group buffer is controlled by the
1792 @code{gnus-group-highlight} variable. This is an alist with elements
1793 that look like @code{(@var{form} . @var{face})}. If @var{form} evaluates to
1794 something non-@code{nil}, the @var{face} will be used on the line.
1796 Here's an example value for this variable that might look nice if the
1800 (cond (window-system
1801 (setq custom-background-mode 'light)
1802 (defface my-group-face-1
1803 '((t (:foreground "Red" :bold t))) "First group face")
1804 (defface my-group-face-2
1805 '((t (:foreground "DarkSeaGreen4" :bold t))) "Second group face")
1806 (defface my-group-face-3
1807 '((t (:foreground "Green4" :bold t))) "Third group face")
1808 (defface my-group-face-4
1809 '((t (:foreground "SteelBlue" :bold t))) "Fourth group face")
1810 (defface my-group-face-5
1811 '((t (:foreground "Blue" :bold t))) "Fifth group face")))
1813 (setq gnus-group-highlight
1814 '(((> unread 200) . my-group-face-1)
1815 ((and (< level 3) (zerop unread)) . my-group-face-2)
1816 ((< level 3) . my-group-face-3)
1817 ((zerop unread) . my-group-face-4)
1818 (t . my-group-face-5)))
1821 Also @pxref{Faces and Fonts}.
1823 Variables that are dynamically bound when the forms are evaluated
1830 The number of unread articles in the group.
1834 Whether the group is a mail group.
1836 The level of the group.
1838 The score of the group.
1840 The number of ticked articles in the group.
1842 The total number of articles in the group. Or rather, MAX-NUMBER minus
1843 MIN-NUMBER plus one.
1845 When using the topic minor mode, this variable is bound to the current
1846 topic being inserted.
1849 When the forms are @code{eval}ed, point is at the beginning of the line
1850 of the group in question, so you can use many of the normal Gnus
1851 functions for snarfing info on the group.
1853 @vindex gnus-group-update-hook
1854 @findex gnus-group-highlight-line
1855 @code{gnus-group-update-hook} is called when a group line is changed.
1856 It will not be called when @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}. This hook
1857 calls @code{gnus-group-highlight-line} by default.
1860 @node Group Maneuvering
1861 @section Group Maneuvering
1862 @cindex group movement
1864 All movement commands understand the numeric prefix and will behave as
1865 expected, hopefully.
1871 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group
1872 Go to the next group that has unread articles
1873 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group}).
1879 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group
1880 Go to the previous group that has unread articles
1881 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group}).
1885 @findex gnus-group-next-group
1886 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
1890 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
1891 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
1895 @findex gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level
1896 Go to the next unread group on the same (or lower) level
1897 (@code{gnus-group-next-unread-group-same-level}).
1901 @findex gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level
1902 Go to the previous unread group on the same (or lower) level
1903 (@code{gnus-group-prev-unread-group-same-level}).
1906 Three commands for jumping to groups:
1912 @findex gnus-group-jump-to-group
1913 Jump to a group (and make it visible if it isn't already)
1914 (@code{gnus-group-jump-to-group}). Killed groups can be jumped to, just
1919 @findex gnus-group-best-unread-group
1920 Jump to the unread group with the lowest level
1921 (@code{gnus-group-best-unread-group}).
1925 @findex gnus-group-first-unread-group
1926 Jump to the first group with unread articles
1927 (@code{gnus-group-first-unread-group}).
1930 @vindex gnus-group-goto-unread
1931 If @code{gnus-group-goto-unread} is @code{nil}, all the movement
1932 commands will move to the next group, not the next unread group. Even
1933 the commands that say they move to the next unread group. The default
1937 @node Selecting a Group
1938 @section Selecting a Group
1939 @cindex group selection
1944 @kindex SPACE (Group)
1945 @findex gnus-group-read-group
1946 Select the current group, switch to the summary buffer and display the
1947 first unread article (@code{gnus-group-read-group}). If there are no
1948 unread articles in the group, or if you give a non-numerical prefix to
1949 this command, Gnus will offer to fetch all the old articles in this
1950 group from the server. If you give a numerical prefix @var{N}, @var{N}
1951 determines the number of articles Gnus will fetch. If @var{N} is
1952 positive, Gnus fetches the @var{N} newest articles, if @var{N} is
1953 negative, Gnus fetches the @code{abs(@var{N})} oldest articles.
1955 Thus, @kbd{SPC} enters the group normally, @kbd{C-u SPC} offers old
1956 articles, @kbd{C-u 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 newest articles, and @kbd{C-u
1957 - 4 2 SPC} fetches the 42 oldest ones.
1959 When you are in the group (in the Summary buffer), you can type
1960 @kbd{M-g} to fetch new articles, or @kbd{C-u M-g} to also show the old
1965 @findex gnus-group-select-group
1966 Select the current group and switch to the summary buffer
1967 (@code{gnus-group-select-group}). Takes the same arguments as
1968 @code{gnus-group-read-group}---the only difference is that this command
1969 does not display the first unread article automatically upon group
1973 @kindex M-RET (Group)
1974 @findex gnus-group-quick-select-group
1975 This does the same as the command above, but tries to do it with the
1976 minimum amount of fuzz (@code{gnus-group-quick-select-group}). No
1977 scoring/killing will be performed, there will be no highlights and no
1978 expunging. This might be useful if you're in a real hurry and have to
1979 enter some humongous group. If you give a 0 prefix to this command
1980 (i.e., @kbd{0 M-RET}), Gnus won't even generate the summary buffer,
1981 which is useful if you want to toggle threading before generating the
1982 summary buffer (@pxref{Summary Generation Commands}).
1985 @kindex M-SPACE (Group)
1986 @findex gnus-group-visible-select-group
1987 This is yet one more command that does the same as the @kbd{RET}
1988 command, but this one does it without expunging and hiding dormants
1989 (@code{gnus-group-visible-select-group}).
1992 @kindex M-C-RET (Group)
1993 @findex gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally
1994 Finally, this command selects the current group ephemerally without
1995 doing any processing of its contents
1996 (@code{gnus-group-select-group-ephemerally}). Even threading has been
1997 turned off. Everything you do in the group after selecting it in this
1998 manner will have no permanent effects.
2002 @vindex gnus-large-newsgroup
2003 The @code{gnus-large-newsgroup} variable says what Gnus should consider
2004 to be a big group. This is 200 by default. If the group has more
2005 (unread and/or ticked) articles than this, Gnus will query the user
2006 before entering the group. The user can then specify how many articles
2007 should be fetched from the server. If the user specifies a negative
2008 number (@code{-n}), the @code{n} oldest articles will be fetched. If it
2009 is positive, the @code{n} articles that have arrived most recently will
2012 @vindex gnus-select-group-hook
2013 @vindex gnus-auto-select-first
2014 @code{gnus-auto-select-first} control whether any articles are selected
2015 automatically when entering a group with the @kbd{SPACE} command.
2020 Don't select any articles when entering the group. Just display the
2021 full summary buffer.
2024 Select the first unread article when entering the group.
2027 Select the highest scored article in the group when entering the
2032 This variable can also be a function. In that case, that function will
2033 be called to place point on a subject line, and/or select some article.
2034 Useful functions include:
2037 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-subject
2038 Place point on the subject line of the first unread article, but
2039 don't select the article.
2041 @item gnus-summary-first-unread-article
2042 Select the first unread article.
2044 @item gnus-summary-best-unread-article
2045 Select the highest-scored unread article.
2049 If you want to prevent automatic selection in some group (say, in a
2050 binary group with Huge articles) you can set this variable to @code{nil}
2051 in @code{gnus-select-group-hook}, which is called when a group is
2055 @node Subscription Commands
2056 @section Subscription Commands
2057 @cindex subscription
2065 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group
2066 @c @icon{gnus-group-unsubscribe}
2067 Toggle subscription to the current group
2068 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-current-group}).
2074 @findex gnus-group-unsubscribe-group
2075 Prompt for a group to subscribe, and then subscribe it. If it was
2076 subscribed already, unsubscribe it instead
2077 (@code{gnus-group-unsubscribe-group}).
2083 @findex gnus-group-kill-group
2084 @c @icon{gnus-group-kill-group}
2085 Kill the current group (@code{gnus-group-kill-group}).
2091 @findex gnus-group-yank-group
2092 Yank the last killed group (@code{gnus-group-yank-group}).
2095 @kindex C-x C-t (Group)
2096 @findex gnus-group-transpose-groups
2097 Transpose two groups (@code{gnus-group-transpose-groups}). This isn't
2098 really a subscription command, but you can use it instead of a
2099 kill-and-yank sequence sometimes.
2105 @findex gnus-group-kill-region
2106 Kill all groups in the region (@code{gnus-group-kill-region}).
2110 @findex gnus-group-kill-all-zombies
2111 Kill all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-kill-all-zombies}).
2114 @kindex S C-k (Group)
2115 @findex gnus-group-kill-level
2116 Kill all groups on a certain level (@code{gnus-group-kill-level}).
2117 These groups can't be yanked back after killing, so this command should
2118 be used with some caution. The only time where this command comes in
2119 really handy is when you have a @file{.newsrc} with lots of unsubscribed
2120 groups that you want to get rid off. @kbd{S C-k} on level 7 will
2121 kill off all unsubscribed groups that do not have message numbers in the
2122 @file{.newsrc} file.
2126 Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
2136 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current
2137 @vindex gnus-group-catchup-group-hook
2138 @c @icon{gnus-group-catchup-current}
2139 Mark all unticked articles in this group as read
2140 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current}).
2141 @code{gnus-group-catchup-group-hook} is called when catching up a group from
2146 @findex gnus-group-catchup-current-all
2147 Mark all articles in this group, even the ticked ones, as read
2148 (@code{gnus-group-catchup-current-all}).
2152 @findex gnus-group-clear-data
2153 Clear the data from the current group---nix out marks and the list of
2154 read articles (@code{gnus-group-clear-data}).
2156 @item M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2157 @kindex M-x gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2158 @findex gnus-group-clear-data-on-native-groups
2159 If you have switched from one @sc{nntp} server to another, all your marks
2160 and read ranges have become worthless. You can use this command to
2161 clear out all data that you have on your native groups. Use with
2168 @section Group Levels
2172 All groups have a level of @dfn{subscribedness}. For instance, if a
2173 group is on level 2, it is more subscribed than a group on level 5. You
2174 can ask Gnus to just list groups on a given level or lower
2175 (@pxref{Listing Groups}), or to just check for new articles in groups on
2176 a given level or lower (@pxref{Scanning New Messages}).
2178 Remember: The higher the level of the group, the less important it is.
2184 @findex gnus-group-set-current-level
2185 Set the level of the current group. If a numeric prefix is given, the
2186 next @var{n} groups will have their levels set. The user will be
2187 prompted for a level.
2190 @vindex gnus-level-killed
2191 @vindex gnus-level-zombie
2192 @vindex gnus-level-unsubscribed
2193 @vindex gnus-level-subscribed
2194 Gnus considers groups from levels 1 to
2195 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (inclusive) (default 5) to be subscribed,
2196 @code{gnus-level-subscribed} (exclusive) and
2197 @code{gnus-level-unsubscribed} (inclusive) (default 7) to be
2198 unsubscribed, @code{gnus-level-zombie} to be zombies (walking dead)
2199 (default 8) and @code{gnus-level-killed} to be killed (completely dead)
2200 (default 9). Gnus treats subscribed and unsubscribed groups exactly the
2201 same, but zombie and killed groups have no information on what articles
2202 you have read, etc, stored. This distinction between dead and living
2203 groups isn't done because it is nice or clever, it is done purely for
2204 reasons of efficiency.
2206 It is recommended that you keep all your mail groups (if any) on quite
2207 low levels (e.g. 1 or 2).
2209 Maybe the following description of the default behavior of Gnus helps to
2210 understand what these levels are all about. By default, Gnus shows you
2211 subscribed nonempty groups, but by hitting @kbd{L} you can have it show
2212 empty subscribed groups and unsubscribed groups, too. Type @kbd{l} to
2213 go back to showing nonempty subscribed groups again. Thus, unsubscribed
2214 groups are hidden, in a way.
2216 Zombie and killed groups are similar to unsubscribed groups in that they
2217 are hidden by default. But they are different from subscribed and
2218 unsubscribed groups in that Gnus doesn't ask the news server for
2219 information (number of messages, number of unread messages) on zombie
2220 and killed groups. Normally, you use @kbd{C-k} to kill the groups you
2221 aren't interested in. If most groups are killed, Gnus is faster.
2223 Why does Gnus distinguish between zombie and killed groups? Well, when
2224 a new group arrives on the server, Gnus by default makes it a zombie
2225 group. This means that you are normally not bothered with new groups,
2226 but you can type @kbd{A z} to get a list of all new groups. Subscribe
2227 the ones you like and kill the ones you don't want. (@kbd{A k} shows a
2228 list of killed groups.)
2230 If you want to play with the level variables, you should show some care.
2231 Set them once, and don't touch them ever again. Better yet, don't touch
2232 them at all unless you know exactly what you're doing.
2234 @vindex gnus-level-default-unsubscribed
2235 @vindex gnus-level-default-subscribed
2236 Two closely related variables are @code{gnus-level-default-subscribed}
2237 (default 3) and @code{gnus-level-default-unsubscribed} (default 6),
2238 which are the levels that new groups will be put on if they are
2239 (un)subscribed. These two variables should, of course, be inside the
2240 relevant valid ranges.
2242 @vindex gnus-keep-same-level
2243 If @code{gnus-keep-same-level} is non-@code{nil}, some movement commands
2244 will only move to groups of the same level (or lower). In
2245 particular, going from the last article in one group to the next group
2246 will go to the next group of the same level (or lower). This might be
2247 handy if you want to read the most important groups before you read the
2250 If this variable is @code{best}, Gnus will make the next newsgroup the
2251 one with the best level.
2253 @vindex gnus-group-default-list-level
2254 All groups with a level less than or equal to
2255 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level} will be listed in the group buffer
2258 @vindex gnus-group-list-inactive-groups
2259 If @code{gnus-group-list-inactive-groups} is non-@code{nil}, non-active
2260 groups will be listed along with the unread groups. This variable is
2261 @code{t} by default. If it is @code{nil}, inactive groups won't be
2264 @vindex gnus-group-use-permanent-levels
2265 If @code{gnus-group-use-permanent-levels} is non-@code{nil}, once you
2266 give a level prefix to @kbd{g} or @kbd{l}, all subsequent commands will
2267 use this level as the ``work'' level.
2269 @vindex gnus-activate-level
2270 Gnus will normally just activate (i. e., query the server about) groups
2271 on level @code{gnus-activate-level} or less. If you don't want to
2272 activate unsubscribed groups, for instance, you might set this variable
2273 to 5. The default is 6.
2277 @section Group Score
2282 You would normally keep important groups on high levels, but that scheme
2283 is somewhat restrictive. Don't you wish you could have Gnus sort the
2284 group buffer according to how often you read groups, perhaps? Within
2287 This is what @dfn{group score} is for. You can have Gnus assign a score
2288 to each group through the mechanism described below. You can then sort
2289 the group buffer based on this score. Alternatively, you can sort on
2290 score and then level. (Taken together, the level and the score is
2291 called the @dfn{rank} of the group. A group that is on level 4 and has
2292 a score of 1 has a higher rank than a group on level 5 that has a score
2293 of 300. (The level is the most significant part and the score is the
2294 least significant part.))
2296 @findex gnus-summary-bubble-group
2297 If you want groups you read often to get higher scores than groups you
2298 read seldom you can add the @code{gnus-summary-bubble-group} function to
2299 the @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} hook. This will result (after
2300 sorting) in a bubbling sort of action. If you want to see that in
2301 action after each summary exit, you can add
2302 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank} or
2303 @code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score} to the same hook, but that will
2304 slow things down somewhat.
2307 @node Marking Groups
2308 @section Marking Groups
2309 @cindex marking groups
2311 If you want to perform some command on several groups, and they appear
2312 subsequently in the group buffer, you would normally just give a
2313 numerical prefix to the command. Most group commands will then do your
2314 bidding on those groups.
2316 However, if the groups are not in sequential order, you can still
2317 perform a command on several groups. You simply mark the groups first
2318 with the process mark and then execute the command.
2326 @findex gnus-group-mark-group
2327 Set the mark on the current group (@code{gnus-group-mark-group}).
2333 @findex gnus-group-unmark-group
2334 Remove the mark from the current group
2335 (@code{gnus-group-unmark-group}).
2339 @findex gnus-group-unmark-all-groups
2340 Remove the mark from all groups (@code{gnus-group-unmark-all-groups}).
2344 @findex gnus-group-mark-region
2345 Mark all groups between point and mark (@code{gnus-group-mark-region}).
2349 @findex gnus-group-mark-buffer
2350 Mark all groups in the buffer (@code{gnus-group-mark-buffer}).
2354 @findex gnus-group-mark-regexp
2355 Mark all groups that match some regular expression
2356 (@code{gnus-group-mark-regexp}).
2359 Also @pxref{Process/Prefix}.
2361 @findex gnus-group-universal-argument
2362 If you want to execute some command on all groups that have been marked
2363 with the process mark, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
2364 (@code{gnus-group-universal-argument}) command. It will prompt you for
2365 the command to be executed.
2368 @node Foreign Groups
2369 @section Foreign Groups
2370 @cindex foreign groups
2372 Below are some group mode commands for making and editing general foreign
2373 groups, as well as commands to ease the creation of a few
2374 special-purpose groups. All these commands insert the newly created
2375 groups under point---@code{gnus-subscribe-newsgroup-method} is not
2382 @findex gnus-group-make-group
2383 @cindex making groups
2384 Make a new group (@code{gnus-group-make-group}). Gnus will prompt you
2385 for a name, a method and possibly an @dfn{address}. For an easier way
2386 to subscribe to @sc{nntp} groups, @pxref{Browse Foreign Server}.
2390 @findex gnus-group-rename-group
2391 @cindex renaming groups
2392 Rename the current group to something else
2393 (@code{gnus-group-rename-group}). This is valid only on some
2394 groups---mail groups mostly. This command might very well be quite slow
2400 @findex gnus-group-customize
2401 Customize the group parameters (@code{gnus-group-customize}).
2405 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-method
2406 @cindex renaming groups
2407 Enter a buffer where you can edit the select method of the current
2408 group (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-method}).
2412 @findex gnus-group-edit-group-parameters
2413 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group parameters
2414 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group-parameters}).
2418 @findex gnus-group-edit-group
2419 Enter a buffer where you can edit the group info
2420 (@code{gnus-group-edit-group}).
2424 @findex gnus-group-make-directory-group
2426 Make a directory group (@pxref{Directory Groups}). You will be prompted
2427 for a directory name (@code{gnus-group-make-directory-group}).
2432 @findex gnus-group-make-help-group
2433 Make the Gnus help group (@code{gnus-group-make-help-group}).
2437 @cindex (ding) archive
2438 @cindex archive group
2439 @findex gnus-group-make-archive-group
2440 @vindex gnus-group-archive-directory
2441 @vindex gnus-group-recent-archive-directory
2442 Make a Gnus archive group (@code{gnus-group-make-archive-group}). By
2443 default a group pointing to the most recent articles will be created
2444 (@code{gnus-group-recent-archive-directory}), but given a prefix, a full
2445 group will be created from @code{gnus-group-archive-directory}.
2449 @findex gnus-group-make-kiboze-group
2451 Make a kiboze group. You will be prompted for a name, for a regexp to
2452 match groups to be ``included'' in the kiboze group, and a series of
2453 strings to match on headers (@code{gnus-group-make-kiboze-group}).
2454 @xref{Kibozed Groups}.
2458 @findex gnus-group-enter-directory
2460 Read an arbitrary directory as if it were a newsgroup with the
2461 @code{nneething} backend (@code{gnus-group-enter-directory}).
2462 @xref{Anything Groups}.
2466 @findex gnus-group-make-doc-group
2467 @cindex ClariNet Briefs
2469 Make a group based on some file or other
2470 (@code{gnus-group-make-doc-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2471 command, you will be prompted for a file name and a file type.
2472 Currently supported types are @code{babyl}, @code{mbox}, @code{digest},
2473 @code{mmdf}, @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{clari-briefs},
2474 @code{rfc934}, @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{nsmail} and @code{forward}.
2475 If you run this command without a prefix, Gnus will guess at the file
2476 type. @xref{Document Groups}.
2480 @vindex gnus-useful-groups
2481 @findex gnus-group-make-useful-group
2482 Create one of the groups mentioned in @code{gnus-useful-groups}
2483 (@code{gnus-group-make-useful-group}).
2487 @findex gnus-group-make-web-group
2492 Make an ephemeral group based on a web search
2493 (@code{gnus-group-make-web-group}). If you give a prefix to this
2494 command, make a solid group instead. You will be prompted for the
2495 search engine type and the search string. Valid search engine types
2496 include @code{dejanews}, @code{altavista} and @code{reference}.
2497 @xref{Web Searches}.
2499 If you use the @code{dejanews} search engine, you can limit the search
2500 to a particular group by using a match string like
2501 @samp{~g alt.sysadmin.recovery shaving}.
2504 @kindex G DEL (Group)
2505 @findex gnus-group-delete-group
2506 This function will delete the current group
2507 (@code{gnus-group-delete-group}). If given a prefix, this function will
2508 actually delete all the articles in the group, and forcibly remove the
2509 group itself from the face of the Earth. Use a prefix only if you are
2510 absolutely sure of what you are doing. This command can't be used on
2511 read-only groups (like @code{nntp} group), though.
2515 @findex gnus-group-make-empty-virtual
2516 Make a new, fresh, empty @code{nnvirtual} group
2517 (@code{gnus-group-make-empty-virtual}). @xref{Virtual Groups}.
2521 @findex gnus-group-add-to-virtual
2522 Add the current group to an @code{nnvirtual} group
2523 (@code{gnus-group-add-to-virtual}). Uses the process/prefix convention.
2526 @xref{Select Methods}, for more information on the various select
2529 @vindex gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups
2530 If @code{gnus-activate-foreign-newsgroups} is a positive number,
2531 Gnus will check all foreign groups with this level or lower at startup.
2532 This might take quite a while, especially if you subscribe to lots of
2533 groups from different @sc{nntp} servers. Also @pxref{Group Levels};
2534 @code{gnus-activate-level} also affects activation of foreign
2538 @node Group Parameters
2539 @section Group Parameters
2540 @cindex group parameters
2542 The group parameters store information local to a particular group.
2543 Here's an example group parameter list:
2546 ((to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")
2550 We see that each element consists of a "dotted pair"---the thing before
2551 the dot is the key, while the thing after the dot is the value. All the
2552 parameters have this form @emph{except} local variable specs, which are
2553 not dotted pairs, but proper lists.
2555 Some parameters have correspondant customizable variables, each of which
2556 is an alist of regexps and values.
2558 The following group parameters can be used:
2563 Address used by when doing followups and new posts.
2566 (to-address . "some@@where.com")
2569 This is primarily useful in mail groups that represent closed mailing
2570 lists---mailing lists where it's expected that everybody that writes to
2571 the mailing list is subscribed to it. Since using this parameter
2572 ensures that the mail only goes to the mailing list itself, it means
2573 that members won't receive two copies of your followups.
2575 Using @code{to-address} will actually work whether the group is foreign
2576 or not. Let's say there's a group on the server that is called
2577 @samp{fa.4ad-l}. This is a real newsgroup, but the server has gotten
2578 the articles from a mail-to-news gateway. Posting directly to this
2579 group is therefore impossible---you have to send mail to the mailing
2580 list address instead.
2582 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-address-alist}.
2586 Address used when doing @kbd{a} in that group.
2589 (to-list . "some@@where.com")
2592 It is totally ignored
2593 when doing a followup---except that if it is present in a news group,
2594 you'll get mail group semantics when doing @kbd{f}.
2596 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you have neither a
2597 @code{to-list} group parameter nor a @code{to-address} group parameter,
2598 then a @code{to-list} group parameter will be added automatically upon
2599 sending the message if @code{gnus-add-to-list} is set to @code{t}.
2600 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
2602 If you do an @kbd{a} command in a mail group and you don't have a
2603 @code{to-list} group parameter, one will be added automatically upon
2604 sending the message.
2606 @findex gnus-mailing-list-mode
2607 @cindex Mail List Groups
2608 If this variable is set, @code{gnus-mailing-list-mode} is turned on when
2609 entering summary buffer.
2611 See also @code{gnus-parameter-to-list-alist}.
2615 If the group parameter list has the element @code{(visible . t)},
2616 that group will always be visible in the Group buffer, regardless
2617 of whether it has any unread articles.
2619 @item broken-reply-to
2620 @cindex broken-reply-to
2621 Elements like @code{(broken-reply-to . t)} signals that @code{Reply-To}
2622 headers in this group are to be ignored. This can be useful if you're
2623 reading a mailing list group where the listserv has inserted
2624 @code{Reply-To} headers that point back to the listserv itself. This is
2625 broken behavior. So there!
2629 Elements like @code{(to-group . "some.group.name")} means that all
2630 posts in that group will be sent to @code{some.group.name}.
2634 If you have @code{(newsgroup . t)} in the group parameter list, Gnus
2635 will treat all responses as if they were responses to news articles.
2636 This can be useful if you have a mail group that's really a mirror of a
2641 If @code{(gcc-self . t)} is present in the group parameter list, newly
2642 composed messages will be @code{Gcc}'d to the current group. If
2643 @code{(gcc-self . none)} is present, no @code{Gcc:} header will be
2644 generated, if @code{(gcc-self . "string")} is present, this string will
2645 be inserted literally as a @code{gcc} header. This parameter takes
2646 precedence over any default @code{Gcc} rules as described later
2647 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
2651 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(auto-expire
2652 . t)}, all articles read will be marked as expirable. For an
2653 alternative approach, @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
2655 See also @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups}.
2658 @cindex total-expire
2659 If the group parameter has an element that looks like
2660 @code{(total-expire . t)}, all read articles will be put through the
2661 expiry process, even if they are not marked as expirable. Use with
2662 caution. Unread, ticked and dormant articles are not eligible for
2665 See also @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups}.
2669 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
2670 If the group parameter has an element that looks like @code{(expiry-wait
2671 . 10)}, this value will override any @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} and
2672 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} when expiring expirable messages.
2673 The value can either be a number of days (not necessarily an integer) or
2674 the symbols @code{never} or @code{immediate}.
2677 @cindex score file group parameter
2678 Elements that look like @code{(score-file . "file")} will make
2679 @file{file} into the current score file for the group in question. All
2680 interactive score entries will be put into this file.
2683 @cindex adapt file group parameter
2684 Elements that look like @code{(adapt-file . "file")} will make
2685 @file{file} into the current adaptive file for the group in question.
2686 All adaptive score entries will be put into this file.
2689 When unsubscribing from a mailing list you should never send the
2690 unsubscription notice to the mailing list itself. Instead, you'd send
2691 messages to the administrative address. This parameter allows you to
2692 put the admin address somewhere convenient.
2695 Elements that look like @code{(display . MODE)} say which articles to
2696 display on entering the group. Valid values are:
2700 Display all articles, both read and unread.
2703 Display the default visible articles, which normally includes unread and
2707 Display articles that satisfy a predicate.
2709 Here are some examples:
2713 Display only unread articles.
2716 Display everything except expirable articles.
2718 @item [and (not reply) (not expirable)]
2719 Display everything except expirable and articles you've already
2723 The available operators are @code{not}, @code{and} and @code{or}.
2724 Predicates include @code{tick}, @code{unsend}, @code{undownload},
2725 @code{unread}, @code{read}, @code{dormant}, @code{}, @code{}, @code{},
2726 @code{expire}, @code{reply}, @code{killed}, @code{bookmark},
2727 @code{score}, @code{save}, @code{cache}, @code{forward}, and
2734 Elements that look like @code{(comment . "This is a comment")}
2735 are arbitrary comments on the group. They are currently ignored by
2736 Gnus, but provide a place for you to store information on particular
2740 Elements that look like @code{(charset . iso-8859-1)} will make
2741 @code{iso-8859-1} the default charset; that is, the charset that will be
2742 used for all articles that do not specify a charset.
2744 See also @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}.
2746 @item ignored-charsets
2747 Elements that look like @code{(ignored-charsets x-known iso-8859-1)}
2748 will make @code{iso-8859-1} and @code{x-unknown} ignored; that is, the
2749 default charset will be used for decoding articles.
2751 See also @code{gnus-group-ignored-charsets-alist}.
2754 You can store additional posting style information for this group only
2755 here (@pxref{Posting Styles}). The format is that of an entry in the
2756 @code{gnus-posting-styles} alist, except that there's no regexp matching
2757 the group name (of course). Style elements in this group parameter will
2758 take precedence over the ones found in @code{gnus-posting-styles}.
2760 For instance, if you want a funky name and signature in this group only,
2761 instead of hacking @code{gnus-posting-styles}, you could put something
2762 like this in the group parameters:
2767 (signature "Funky Signature"))
2772 If it is set, the value is used as the method for posting message
2773 instead of @code{gnus-post-method}.
2776 An item like @code{(banner . "regex")} causes any part of an article
2777 that matches the regular expression "regex" to be stripped. Instead of
2778 "regex", you can also use the symbol @code{signature} which strips the
2779 last signature or any of the elements of the alist
2780 @code{gnus-article-banner-alist}.
2782 @item (@var{variable} @var{form})
2783 You can use the group parameters to set variables local to the group you
2784 are entering. If you want to turn threading off in @samp{news.answers},
2785 you could put @code{(gnus-show-threads nil)} in the group parameters of
2786 that group. @code{gnus-show-threads} will be made into a local variable
2787 in the summary buffer you enter, and the form @code{nil} will be
2788 @code{eval}ed there.
2790 This can also be used as a group-specific hook function, if you'd like.
2791 If you want to hear a beep when you enter a group, you could put
2792 something like @code{(dummy-variable (ding))} in the parameters of that
2793 group. @code{dummy-variable} will be set to the result of the
2794 @code{(ding)} form, but who cares?
2798 Use the @kbd{G p} or the @kbd{G c} command to edit group parameters of a
2799 group. (@kbd{G p} presents you with a Lisp-based interface, @kbd{G c}
2800 presents you with a Customize-like interface. The latter helps avoid
2801 silly Lisp errors.) You might also be interested in reading about topic
2802 parameters (@pxref{Topic Parameters}).
2804 Group parameters can be set via the @code{gnus-parameters} variable too.
2805 But some variables, such as @code{visible}, have no effect. For
2809 (setq gnus-parameters
2811 (gnus-show-threads nil)
2812 (gnus-use-scoring nil)
2813 (gnus-summary-line-format
2814 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%d:%ub%-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
2818 ("^nnimap:\\(foo.bar\\)$"
2822 (gnus-use-scoring t))
2826 (broken-reply-to . t))))
2829 String value of parameters will be subjected to regexp substitution, as
2830 the @code{to-group} example shows.
2833 @node Listing Groups
2834 @section Listing Groups
2835 @cindex group listing
2837 These commands all list various slices of the groups available.
2845 @findex gnus-group-list-groups
2846 List all groups that have unread articles
2847 (@code{gnus-group-list-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used, this
2848 command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default, it
2849 only lists groups of level five (i. e.,
2850 @code{gnus-group-default-list-level}) or lower (i.e., just subscribed
2857 @findex gnus-group-list-all-groups
2858 List all groups, whether they have unread articles or not
2859 (@code{gnus-group-list-all-groups}). If the numeric prefix is used,
2860 this command will list only groups of level ARG and lower. By default,
2861 it lists groups of level seven or lower (i.e., just subscribed and
2862 unsubscribed groups).
2866 @findex gnus-group-list-level
2867 List all unread groups on a specific level
2868 (@code{gnus-group-list-level}). If given a prefix, also list the groups
2869 with no unread articles.
2873 @findex gnus-group-list-killed
2874 List all killed groups (@code{gnus-group-list-killed}). If given a
2875 prefix argument, really list all groups that are available, but aren't
2876 currently (un)subscribed. This could entail reading the active file
2881 @findex gnus-group-list-zombies
2882 List all zombie groups (@code{gnus-group-list-zombies}).
2886 @findex gnus-group-list-matching
2887 List all unread, subscribed groups with names that match a regexp
2888 (@code{gnus-group-list-matching}).
2892 @findex gnus-group-list-all-matching
2893 List groups that match a regexp (@code{gnus-group-list-all-matching}).
2897 @findex gnus-group-list-active
2898 List absolutely all groups in the active file(s) of the
2899 server(s) you are connected to (@code{gnus-group-list-active}). This
2900 might very well take quite a while. It might actually be a better idea
2901 to do a @kbd{A M} to list all matching, and just give @samp{.} as the
2902 thing to match on. Also note that this command may list groups that
2903 don't exist (yet)---these will be listed as if they were killed groups.
2904 Take the output with some grains of salt.
2908 @findex gnus-group-apropos
2909 List all groups that have names that match a regexp
2910 (@code{gnus-group-apropos}).
2914 @findex gnus-group-description-apropos
2915 List all groups that have names or descriptions that match a regexp
2916 (@code{gnus-group-description-apropos}).
2920 @findex gnus-group-list-cached
2921 List all groups with cached articles (@code{gnus-group-list-cached}).
2925 @findex gnus-group-list-dormant
2926 List all groups with dormant articles (@code{gnus-group-list-dormant}).
2930 @findex gnus-group-list-limit
2931 List groups limited within the current selection
2932 (@code{gnus-group-list-limit}).
2936 @findex gnus-group-list-flush
2937 Flush groups from the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-flush}).
2941 @findex gnus-group-list-plus
2942 List groups plus the current selection (@code{gnus-group-list-plus}).
2946 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
2947 @cindex visible group parameter
2948 Groups that match the @code{gnus-permanently-visible-groups} regexp will
2949 always be shown, whether they have unread articles or not. You can also
2950 add the @code{visible} element to the group parameters in question to
2951 get the same effect.
2953 @vindex gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles
2954 Groups that have just ticked articles in it are normally listed in the
2955 group buffer. If @code{gnus-list-groups-with-ticked-articles} is
2956 @code{nil}, these groups will be treated just like totally empty
2957 groups. It is @code{t} by default.
2960 @node Sorting Groups
2961 @section Sorting Groups
2962 @cindex sorting groups
2964 @kindex C-c C-s (Group)
2965 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups
2966 @vindex gnus-group-sort-function
2967 The @kbd{C-c C-s} (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups}) command sorts the
2968 group buffer according to the function(s) given by the
2969 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} variable. Available sorting functions
2974 @item gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2975 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-alphabet
2976 Sort the group names alphabetically. This is the default.
2978 @item gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2979 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-real-name
2980 Sort the group alphabetically on the real (unprefixed) group names.
2982 @item gnus-group-sort-by-level
2983 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-level
2984 Sort by group level.
2986 @item gnus-group-sort-by-score
2987 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-score
2988 Sort by group score. @xref{Group Score}.
2990 @item gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2991 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-rank
2992 Sort by group score and then the group level. The level and the score
2993 are, when taken together, the group's @dfn{rank}. @xref{Group Score}.
2995 @item gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2996 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-unread
2997 Sort by number of unread articles.
2999 @item gnus-group-sort-by-method
3000 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-method
3001 Sort alphabetically on the select method.
3003 @item gnus-group-sort-by-server
3004 @findex gnus-group-sort-by-server
3005 Sort alphabetically on the Gnus server name.
3010 @code{gnus-group-sort-function} can also be a list of sorting
3011 functions. In that case, the most significant sort key function must be
3015 There are also a number of commands for sorting directly according to
3016 some sorting criteria:
3020 @kindex G S a (Group)
3021 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3022 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by group name
3023 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3026 @kindex G S u (Group)
3027 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread
3028 Sort the group buffer by the number of unread articles
3029 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3032 @kindex G S l (Group)
3033 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level
3034 Sort the group buffer by group level
3035 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-level}).
3038 @kindex G S v (Group)
3039 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score
3040 Sort the group buffer by group score
3041 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3044 @kindex G S r (Group)
3045 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank
3046 Sort the group buffer by group rank
3047 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3050 @kindex G S m (Group)
3051 @findex gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method
3052 Sort the group buffer alphabetically by backend name
3053 (@code{gnus-group-sort-groups-by-method}).
3057 All the commands below obey the process/prefix convention
3058 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3060 When given a symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}), all these
3061 commands will sort in reverse order.
3063 You can also sort a subset of the groups:
3067 @kindex G P a (Group)
3068 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet
3069 Sort the groups alphabetically by group name
3070 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-alphabet}).
3073 @kindex G P u (Group)
3074 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread
3075 Sort the groups by the number of unread articles
3076 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-unread}).
3079 @kindex G P l (Group)
3080 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level
3081 Sort the groups by group level
3082 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-level}).
3085 @kindex G P v (Group)
3086 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score
3087 Sort the groups by group score
3088 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3091 @kindex G P r (Group)
3092 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank
3093 Sort the groups by group rank
3094 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3097 @kindex G P m (Group)
3098 @findex gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method
3099 Sort the groups alphabetically by backend name
3100 (@code{gnus-group-sort-selected-groups-by-method}).
3104 And finally, note that you can use @kbd{C-k} and @kbd{C-y} to manually
3108 @node Group Maintenance
3109 @section Group Maintenance
3110 @cindex bogus groups
3115 @findex gnus-group-check-bogus-groups
3116 Find bogus groups and delete them
3117 (@code{gnus-group-check-bogus-groups}).
3121 @findex gnus-group-find-new-groups
3122 Find new groups and process them (@code{gnus-group-find-new-groups}).
3123 With 1 @kbd{C-u}, use the @code{ask-server} method to query the server
3124 for new groups. With 2 @kbd{C-u}'s, use most complete method possible
3125 to query the server for new groups, and subscribe the new groups as
3129 @kindex C-c C-x (Group)
3130 @findex gnus-group-expire-articles
3131 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
3132 process (if any) (@code{gnus-group-expire-articles}). That is, delete
3133 all expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
3134 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3137 @kindex C-c M-C-x (Group)
3138 @findex gnus-group-expire-all-groups
3139 Run all expirable articles in all groups through the expiry process
3140 (@code{gnus-group-expire-all-groups}).
3145 @node Browse Foreign Server
3146 @section Browse Foreign Server
3147 @cindex foreign servers
3148 @cindex browsing servers
3153 @findex gnus-group-browse-foreign-server
3154 You will be queried for a select method and a server name. Gnus will
3155 then attempt to contact this server and let you browse the groups there
3156 (@code{gnus-group-browse-foreign-server}).
3159 @findex gnus-browse-mode
3160 A new buffer with a list of available groups will appear. This buffer
3161 will use the @code{gnus-browse-mode}. This buffer looks a bit (well,
3162 a lot) like a normal group buffer.
3164 Here's a list of keystrokes available in the browse mode:
3169 @findex gnus-group-next-group
3170 Go to the next group (@code{gnus-group-next-group}).
3174 @findex gnus-group-prev-group
3175 Go to the previous group (@code{gnus-group-prev-group}).
3178 @kindex SPACE (Browse)
3179 @findex gnus-browse-read-group
3180 Enter the current group and display the first article
3181 (@code{gnus-browse-read-group}).
3184 @kindex RET (Browse)
3185 @findex gnus-browse-select-group
3186 Enter the current group (@code{gnus-browse-select-group}).
3190 @findex gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group
3191 Unsubscribe to the current group, or, as will be the case here,
3192 subscribe to it (@code{gnus-browse-unsubscribe-current-group}).
3198 @findex gnus-browse-exit
3199 Exit browse mode (@code{gnus-browse-exit}).
3203 @findex gnus-browse-describe-briefly
3204 Describe browse mode briefly (well, there's not much to describe, is
3205 there) (@code{gnus-browse-describe-briefly}).
3210 @section Exiting Gnus
3211 @cindex exiting Gnus
3213 Yes, Gnus is ex(c)iting.
3218 @findex gnus-group-suspend
3219 Suspend Gnus (@code{gnus-group-suspend}). This doesn't really exit Gnus,
3220 but it kills all buffers except the Group buffer. I'm not sure why this
3221 is a gain, but then who am I to judge?
3225 @findex gnus-group-exit
3226 @c @icon{gnus-group-exit}
3227 Quit Gnus (@code{gnus-group-exit}).
3231 @findex gnus-group-quit
3232 Quit Gnus without saving the @file{.newsrc} files (@code{gnus-group-quit}).
3233 The dribble file will be saved, though (@pxref{Auto Save}).
3236 @vindex gnus-exit-gnus-hook
3237 @vindex gnus-suspend-gnus-hook
3238 @code{gnus-suspend-gnus-hook} is called when you suspend Gnus and
3239 @code{gnus-exit-gnus-hook} is called when you quit Gnus, while
3240 @code{gnus-after-exiting-gnus-hook} is called as the final item when
3245 If you wish to completely unload Gnus and all its adherents, you can use
3246 the @code{gnus-unload} command. This command is also very handy when
3247 trying to customize meta-variables.
3252 Miss Lisa Cannifax, while sitting in English class, felt her feet go
3253 numbly heavy and herself fall into a hazy trance as the boy sitting
3254 behind her drew repeated lines with his pencil across the back of her
3260 @section Group Topics
3263 If you read lots and lots of groups, it might be convenient to group
3264 them hierarchically according to topics. You put your Emacs groups over
3265 here, your sex groups over there, and the rest (what, two groups or so?)
3266 you put in some misc section that you never bother with anyway. You can
3267 even group the Emacs sex groups as a sub-topic to either the Emacs
3268 groups or the sex groups---or both! Go wild!
3272 \gnusfigure{Group Topics}{400}{
3273 \put(75,50){\epsfig{figure=tmp/group-topic.ps,height=9cm}}
3284 2: alt.religion.emacs
3287 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3289 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3290 13: comp.sources.unix
3293 @findex gnus-topic-mode
3295 To get this @emph{fab} functionality you simply turn on (ooh!) the
3296 @code{gnus-topic} minor mode---type @kbd{t} in the group buffer. (This
3297 is a toggling command.)
3299 Go ahead, just try it. I'll still be here when you get back. La de
3300 dum... Nice tune, that... la la la... What, you're back? Yes, and now
3301 press @kbd{l}. There. All your groups are now listed under
3302 @samp{misc}. Doesn't that make you feel all warm and fuzzy? Hot and
3305 If you want this permanently enabled, you should add that minor mode to
3306 the hook for the group mode:
3309 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
3313 * Topic Variables:: How to customize the topics the Lisp Way.
3314 * Topic Commands:: Interactive E-Z commands.
3315 * Topic Sorting:: Sorting each topic individually.
3316 * Topic Topology:: A map of the world.
3317 * Topic Parameters:: Parameters that apply to all groups in a topic.
3321 @node Topic Variables
3322 @subsection Topic Variables
3323 @cindex topic variables
3325 Now, if you select a topic, it will fold/unfold that topic, which is
3326 really neat, I think.
3328 @vindex gnus-topic-line-format
3329 The topic lines themselves are created according to the
3330 @code{gnus-topic-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
3343 Number of groups in the topic.
3345 Number of unread articles in the topic.
3347 Number of unread articles in the topic and all its subtopics.
3350 @vindex gnus-topic-indent-level
3351 Each sub-topic (and the groups in the sub-topics) will be indented with
3352 @code{gnus-topic-indent-level} times the topic level number of spaces.
3355 @vindex gnus-topic-mode-hook
3356 @code{gnus-topic-mode-hook} is called in topic minor mode buffers.
3358 @vindex gnus-topic-display-empty-topics
3359 The @code{gnus-topic-display-empty-topics} says whether to display even
3360 topics that have no unread articles in them. The default is @code{t}.
3363 @node Topic Commands
3364 @subsection Topic Commands
3365 @cindex topic commands
3367 When the topic minor mode is turned on, a new @kbd{T} submap will be
3368 available. In addition, a few of the standard keys change their
3369 definitions slightly.
3375 @findex gnus-topic-create-topic
3376 Prompt for a new topic name and create it
3377 (@code{gnus-topic-create-topic}).
3381 @findex gnus-topic-move-group
3382 Move the current group to some other topic
3383 (@code{gnus-topic-move-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3384 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3388 @findex gnus-topic-jump-to-topic
3389 Go to a topic (@code{gnus-topic-jump-to-topic}).
3393 @findex gnus-topic-copy-group
3394 Copy the current group to some other topic
3395 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-group}). This command uses the process/prefix
3396 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3400 @findex gnus-topic-hide-topic
3401 Hide the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-hide-topic}). If given
3402 a prefix, hide the topic permanently.
3406 @findex gnus-topic-show-topic
3407 Show the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-show-topic}). If given
3408 a prefix, show the topic permanently.
3412 @findex gnus-topic-remove-group
3413 Remove a group from the current topic (@code{gnus-topic-remove-group}).
3414 This command is mainly useful if you have the same group in several
3415 topics and wish to remove it from one of the topics. You may also
3416 remove a group from all topics, but in that case, Gnus will add it to
3417 the root topic the next time you start Gnus. In fact, all new groups
3418 (which, naturally, don't belong to any topic) will show up in the root
3421 This command uses the process/prefix convention
3422 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
3426 @findex gnus-topic-move-matching
3427 Move all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3428 (@code{gnus-topic-move-matching}).
3432 @findex gnus-topic-copy-matching
3433 Copy all groups that match some regular expression to a topic
3434 (@code{gnus-topic-copy-matching}).
3438 @findex gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics
3439 Toggle hiding empty topics
3440 (@code{gnus-topic-toggle-display-empty-topics}).
3444 @findex gnus-topic-mark-topic
3445 Mark all groups in the current topic with the process mark
3446 (@code{gnus-topic-mark-topic}).
3449 @kindex T M-# (Topic)
3450 @findex gnus-topic-unmark-topic
3451 Remove the process mark from all groups in the current topic
3452 (@code{gnus-topic-unmark-topic}).
3456 @kindex T TAB (Topic)
3458 @findex gnus-topic-indent
3459 ``Indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3460 previous topic (@code{gnus-topic-indent}). If given a prefix,
3461 ``un-indent'' the topic instead.
3464 @kindex M-TAB (Topic)
3465 @findex gnus-topic-unindent
3466 ``Un-indent'' the current topic so that it becomes a sub-topic of the
3467 parent of its current parent (@code{gnus-topic-unindent}).
3471 @findex gnus-topic-select-group
3473 Either select a group or fold a topic (@code{gnus-topic-select-group}).
3474 When you perform this command on a group, you'll enter the group, as
3475 usual. When done on a topic line, the topic will be folded (if it was
3476 visible) or unfolded (if it was folded already). So it's basically a
3477 toggling command on topics. In addition, if you give a numerical
3478 prefix, group on that level (and lower) will be displayed.
3481 @kindex C-c C-x (Topic)
3482 @findex gnus-topic-expire-articles
3483 Run all expirable articles in the current group or topic through the
3484 expiry process (if any)
3485 (@code{gnus-topic-expire-articles}). (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
3489 @findex gnus-topic-kill-group
3490 Kill a group or topic (@code{gnus-topic-kill-group}). All groups in the
3491 topic will be removed along with the topic.
3495 @findex gnus-topic-yank-group
3496 Yank the previously killed group or topic
3497 (@code{gnus-topic-yank-group}). Note that all topics will be yanked
3502 @findex gnus-topic-rename
3503 Rename a topic (@code{gnus-topic-rename}).
3506 @kindex T DEL (Topic)
3507 @findex gnus-topic-delete
3508 Delete an empty topic (@code{gnus-topic-delete}).
3512 @findex gnus-topic-list-active
3513 List all groups that Gnus knows about in a topics-ified way
3514 (@code{gnus-topic-list-active}).
3518 @findex gnus-topic-edit-parameters
3519 @cindex group parameters
3520 @cindex topic parameters
3522 Edit the topic parameters (@code{gnus-topic-edit-parameters}).
3523 @xref{Topic Parameters}.
3529 @subsection Topic Sorting
3530 @cindex topic sorting
3532 You can sort the groups in each topic individually with the following
3538 @kindex T S a (Topic)
3539 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet
3540 Sort the current topic alphabetically by group name
3541 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-alphabet}).
3544 @kindex T S u (Topic)
3545 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread
3546 Sort the current topic by the number of unread articles
3547 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-unread}).
3550 @kindex T S l (Topic)
3551 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level
3552 Sort the current topic by group level
3553 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-level}).
3556 @kindex T S v (Topic)
3557 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score
3558 Sort the current topic by group score
3559 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-score}). @xref{Group Score}.
3562 @kindex T S r (Topic)
3563 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank
3564 Sort the current topic by group rank
3565 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-rank}). @xref{Group Score}.
3568 @kindex T S m (Topic)
3569 @findex gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method
3570 Sort the current topic alphabetically by backend name
3571 (@code{gnus-topic-sort-groups-by-method}).
3575 @xref{Sorting Groups}, for more information about group sorting.
3578 @node Topic Topology
3579 @subsection Topic Topology
3580 @cindex topic topology
3583 So, let's have a look at an example group buffer:
3589 2: alt.religion.emacs
3592 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3594 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3595 13: comp.sources.unix
3598 So, here we have one top-level topic (@samp{Gnus}), two topics under
3599 that, and one sub-topic under one of the sub-topics. (There is always
3600 just one (1) top-level topic). This topology can be expressed as
3605 (("Emacs -- I wuw it!" visible)
3606 (("Naughty Emacs" visible)))
3610 @vindex gnus-topic-topology
3611 This is in fact how the variable @code{gnus-topic-topology} would look
3612 for the display above. That variable is saved in the @file{.newsrc.eld}
3613 file, and shouldn't be messed with manually---unless you really want
3614 to. Since this variable is read from the @file{.newsrc.eld} file,
3615 setting it in any other startup files will have no effect.
3617 This topology shows what topics are sub-topics of what topics (right),
3618 and which topics are visible. Two settings are currently
3619 allowed---@code{visible} and @code{invisible}.
3622 @node Topic Parameters
3623 @subsection Topic Parameters
3624 @cindex topic parameters
3626 All groups in a topic will inherit group parameters from the parent (and
3627 ancestor) topic parameters. All valid group parameters are valid topic
3628 parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
3630 In addition, the following parameters are only valid as topic
3635 When subscribing new groups by topic (@pxref{Subscription Methods}), the
3636 @code{subscribe} topic parameter says what groups go in what topic. Its
3637 value should be a regexp to match the groups that should go in that
3642 Group parameters (of course) override topic parameters, and topic
3643 parameters in sub-topics override topic parameters in super-topics. You
3644 know. Normal inheritance rules. (@dfn{Rules} is here a noun, not a
3645 verb, although you may feel free to disagree with me here.)
3651 2: alt.religion.emacs
3655 0: comp.talk.emacs.recovery
3657 8: comp.binaries.fractals
3658 13: comp.sources.unix
3662 The @samp{Emacs} topic has the topic parameter @code{(score-file
3663 . "emacs.SCORE")}; the @samp{Relief} topic has the topic parameter
3664 @code{(score-file . "relief.SCORE")}; and the @samp{Misc} topic has the
3665 topic parameter @code{(score-file . "emacs.SCORE")}. In addition,
3666 @* @samp{alt.religion.emacs} has the group parameter @code{(score-file
3667 . "religion.SCORE")}.
3669 Now, when you enter @samp{alt.sex.emacs} in the @samp{Relief} topic, you
3670 will get the @file{relief.SCORE} home score file. If you enter the same
3671 group in the @samp{Emacs} topic, you'll get the @file{emacs.SCORE} home
3672 score file. If you enter the group @samp{alt.religion.emacs}, you'll
3673 get the @file{religion.SCORE} home score file.
3675 This seems rather simple and self-evident, doesn't it? Well, yes. But
3676 there are some problems, especially with the @code{total-expiry}
3677 parameter. Say you have a mail group in two topics; one with
3678 @code{total-expiry} and one without. What happens when you do @kbd{M-x
3679 gnus-expire-all-expirable-groups}? Gnus has no way of telling which one
3680 of these topics you mean to expire articles from, so anything may
3681 happen. In fact, I hereby declare that it is @dfn{undefined} what
3682 happens. You just have to be careful if you do stuff like that.
3685 @node Misc Group Stuff
3686 @section Misc Group Stuff
3689 * Scanning New Messages:: Asking Gnus to see whether new messages have arrived.
3690 * Group Information:: Information and help on groups and Gnus.
3691 * Group Timestamp:: Making Gnus keep track of when you last read a group.
3692 * File Commands:: Reading and writing the Gnus files.
3699 @findex gnus-group-enter-server-mode
3700 Enter the server buffer (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}).
3701 @xref{Server Buffer}.
3705 @findex gnus-group-post-news
3706 Post an article to a group (@code{gnus-group-post-news}). If given a
3707 prefix, the current group name will be used as the default.
3711 @findex gnus-group-mail
3712 Mail a message somewhere (@code{gnus-group-mail}).
3716 Variables for the group buffer:
3720 @item gnus-group-mode-hook
3721 @vindex gnus-group-mode-hook
3722 is called after the group buffer has been
3725 @item gnus-group-prepare-hook
3726 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3727 is called after the group buffer is
3728 generated. It may be used to modify the buffer in some strange,
3731 @item gnus-group-prepared-hook
3732 @vindex gnus-group-prepare-hook
3733 is called as the very last thing after the group buffer has been
3734 generated. It may be used to move point around, for instance.
3736 @item gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3737 @vindex gnus-permanently-visible-groups
3738 Groups matching this regexp will always be listed in the group buffer,
3739 whether they are empty or not.
3741 @item gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3742 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3743 An alist of method and the charset for group names. It is used to show
3744 non-ASCII group names.
3748 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-method-alist
3749 '(((nntp "news.com.cn") . cn-gb-2312)))
3752 @item gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3753 @vindex gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3754 An alist of regexp of group name and the charset for group names.
3755 It is used to show non-ASCII group names.
3759 (setq gnus-group-name-charset-group-alist
3760 '(("\\.com\\.cn:" . cn-gb-2312)))
3765 @node Scanning New Messages
3766 @subsection Scanning New Messages
3767 @cindex new messages
3768 @cindex scanning new news
3774 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news
3775 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news}
3776 Check the server(s) for new articles. If the numerical prefix is used,
3777 this command will check only groups of level @var{arg} and lower
3778 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news}). If given a non-numerical prefix, this
3779 command will force a total re-reading of the active file(s) from the
3784 @findex gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group
3785 @vindex gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating
3786 @c @icon{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}
3787 Check whether new articles have arrived in the current group
3788 (@code{gnus-group-get-new-news-this-group}).
3789 @code{gnus-goto-next-group-when-activating} says whether this command is
3790 to move point to the next group or not. It is @code{t} by default.
3792 @findex gnus-activate-all-groups
3793 @cindex activating groups
3795 @kindex C-c M-g (Group)
3796 Activate absolutely all groups (@code{gnus-activate-all-groups}).
3801 @findex gnus-group-restart
3802 Restart Gnus (@code{gnus-group-restart}). This saves the @file{.newsrc}
3803 file(s), closes the connection to all servers, clears up all run-time
3804 Gnus variables, and then starts Gnus all over again.
3808 @vindex gnus-get-new-news-hook
3809 @code{gnus-get-new-news-hook} is run just before checking for new news.
3811 @vindex gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook
3812 @code{gnus-after-getting-new-news-hook} is run after checking for new
3816 @node Group Information
3817 @subsection Group Information
3818 @cindex group information
3819 @cindex information on groups
3826 @findex gnus-group-fetch-faq
3827 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
3830 Try to fetch the FAQ for the current group
3831 (@code{gnus-group-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the FAQ from
3832 @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory on a
3833 remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories. In
3834 that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
3835 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} (or @code{efs}) will be used
3836 for fetching the file.
3838 If fetching from the first site is unsuccessful, Gnus will attempt to go
3839 through @code{gnus-group-faq-directory} and try to open them one by one.
3843 @c @icon{gnus-group-describe-group}
3845 @kindex C-c C-d (Group)
3846 @cindex describing groups
3847 @cindex group description
3848 @findex gnus-group-describe-group
3849 Describe the current group (@code{gnus-group-describe-group}). If given
3850 a prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description from the server.
3854 @findex gnus-group-describe-all-groups
3855 Describe all groups (@code{gnus-group-describe-all-groups}). If given a
3856 prefix, force Gnus to re-read the description file from the server.
3863 @findex gnus-version
3864 Display current Gnus version numbers (@code{gnus-version}).
3868 @findex gnus-group-describe-briefly
3869 Give a very short help message (@code{gnus-group-describe-briefly}).
3872 @kindex C-c C-i (Group)
3875 @findex gnus-info-find-node
3876 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
3880 @node Group Timestamp
3881 @subsection Group Timestamp
3883 @cindex group timestamps
3885 It can be convenient to let Gnus keep track of when you last read a
3886 group. To set the ball rolling, you should add
3887 @code{gnus-group-set-timestamp} to @code{gnus-select-group-hook}:
3890 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook 'gnus-group-set-timestamp)
3893 After doing this, each time you enter a group, it'll be recorded.
3895 This information can be displayed in various ways---the easiest is to
3896 use the @samp{%d} spec in the group line format:
3899 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3900 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %d\n")
3903 This will result in lines looking like:
3906 * 0: mail.ding 19961002T012943
3907 0: custom 19961002T012713
3910 As you can see, the date is displayed in compact ISO 8601 format. This
3911 may be a bit too much, so to just display the date, you could say
3915 (setq gnus-group-line-format
3916 "%M\%S\%p\%P\%5y: %(%-40,40g%) %6,6~(cut 2)d\n")
3921 @subsection File Commands
3922 @cindex file commands
3928 @findex gnus-group-read-init-file
3929 @vindex gnus-init-file
3930 @cindex reading init file
3931 Re-read the init file (@code{gnus-init-file}, which defaults to
3932 @file{~/.gnus}) (@code{gnus-group-read-init-file}).
3936 @findex gnus-group-save-newsrc
3937 @cindex saving .newsrc
3938 Save the @file{.newsrc.eld} file (and @file{.newsrc} if wanted)
3939 (@code{gnus-group-save-newsrc}). If given a prefix, force saving the
3940 file(s) whether Gnus thinks it is necessary or not.
3943 @c @kindex Z (Group)
3944 @c @findex gnus-group-clear-dribble
3945 @c Clear the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-group-clear-dribble}).
3950 @node Summary Buffer
3951 @chapter Summary Buffer
3952 @cindex summary buffer
3954 A line for each article is displayed in the summary buffer. You can
3955 move around, read articles, post articles and reply to articles.
3957 The most common way to a summary buffer is to select a group from the
3958 group buffer (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
3960 You can have as many summary buffers open as you wish.
3963 * Summary Buffer Format:: Deciding how the summary buffer is to look.
3964 * Summary Maneuvering:: Moving around the summary buffer.
3965 * Choosing Articles:: Reading articles.
3966 * Paging the Article:: Scrolling the current article.
3967 * Reply Followup and Post:: Posting articles.
3968 * Marking Articles:: Marking articles as read, expirable, etc.
3969 * Limiting:: You can limit the summary buffer.
3970 * Threading:: How threads are made.
3971 * Sorting the Summary Buffer:: How articles and threads are sorted.
3972 * Asynchronous Fetching:: Gnus might be able to pre-fetch articles.
3973 * Article Caching:: You may store articles in a cache.
3974 * Persistent Articles:: Making articles expiry-resistant.
3975 * Article Backlog:: Having already read articles hang around.
3976 * Saving Articles:: Ways of customizing article saving.
3977 * Decoding Articles:: Gnus can treat series of (uu)encoded articles.
3978 * Article Treatment:: The article buffer can be mangled at will.
3979 * MIME Commands:: Doing MIMEy things with the articles.
3980 * Charsets:: Character set issues.
3981 * Article Commands:: Doing various things with the article buffer.
3982 * Summary Sorting:: Sorting the summary buffer in various ways.
3983 * Finding the Parent:: No child support? Get the parent.
3984 * Alternative Approaches:: Reading using non-default summaries.
3985 * Tree Display:: A more visual display of threads.
3986 * Mail Group Commands:: Some commands can only be used in mail groups.
3987 * Various Summary Stuff:: What didn't fit anywhere else.
3988 * Exiting the Summary Buffer:: Returning to the Group buffer,
3989 or reselecting the current group.
3990 * Crosspost Handling:: How crossposted articles are dealt with.
3991 * Duplicate Suppression:: An alternative when crosspost handling fails.
3992 * Security:: Decrypt and Verify.
3993 * Mailing List:: Mailing list minor mode.
3997 @node Summary Buffer Format
3998 @section Summary Buffer Format
3999 @cindex summary buffer format
4003 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{180}{
4004 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary.ps,width=7.5cm}}
4005 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-article.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
4011 * Summary Buffer Lines:: You can specify how summary lines should look.
4012 * To From Newsgroups:: How to not display your own name.
4013 * Summary Buffer Mode Line:: You can say how the mode line should look.
4014 * Summary Highlighting:: Making the summary buffer all pretty and nice.
4017 @findex mail-extract-address-components
4018 @findex gnus-extract-address-components
4019 @vindex gnus-extract-address-components
4020 Gnus will use the value of the @code{gnus-extract-address-components}
4021 variable as a function for getting the name and address parts of a
4022 @code{From} header. Two pre-defined functions exist:
4023 @code{gnus-extract-address-components}, which is the default, quite
4024 fast, and too simplistic solution; and
4025 @code{mail-extract-address-components}, which works very nicely, but is
4026 slower. The default function will return the wrong answer in 5% of the
4027 cases. If this is unacceptable to you, use the other function instead:
4030 (setq gnus-extract-address-components
4031 'mail-extract-address-components)
4034 @vindex gnus-summary-same-subject
4035 @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} is a string indicating that the current
4036 article has the same subject as the previous. This string will be used
4037 with those specs that require it. The default is @code{""}.
4040 @node Summary Buffer Lines
4041 @subsection Summary Buffer Lines
4043 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4044 You can change the format of the lines in the summary buffer by changing
4045 the @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable. It works along the same
4046 lines as a normal @code{format} string, with some extensions
4047 (@pxref{Formatting Variables}).
4049 There should always be a colon on the line; the cursor always moves to
4050 the colon after performing an operation. (Of course, Gnus wouldn't be
4051 Gnus if it wasn't possible to change this. Just write a new function
4052 @code{gnus-goto-colon} which does whatever you like with the cursor.)
4054 The default string is @samp{%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%) %s\n}.
4056 The following format specification characters are understood:
4062 Subject string. List identifiers stripped,
4063 @code{gnus-list-identifies}. @xref{Article Hiding}.
4065 Subject if the article is the root of the thread or the previous article
4066 had a different subject, @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} otherwise.
4067 (@code{gnus-summary-same-subject} defaults to @code{""}.)
4069 Full @code{From} header.
4071 The name (from the @code{From} header).
4073 The name, code @code{To} header or the @code{Newsgroups} header
4074 (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
4076 The name (from the @code{From} header). This differs from the @code{n}
4077 spec in that it uses the function designated by the
4078 @code{gnus-extract-address-components} variable, which is slower, but
4079 may be more thorough.
4081 The address (from the @code{From} header). This works the same way as
4084 Number of lines in the article.
4086 Number of characters in the article. This specifier is not supported in some
4087 methods (like nnfolder).
4089 Indentation based on thread level (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4091 A complex trn-style thread tree, showing response-connecting trace lines.
4093 Nothing if the article is a root and lots of spaces if it isn't (it
4094 pushes everything after it off the screen).
4096 Opening bracket, which is normally @samp{[}, but can also be @samp{<}
4097 for adopted articles (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
4099 Closing bracket, which is normally @samp{]}, but can also be @samp{>}
4100 for adopted articles.
4102 One space for each thread level.
4104 Twenty minus thread level spaces.
4109 This misleadingly named specifier is the @dfn{secondary mark}. This
4110 mark will say whether the article has been replied to, has been cached,
4114 Score as a number (@pxref{Scoring}).
4116 @vindex gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz
4117 Zcore, @samp{+} if above the default level and @samp{-} if below the
4118 default level. If the difference between
4119 @code{gnus-summary-default-score} and the score is less than
4120 @code{gnus-summary-zcore-fuzz}, this spec will not be used.
4128 The @code{Date} in @code{DD-MMM} format.
4130 The @code{Date} in @var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS} format.
4136 Number of articles in the current sub-thread. Using this spec will slow
4137 down summary buffer generation somewhat.
4139 An @samp{=} (@code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark}) will be displayed if the
4140 article has any children.
4146 User defined specifier. The next character in the format string should
4147 be a letter. Gnus will call the function
4148 @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where @samp{X} is the letter
4149 following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed the current header as
4150 argument. The function should return a string, which will be inserted
4151 into the summary just like information from any other summary specifier.
4154 The @samp{%U} (status), @samp{%R} (replied) and @samp{%z} (zcore) specs
4155 have to be handled with care. For reasons of efficiency, Gnus will
4156 compute what column these characters will end up in, and ``hard-code''
4157 that. This means that it is invalid to have these specs after a
4158 variable-length spec. Well, you might not be arrested, but your summary
4159 buffer will look strange, which is bad enough.
4161 The smart choice is to have these specs as far to the left as possible.
4162 (Isn't that the case with everything, though? But I digress.)
4164 This restriction may disappear in later versions of Gnus.
4167 @node To From Newsgroups
4168 @subsection To From Newsgroups
4172 In some groups (particularly in archive groups), the @code{From} header
4173 isn't very interesting, since all the articles there are written by
4174 you. To display the information in the @code{To} or @code{Newsgroups}
4175 headers instead, you need to decide three things: What information to
4176 gather; where to display it; and when to display it.
4180 @vindex gnus-extra-headers
4181 The reading of extra header information is controlled by the
4182 @code{gnus-extra-headers}. This is a list of header symbols. For
4186 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4187 '(To Newsgroups X-Newsreader))
4190 This will result in Gnus trying to obtain these three headers, and
4191 storing it in header structures for later easy retrieval.
4194 @findex gnus-extra-header
4195 The value of these extra headers can be accessed via the
4196 @code{gnus-extra-header} function. Here's a format line spec that will
4197 access the @code{X-Newsreader} header:
4200 "%~(form (gnus-extra-header 'X-Newsreader))@@"
4204 @vindex gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4205 The @code{gnus-ignored-from-addresses} variable says when the @samp{%f}
4206 summary line spec returns the @code{To}, @code{Newsreader} or
4207 @code{From} header. If this regexp matches the contents of the
4208 @code{From} header, the value of the @code{To} or @code{Newsreader}
4209 headers are used instead.
4213 @vindex nnmail-extra-headers
4214 A related variable is @code{nnmail-extra-headers}, which controls when
4215 to include extra headers when generating overview (@sc{nov}) files. If
4216 you have old overview files, you should regenerate them after changing
4219 @vindex gnus-summary-line-format
4220 You also have to instruct Gnus to display the data by changing the
4221 @code{%n} spec to the @code{%f} spec in the
4222 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} variable.
4224 In summary, you'd typically put something like the following in
4228 (setq gnus-extra-headers
4230 (setq nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
4231 (setq gnus-summary-line-format
4232 "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23f%]%) %s\n")
4233 (setq gnus-ignored-from-addresses
4237 Now, this is mostly useful for mail groups, where you have control over
4238 the @sc{nov} files that are created. However, if you can persuade your
4245 to the end of her @file{overview.fmt} file, then you can use that just
4246 as you would the extra headers from the mail groups.
4249 @node Summary Buffer Mode Line
4250 @subsection Summary Buffer Mode Line
4252 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-line-format
4253 You can also change the format of the summary mode bar (@pxref{Mode Line
4254 Formatting}). Set @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} to whatever you
4255 like. The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b [%A] %Z}.
4257 Here are the elements you can play with:
4263 Unprefixed group name.
4265 Current article number.
4267 Current article score.
4271 Number of unread articles in this group.
4273 Number of unread articles in this group that aren't displayed in the
4276 A string with the number of unread and unselected articles represented
4277 either as @samp{<%U(+%e) more>} if there are both unread and unselected
4278 articles, and just as @samp{<%U more>} if there are just unread articles
4279 and no unselected ones.
4281 Shortish group name. For instance, @samp{rec.arts.anime} will be
4282 shortened to @samp{r.a.anime}.
4284 Subject of the current article.
4286 User-defined spec (@pxref{User-Defined Specs}).
4288 Name of the current score file (@pxref{Scoring}).
4290 Number of dormant articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4292 Number of ticked articles (@pxref{Unread Articles}).
4294 Number of articles that have been marked as read in this session.
4296 Number of articles expunged by the score files.
4300 @node Summary Highlighting
4301 @subsection Summary Highlighting
4305 @item gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4306 @vindex gnus-visual-mark-article-hook
4307 This hook is run after selecting an article. It is meant to be used for
4308 highlighting the article in some way. It is not run if
4309 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4311 @item gnus-summary-update-hook
4312 @vindex gnus-summary-update-hook
4313 This hook is called when a summary line is changed. It is not run if
4314 @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
4316 @item gnus-summary-selected-face
4317 @vindex gnus-summary-selected-face
4318 This is the face (or @dfn{font} as some people call it) used to
4319 highlight the current article in the summary buffer.
4321 @item gnus-summary-highlight
4322 @vindex gnus-summary-highlight
4323 Summary lines are highlighted according to this variable, which is a
4324 list where the elements are of the format @code{(@var{form}
4325 . @var{face})}. If you would, for instance, like ticked articles to be
4326 italic and high-scored articles to be bold, you could set this variable
4329 (((eq mark gnus-ticked-mark) . italic)
4330 ((> score default) . bold))
4332 As you may have guessed, if @var{form} returns a non-@code{nil} value,
4333 @var{face} will be applied to the line.
4337 @node Summary Maneuvering
4338 @section Summary Maneuvering
4339 @cindex summary movement
4341 All the straight movement commands understand the numeric prefix and
4342 behave pretty much as you'd expect.
4344 None of these commands select articles.
4349 @kindex M-n (Summary)
4350 @kindex G M-n (Summary)
4351 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-subject
4352 Go to the next summary line of an unread article
4353 (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-subject}).
4357 @kindex M-p (Summary)
4358 @kindex G M-p (Summary)
4359 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject
4360 Go to the previous summary line of an unread article
4361 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-subject}).
4364 @kindex G g (Summary)
4365 @findex gnus-summary-goto-subject
4366 Ask for an article number and then go to the summary line of that article
4367 without displaying the article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-subject}).
4370 If Gnus asks you to press a key to confirm going to the next group, you
4371 can use the @kbd{C-n} and @kbd{C-p} keys to move around the group
4372 buffer, searching for the next group to read without actually returning
4373 to the group buffer.
4375 Variables related to summary movement:
4379 @vindex gnus-auto-select-next
4380 @item gnus-auto-select-next
4381 If you issue one of the movement commands (like @kbd{n}) and there are
4382 no more unread articles after the current one, Gnus will offer to go to
4383 the next group. If this variable is @code{t} and the next group is
4384 empty, Gnus will exit summary mode and return to the group buffer. If
4385 this variable is neither @code{t} nor @code{nil}, Gnus will select the
4386 next group, no matter whether it has any unread articles or not. As a
4387 special case, if this variable is @code{quietly}, Gnus will select the
4388 next group without asking for confirmation. If this variable is
4389 @code{almost-quietly}, the same will happen only if you are located on
4390 the last article in the group. Finally, if this variable is
4391 @code{slightly-quietly}, the @kbd{Z n} command will go to the next group
4392 without confirmation. Also @pxref{Group Levels}.
4394 @item gnus-auto-select-same
4395 @vindex gnus-auto-select-same
4396 If non-@code{nil}, all the movement commands will try to go to the next
4397 article with the same subject as the current. (@dfn{Same} here might
4398 mean @dfn{roughly equal}. See @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}
4399 for details (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).) If there are no more
4400 articles with the same subject, go to the first unread article.
4402 This variable is not particularly useful if you use a threaded display.
4404 @item gnus-summary-check-current
4405 @vindex gnus-summary-check-current
4406 If non-@code{nil}, all the ``unread'' movement commands will not proceed
4407 to the next (or previous) article if the current article is unread.
4408 Instead, they will choose the current article.
4410 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
4411 @vindex gnus-auto-center-summary
4412 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will keep the point in the summary buffer
4413 centered at all times. This makes things quite tidy, but if you have a
4414 slow network connection, or simply do not like this un-Emacsism, you can
4415 set this variable to @code{nil} to get the normal Emacs scrolling
4416 action. This will also inhibit horizontal re-centering of the summary
4417 buffer, which might make it more inconvenient to read extremely long
4420 This variable can also be a number. In that case, center the window at
4421 the given number of lines from the top.
4426 @node Choosing Articles
4427 @section Choosing Articles
4428 @cindex selecting articles
4431 * Choosing Commands:: Commands for choosing articles.
4432 * Choosing Variables:: Variables that influence these commands.
4436 @node Choosing Commands
4437 @subsection Choosing Commands
4439 None of the following movement commands understand the numeric prefix,
4440 and they all select and display an article.
4442 If you want to fetch new articles or redisplay the group, see
4443 @ref{Exiting the Summary Buffer}.
4447 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4448 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4449 Select the current article, or, if that one's read already, the next
4450 unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4455 @kindex G n (Summary)
4456 @findex gnus-summary-next-unread-article
4457 @c @icon{gnus-summary-next-unread}
4458 Go to next unread article (@code{gnus-summary-next-unread-article}).
4463 @findex gnus-summary-prev-unread-article
4464 @c @icon{gnus-summary-prev-unread}
4465 Go to previous unread article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-unread-article}).
4470 @kindex G N (Summary)
4471 @findex gnus-summary-next-article
4472 Go to the next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-article}).
4477 @kindex G P (Summary)
4478 @findex gnus-summary-prev-article
4479 Go to the previous article (@code{gnus-summary-prev-article}).
4482 @kindex G C-n (Summary)
4483 @findex gnus-summary-next-same-subject
4484 Go to the next article with the same subject
4485 (@code{gnus-summary-next-same-subject}).
4488 @kindex G C-p (Summary)
4489 @findex gnus-summary-prev-same-subject
4490 Go to the previous article with the same subject
4491 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-same-subject}).
4495 @kindex G f (Summary)
4497 @findex gnus-summary-first-unread-article
4498 Go to the first unread article
4499 (@code{gnus-summary-first-unread-article}).
4503 @kindex G b (Summary)
4505 @findex gnus-summary-best-unread-article
4506 Go to the article with the highest score
4507 (@code{gnus-summary-best-unread-article}).
4512 @kindex G l (Summary)
4513 @findex gnus-summary-goto-last-article
4514 Go to the previous article read (@code{gnus-summary-goto-last-article}).
4517 @kindex G o (Summary)
4518 @findex gnus-summary-pop-article
4520 @cindex article history
4521 Pop an article off the summary history and go to this article
4522 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-article}). This command differs from the
4523 command above in that you can pop as many previous articles off the
4524 history as you like, while @kbd{l} toggles the two last read articles.
4525 For a somewhat related issue (if you use these commands a lot),
4526 @pxref{Article Backlog}.
4531 @kindex G j (Summary)
4532 @findex gnus-summary-goto-article
4533 Ask for an article number or @code{Message-ID}, and then go to that
4534 article (@code{gnus-summary-goto-article}).
4539 @node Choosing Variables
4540 @subsection Choosing Variables
4542 Some variables relevant for moving and selecting articles:
4545 @item gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4546 @vindex gnus-auto-extend-newsgroup
4547 All the movement commands will try to go to the previous (or next)
4548 article, even if that article isn't displayed in the Summary buffer if
4549 this variable is non-@code{nil}. Gnus will then fetch the article from
4550 the server and display it in the article buffer.
4552 @item gnus-select-article-hook
4553 @vindex gnus-select-article-hook
4554 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. By default it
4555 exposes any threads hidden under the selected article.
4557 @item gnus-mark-article-hook
4558 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
4559 @findex gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read
4560 @findex gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read
4561 @findex gnus-unread-mark
4562 This hook is called whenever an article is selected. It is intended to
4563 be used for marking articles as read. The default value is
4564 @code{gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read}, and will change the
4565 mark of almost any article you read to @code{gnus-unread-mark}. The
4566 only articles not affected by this function are ticked, dormant, and
4567 expirable articles. If you'd instead like to just have unread articles
4568 marked as read, you can use @code{gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read}
4569 instead. It will leave marks like @code{gnus-low-score-mark},
4570 @code{gnus-del-mark} (and so on) alone.
4575 @node Paging the Article
4576 @section Scrolling the Article
4577 @cindex article scrolling
4582 @kindex SPACE (Summary)
4583 @findex gnus-summary-next-page
4584 Pressing @kbd{SPACE} will scroll the current article forward one page,
4585 or, if you have come to the end of the current article, will choose the
4586 next article (@code{gnus-summary-next-page}).
4589 @kindex DEL (Summary)
4590 @findex gnus-summary-prev-page
4591 Scroll the current article back one page (@code{gnus-summary-prev-page}).
4594 @kindex RET (Summary)
4595 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-up
4596 Scroll the current article one line forward
4597 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-up}).
4600 @kindex M-RET (Summary)
4601 @findex gnus-summary-scroll-down
4602 Scroll the current article one line backward
4603 (@code{gnus-summary-scroll-down}).
4607 @kindex A g (Summary)
4609 @findex gnus-summary-show-article
4610 @vindex gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4611 (Re)fetch the current article (@code{gnus-summary-show-article}). If
4612 given a prefix, fetch the current article, but don't run any of the
4613 article treatment functions. This will give you a ``raw'' article, just
4614 the way it came from the server.
4616 If given a numerical prefix, you can do semi-manual charset stuff.
4617 @kbd{C-u 0 g cn-gb-2312 RET} will decode the message as if it were
4618 encoded in the @code{cn-gb-2312} charset. If you have
4621 (setq gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist
4626 then you can say @kbd{C-u 1 g} to get the same effect.
4631 @kindex A < (Summary)
4632 @findex gnus-summary-beginning-of-article
4633 Scroll to the beginning of the article
4634 (@code{gnus-summary-beginning-of-article}).
4639 @kindex A > (Summary)
4640 @findex gnus-summary-end-of-article
4641 Scroll to the end of the article (@code{gnus-summary-end-of-article}).
4645 @kindex A s (Summary)
4647 @findex gnus-summary-isearch-article
4648 Perform an isearch in the article buffer
4649 (@code{gnus-summary-isearch-article}).
4653 @findex gnus-summary-select-article-buffer
4654 Select the article buffer (@code{gnus-summary-select-article-buffer}).
4659 @node Reply Followup and Post
4660 @section Reply, Followup and Post
4663 * Summary Mail Commands:: Sending mail.
4664 * Summary Post Commands:: Sending news.
4665 * Summary Message Commands:: Other Message-related commands.
4666 * Canceling and Superseding:: ``Whoops, I shouldn't have called him that.''
4670 @node Summary Mail Commands
4671 @subsection Summary Mail Commands
4673 @cindex composing mail
4675 Commands for composing a mail message:
4681 @kindex S r (Summary)
4683 @findex gnus-summary-reply
4684 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-reply}
4685 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply}
4686 Mail a reply to the author of the current article
4687 (@code{gnus-summary-reply}).
4692 @kindex S R (Summary)
4693 @findex gnus-summary-reply-with-original
4694 @c @icon{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}
4695 Mail a reply to the author of the current article and include the
4696 original message (@code{gnus-summary-reply-with-original}). This
4697 command uses the process/prefix convention.
4700 @kindex S w (Summary)
4701 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply
4702 Mail a wide reply to the author of the current article
4703 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{wide reply} is a reply that
4704 goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4705 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers.
4708 @kindex S W (Summary)
4709 @findex gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original
4710 Mail a wide reply to the current article and include the original
4711 message (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply-with-original}). This command uses
4712 the process/prefix convention.
4715 @kindex S v (Summary)
4716 @findex gnus-summary-very-wide-reply
4717 Mail a very wide reply to the author of the current article
4718 (@code{gnus-summary-wide-reply}). A @dfn{very wide reply} is a reply
4719 that goes out to all people listed in the @code{To}, @code{From} (or
4720 @code{Reply-to}) and @code{Cc} headers in all the process/prefixed
4721 articles. This command uses the process/prefix convention.
4725 @kindex S o m (Summary)
4726 @kindex C-c C-f (Summary)
4727 @findex gnus-summary-mail-forward
4728 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-forward}
4729 Forward the current article to some other person
4730 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-forward}). If no prefix is given, the message
4731 is forwarded according to the value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime})
4732 and (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4733 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4734 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4735 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4736 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4737 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4738 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4743 @kindex S m (Summary)
4744 @findex gnus-summary-mail-other-window
4745 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-originate}
4746 Send a mail to some other person
4747 (@code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}).
4750 @kindex S D b (Summary)
4751 @findex gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail
4752 @cindex bouncing mail
4753 If you have sent a mail, but the mail was bounced back to you for some
4754 reason (wrong address, transient failure), you can use this command to
4755 resend that bounced mail (@code{gnus-summary-resend-bounced-mail}). You
4756 will be popped into a mail buffer where you can edit the headers before
4757 sending the mail off again. If you give a prefix to this command, and
4758 the bounced mail is a reply to some other mail, Gnus will try to fetch
4759 that mail and display it for easy perusal of its headers. This might
4760 very well fail, though.
4763 @kindex S D r (Summary)
4764 @findex gnus-summary-resend-message
4765 Not to be confused with the previous command,
4766 @code{gnus-summary-resend-message} will prompt you for an address to
4767 send the current message off to, and then send it to that place. The
4768 headers of the message won't be altered---but lots of headers that say
4769 @code{Resent-To}, @code{Resent-From} and so on will be added. This
4770 means that you actually send a mail to someone that has a @code{To}
4771 header that (probably) points to yourself. This will confuse people.
4772 So, natcherly you'll only do that if you're really eVIl.
4774 This command is mainly used if you have several accounts and want to
4775 ship a mail to a different account of yours. (If you're both
4776 @code{root} and @code{postmaster} and get a mail for @code{postmaster}
4777 to the @code{root} account, you may want to resend it to
4778 @code{postmaster}. Ordnung muß sein!
4780 This command understands the process/prefix convention
4781 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4784 @kindex S O m (Summary)
4785 @findex gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward
4786 Digest the current series (@pxref{Decoding Articles}) and forward the
4787 result using mail (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command
4788 uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4791 @kindex S M-c (Summary)
4792 @findex gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint
4793 @cindex crossposting
4794 @cindex excessive crossposting
4795 Send a complaint about excessive crossposting to the author of the
4796 current article (@code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint}).
4798 @findex gnus-crosspost-complaint
4799 This command is provided as a way to fight back against the current
4800 crossposting pandemic that's sweeping Usenet. It will compose a reply
4801 using the @code{gnus-crosspost-complaint} variable as a preamble. This
4802 command understands the process/prefix convention
4803 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) and will prompt you before sending each mail.
4807 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4810 @node Summary Post Commands
4811 @subsection Summary Post Commands
4813 @cindex composing news
4815 Commands for posting a news article:
4821 @kindex S p (Summary)
4822 @findex gnus-summary-post-news
4823 @c @icon{gnus-summary-post-news}
4824 Post an article to the current group
4825 (@code{gnus-summary-post-news}).
4830 @kindex S f (Summary)
4831 @findex gnus-summary-followup
4832 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup}
4833 Post a followup to the current article (@code{gnus-summary-followup}).
4837 @kindex S F (Summary)
4839 @c @icon{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}
4840 @findex gnus-summary-followup-with-original
4841 Post a followup to the current article and include the original message
4842 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-with-original}). This command uses the
4843 process/prefix convention.
4846 @kindex S n (Summary)
4847 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail
4848 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4849 message through mail (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail}).
4852 @kindex S N (Summary)
4853 @findex gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original
4854 Post a followup to the current article via news, even if you got the
4855 message through mail and include the original message
4856 (@code{gnus-summary-followup-to-mail-with-original}). This command uses
4857 the process/prefix convention.
4860 @kindex S o p (Summary)
4861 @findex gnus-summary-post-forward
4862 Forward the current article to a newsgroup
4863 (@code{gnus-summary-post-forward}).
4864 If no prefix is given, the message is forwarded according to the value
4865 of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}) and
4866 (@code{message-forward-show-mml}); if the prefix is 1, decode the
4867 message and forward directly inline; if the prefix is 2, forward message
4868 as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 3, decode message and
4869 forward as an rfc822 MIME section; if the prefix is 4, forward message
4870 directly inline; otherwise, the message is forwarded as no prefix given
4871 but use the flipped value of (@code{message-forward-as-mime}). By
4872 default, the message is decoded and forwarded as an rfc822 MIME section.
4875 @kindex S O p (Summary)
4876 @findex gnus-uu-digest-post-forward
4878 @cindex making digests
4879 Digest the current series and forward the result to a newsgroup
4880 (@code{gnus-uu-digest-mail-forward}). This command uses the
4881 process/prefix convention.
4884 @kindex S u (Summary)
4885 @findex gnus-uu-post-news
4886 @c @icon{gnus-uu-post-news}
4887 Uuencode a file, split it into parts, and post it as a series
4888 (@code{gnus-uu-post-news}). (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
4891 Also @pxref{(message)Header Commands} for more information.
4894 @node Summary Message Commands
4895 @subsection Summary Message Commands
4899 @kindex S y (Summary)
4900 @findex gnus-summary-yank-message
4901 Yank the current article into an already existing Message composition
4902 buffer (@code{gnus-summary-yank-message}). This command prompts for
4903 what message buffer you want to yank into, and understands the
4904 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4909 @node Canceling and Superseding
4910 @subsection Canceling Articles
4911 @cindex canceling articles
4912 @cindex superseding articles
4914 Have you ever written something, and then decided that you really,
4915 really, really wish you hadn't posted that?
4917 Well, you can't cancel mail, but you can cancel posts.
4919 @findex gnus-summary-cancel-article
4921 @c @icon{gnus-summary-cancel-article}
4922 Find the article you wish to cancel (you can only cancel your own
4923 articles, so don't try any funny stuff). Then press @kbd{C} or @kbd{S
4924 c} (@code{gnus-summary-cancel-article}). Your article will be
4925 canceled---machines all over the world will be deleting your article.
4926 This command uses the process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
4928 Be aware, however, that not all sites honor cancels, so your article may
4929 live on here and there, while most sites will delete the article in
4932 Gnus will use the ``current'' select method when canceling. If you
4933 want to use the standard posting method, use the @samp{a} symbolic
4934 prefix (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}).
4936 If you discover that you have made some mistakes and want to do some
4937 corrections, you can post a @dfn{superseding} article that will replace
4938 your original article.
4940 @findex gnus-summary-supersede-article
4942 Go to the original article and press @kbd{S s}
4943 (@code{gnus-summary-supersede-article}). You will be put in a buffer
4944 where you can edit the article all you want before sending it off the
4947 The same goes for superseding as for canceling, only more so: Some
4948 sites do not honor superseding. On those sites, it will appear that you
4949 have posted almost the same article twice.
4951 If you have just posted the article, and change your mind right away,
4952 there is a trick you can use to cancel/supersede the article without
4953 waiting for the article to appear on your site first. You simply return
4954 to the post buffer (which is called @code{*sent ...*}). There you will
4955 find the article you just posted, with all the headers intact. Change
4956 the @code{Message-ID} header to a @code{Cancel} or @code{Supersedes}
4957 header by substituting one of those words for the word
4958 @code{Message-ID}. Then just press @kbd{C-c C-c} to send the article as
4959 you would do normally. The previous article will be
4960 canceled/superseded.
4962 Just remember, kids: There is no 'c' in 'supersede'.
4965 @node Marking Articles
4966 @section Marking Articles
4967 @cindex article marking
4968 @cindex article ticking
4971 There are several marks you can set on an article.
4973 You have marks that decide the @dfn{readedness} (whoo, neato-keano
4974 neologism ohoy!) of the article. Alphabetic marks generally mean
4975 @dfn{read}, while non-alphabetic characters generally mean @dfn{unread}.
4977 In addition, you also have marks that do not affect readedness.
4980 * Unread Articles:: Marks for unread articles.
4981 * Read Articles:: Marks for read articles.
4982 * Other Marks:: Marks that do not affect readedness.
4986 There's a plethora of commands for manipulating these marks:
4990 * Setting Marks:: How to set and remove marks.
4991 * Generic Marking Commands:: How to customize the marking.
4992 * Setting Process Marks:: How to mark articles for later processing.
4996 @node Unread Articles
4997 @subsection Unread Articles
4999 The following marks mark articles as (kinda) unread, in one form or
5004 @vindex gnus-ticked-mark
5005 Marked as ticked (@code{gnus-ticked-mark}).
5007 @dfn{Ticked articles} are articles that will remain visible always. If
5008 you see an article that you find interesting, or you want to put off
5009 reading it, or replying to it, until sometime later, you'd typically
5010 tick it. However, articles can be expired (from news servers by the
5011 news server software, Gnus itself never expires ticked messages), so if
5012 you want to keep an article forever, you'll have to make it persistent
5013 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
5016 @vindex gnus-dormant-mark
5017 Marked as dormant (@code{gnus-dormant-mark}).
5019 @dfn{Dormant articles} will only appear in the summary buffer if there
5020 are followups to it. If you want to see them even if they don't have
5021 followups, you can use the @kbd{/ D} command (@pxref{Limiting}).
5022 Otherwise (except for the visibility issue), they are just like ticked
5026 @vindex gnus-unread-mark
5027 Marked as unread (@code{gnus-unread-mark}).
5029 @dfn{Unread articles} are articles that haven't been read at all yet.
5034 @subsection Read Articles
5035 @cindex expirable mark
5037 All the following marks mark articles as read.
5042 @vindex gnus-del-mark
5043 These are articles that the user has marked as read with the @kbd{d}
5044 command manually, more or less (@code{gnus-del-mark}).
5047 @vindex gnus-read-mark
5048 Articles that have actually been read (@code{gnus-read-mark}).
5051 @vindex gnus-ancient-mark
5052 Articles that were marked as read in previous sessions and are now
5053 @dfn{old} (@code{gnus-ancient-mark}).
5056 @vindex gnus-killed-mark
5057 Marked as killed (@code{gnus-killed-mark}).
5060 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mark
5061 Marked as killed by kill files (@code{gnus-kill-file-mark}).
5064 @vindex gnus-low-score-mark
5065 Marked as read by having too low a score (@code{gnus-low-score-mark}).
5068 @vindex gnus-catchup-mark
5069 Marked as read by a catchup (@code{gnus-catchup-mark}).
5072 @vindex gnus-canceled-mark
5073 Canceled article (@code{gnus-canceled-mark})
5076 @vindex gnus-souped-mark
5077 @sc{soup}ed article (@code{gnus-souped-mark}). @xref{SOUP}.
5080 @vindex gnus-sparse-mark
5081 Sparsely reffed article (@code{gnus-sparse-mark}). @xref{Customizing
5085 @vindex gnus-duplicate-mark
5086 Article marked as read by duplicate suppression
5087 (@code{gnus-duplicate-mark}). @xref{Duplicate Suppression}.
5091 All these marks just mean that the article is marked as read, really.
5092 They are interpreted differently when doing adaptive scoring, though.
5094 One more special mark, though:
5098 @vindex gnus-expirable-mark
5099 Marked as expirable (@code{gnus-expirable-mark}).
5101 Marking articles as @dfn{expirable} (or have them marked as such
5102 automatically) doesn't make much sense in normal groups---a user doesn't
5103 control expiring of news articles, but in mail groups, for instance,
5104 articles marked as @dfn{expirable} can be deleted by Gnus at
5110 @subsection Other Marks
5111 @cindex process mark
5114 There are some marks that have nothing to do with whether the article is
5120 You can set a bookmark in the current article. Say you are reading a
5121 long thesis on cats' urinary tracts, and have to go home for dinner
5122 before you've finished reading the thesis. You can then set a bookmark
5123 in the article, and Gnus will jump to this bookmark the next time it
5124 encounters the article. @xref{Setting Marks}.
5127 @vindex gnus-replied-mark
5128 All articles that you have replied to or made a followup to (i.e., have
5129 answered) will be marked with an @samp{A} in the second column
5130 (@code{gnus-replied-mark}).
5132 @vindex gnus-forwarded-mark
5133 All articles that you have forwarded will be marked with an @samp{F} in
5134 the second column (@code{gnus-forwarded-mark}).
5136 @vindex gnus-recent-mark
5137 Articles that are ``recently'' arrived in the group will be marked
5138 with an @samp{N} in the second column (@code{gnus-recent-mark}). Most
5139 backend doesn't support the mark, in which case it's not shown.
5142 @vindex gnus-cached-mark
5143 Articles stored in the article cache will be marked with an @samp{*} in
5144 the second column (@code{gnus-cached-mark}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5147 @vindex gnus-saved-mark
5148 Articles ``saved'' (in some manner or other; not necessarily
5149 religiously) are marked with an @samp{S} in the second column
5150 (@code{gnus-saved-mark}).
5153 @vindex gnus-not-empty-thread-mark
5154 @vindex gnus-empty-thread-mark
5155 If the @samp{%e} spec is used, the presence of threads or not will be
5156 marked with @code{gnus-not-empty-thread-mark} and
5157 @code{gnus-empty-thread-mark} in the third column, respectively.
5160 @vindex gnus-process-mark
5161 Finally we have the @dfn{process mark} (@code{gnus-process-mark}). A
5162 variety of commands react to the presence of the process mark. For
5163 instance, @kbd{X u} (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}) will uudecode and view
5164 all articles that have been marked with the process mark. Articles
5165 marked with the process mark have a @samp{#} in the second column.
5169 You might have noticed that most of these ``non-readedness'' marks
5170 appear in the second column by default. So if you have a cached, saved,
5171 replied article that you have process-marked, what will that look like?
5173 Nothing much. The precedence rules go as follows: process -> cache ->
5174 replied -> saved. So if the article is in the cache and is replied,
5175 you'll only see the cache mark and not the replied mark.
5179 @subsection Setting Marks
5180 @cindex setting marks
5182 All the marking commands understand the numeric prefix.
5187 @kindex M c (Summary)
5188 @kindex M-u (Summary)
5189 @findex gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward
5190 @cindex mark as unread
5191 Clear all readedness-marks from the current article
5192 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-mark-forward}). In other words, mark the
5198 @kindex M t (Summary)
5199 @findex gnus-summary-tick-article-forward
5200 Tick the current article (@code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}).
5201 @xref{Article Caching}.
5206 @kindex M ? (Summary)
5207 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant
5208 Mark the current article as dormant
5209 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-dormant}). @xref{Article Caching}.
5213 @kindex M d (Summary)
5215 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward
5216 Mark the current article as read
5217 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-forward}).
5221 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward
5222 Mark the current article as read and move point to the previous line
5223 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-read-backward}).
5228 @kindex M k (Summary)
5229 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select
5230 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read,
5231 and then select the next unread article
5232 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject-and-select}).
5236 @kindex M K (Summary)
5237 @kindex C-k (Summary)
5238 @findex gnus-summary-kill-same-subject
5239 Mark all articles that have the same subject as the current one as read
5240 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-same-subject}).
5243 @kindex M C (Summary)
5244 @findex gnus-summary-catchup
5245 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup}
5246 Mark all unread articles as read (@code{gnus-summary-catchup}).
5249 @kindex M C-c (Summary)
5250 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all
5251 Mark all articles in the group as read---even the ticked and dormant
5252 articles (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all}).
5255 @kindex M H (Summary)
5256 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-to-here
5257 Catchup the current group to point (before the point)
5258 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-to-here}).
5261 @kindex M h (Summary)
5262 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-from-here
5263 Catchup the current group from point (after the point)
5264 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-from-here}).
5267 @kindex C-w (Summary)
5268 @findex gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read
5269 Mark all articles between point and mark as read
5270 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-region-as-read}).
5273 @kindex M V k (Summary)
5274 @findex gnus-summary-kill-below
5275 Kill all articles with scores below the default score (or below the
5276 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-kill-below}).
5280 @kindex M e (Summary)
5282 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable
5283 Mark the current article as expirable
5284 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-expirable}).
5287 @kindex M b (Summary)
5288 @findex gnus-summary-set-bookmark
5289 Set a bookmark in the current article
5290 (@code{gnus-summary-set-bookmark}).
5293 @kindex M B (Summary)
5294 @findex gnus-summary-remove-bookmark
5295 Remove the bookmark from the current article
5296 (@code{gnus-summary-remove-bookmark}).
5299 @kindex M V c (Summary)
5300 @findex gnus-summary-clear-above
5301 Clear all marks from articles with scores over the default score (or
5302 over the numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5305 @kindex M V u (Summary)
5306 @findex gnus-summary-tick-above
5307 Tick all articles with scores over the default score (or over the
5308 numeric prefix) (@code{gnus-summary-tick-above}).
5311 @kindex M V m (Summary)
5312 @findex gnus-summary-mark-above
5313 Prompt for a mark, and mark all articles with scores over the default
5314 score (or over the numeric prefix) with this mark
5315 (@code{gnus-summary-clear-above}).
5318 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
5319 The @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} variable controls what action should
5320 be taken after setting a mark. If non-@code{nil}, point will move to
5321 the next/previous unread article. If @code{nil}, point will just move
5322 one line up or down. As a special case, if this variable is
5323 @code{never}, all the marking commands as well as other commands (like
5324 @kbd{SPACE}) will move to the next article, whether it is unread or not.
5325 The default is @code{t}.
5328 @node Generic Marking Commands
5329 @subsection Generic Marking Commands
5331 Some people would like the command that ticks an article (@kbd{!}) go to
5332 the next article. Others would like it to go to the next unread
5333 article. Yet others would like it to stay on the current article. And
5334 even though I haven't heard of anybody wanting it to go to the
5335 previous (unread) article, I'm sure there are people that want that as
5338 Multiply these five behaviors with five different marking commands, and
5339 you get a potentially complex set of variable to control what each
5342 To sidestep that mess, Gnus provides commands that do all these
5343 different things. They can be found on the @kbd{M M} map in the summary
5344 buffer. Type @kbd{M M C-h} to see them all---there are too many of them
5345 to list in this manual.
5347 While you can use these commands directly, most users would prefer
5348 altering the summary mode keymap. For instance, if you would like the
5349 @kbd{!} command to go to the next article instead of the next unread
5350 article, you could say something like:
5353 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'my-alter-summary-map)
5354 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5355 (local-set-key "!" 'gnus-summary-put-mark-as-ticked-next))
5361 (defun my-alter-summary-map ()
5362 (local-set-key "!" "MM!n"))
5366 @node Setting Process Marks
5367 @subsection Setting Process Marks
5368 @cindex setting process marks
5375 @kindex M P p (Summary)
5376 @findex gnus-summary-mark-as-processable
5377 Mark the current article with the process mark
5378 (@code{gnus-summary-mark-as-processable}).
5379 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable
5383 @kindex M P u (Summary)
5384 @kindex M-# (Summary)
5385 Remove the process mark, if any, from the current article
5386 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-as-processable}).
5389 @kindex M P U (Summary)
5390 @findex gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable
5391 Remove the process mark from all articles
5392 (@code{gnus-summary-unmark-all-processable}).
5395 @kindex M P i (Summary)
5396 @findex gnus-uu-invert-processable
5397 Invert the list of process marked articles
5398 (@code{gnus-uu-invert-processable}).
5401 @kindex M P R (Summary)
5402 @findex gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp
5403 Mark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5404 expression (@code{gnus-uu-mark-by-regexp}).
5407 @kindex M P G (Summary)
5408 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp
5409 Unmark articles that have a @code{Subject} header that matches a regular
5410 expression (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-by-regexp}).
5413 @kindex M P r (Summary)
5414 @findex gnus-uu-mark-region
5415 Mark articles in region (@code{gnus-uu-mark-region}).
5418 @kindex M P t (Summary)
5419 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
5420 Mark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5421 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
5424 @kindex M P T (Summary)
5425 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
5426 Unmark all articles in the current (sub)thread
5427 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
5430 @kindex M P v (Summary)
5431 @findex gnus-uu-mark-over
5432 Mark all articles that have a score above the prefix argument
5433 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-over}).
5436 @kindex M P s (Summary)
5437 @findex gnus-uu-mark-series
5438 Mark all articles in the current series (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5441 @kindex M P S (Summary)
5442 @findex gnus-uu-mark-sparse
5443 Mark all series that have already had some articles marked
5444 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-sparse}).
5447 @kindex M P a (Summary)
5448 @findex gnus-uu-mark-all
5449 Mark all articles in series order (@code{gnus-uu-mark-series}).
5452 @kindex M P b (Summary)
5453 @findex gnus-uu-mark-buffer
5454 Mark all articles in the buffer in the order they appear
5455 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-buffer}).
5458 @kindex M P k (Summary)
5459 @findex gnus-summary-kill-process-mark
5460 Push the current process mark set onto the stack and unmark all articles
5461 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-process-mark}).
5464 @kindex M P y (Summary)
5465 @findex gnus-summary-yank-process-mark
5466 Pop the previous process mark set from the stack and restore it
5467 (@code{gnus-summary-yank-process-mark}).
5470 @kindex M P w (Summary)
5471 @findex gnus-summary-save-process-mark
5472 Push the current process mark set onto the stack
5473 (@code{gnus-summary-save-process-mark}).
5477 Also see the @kbd{&} command in @pxref{Searching for Articles} for how to
5478 set process marks based on article body contents.
5485 It can be convenient to limit the summary buffer to just show some
5486 subset of the articles currently in the group. The effect most limit
5487 commands have is to remove a few (or many) articles from the summary
5490 All limiting commands work on subsets of the articles already fetched
5491 from the servers. None of these commands query the server for
5492 additional articles.
5498 @kindex / / (Summary)
5499 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-subject
5500 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some subject
5501 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-subject}).
5504 @kindex / a (Summary)
5505 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-author
5506 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match some author
5507 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-author}).
5510 @kindex / x (Summary)
5511 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-extra
5512 Limit the summary buffer to articles that match one of the ``extra''
5513 headers (@pxref{To From Newsgroups})
5514 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-extra}).
5518 @kindex / u (Summary)
5520 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-unread
5521 Limit the summary buffer to articles not marked as read
5522 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-unread}). If given a prefix, limit the
5523 buffer to articles strictly unread. This means that ticked and
5524 dormant articles will also be excluded.
5527 @kindex / m (Summary)
5528 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-marks
5529 Ask for a mark and then limit to all articles that have been marked
5530 with that mark (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-marks}).
5533 @kindex / t (Summary)
5534 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-age
5535 Ask for a number and then limit the summary buffer to articles older than (or equal to) that number of days
5536 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-age}). If given a prefix, limit to
5537 articles younger than that number of days.
5540 @kindex / n (Summary)
5541 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-articles
5542 Limit the summary buffer to the current article
5543 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-articles}). Uses the process/prefix
5544 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
5547 @kindex / w (Summary)
5548 @findex gnus-summary-pop-limit
5549 Pop the previous limit off the stack and restore it
5550 (@code{gnus-summary-pop-limit}). If given a prefix, pop all limits off
5554 @kindex / v (Summary)
5555 @findex gnus-summary-limit-to-score
5556 Limit the summary buffer to articles that have a score at or above some
5557 score (@code{gnus-summary-limit-to-score}).
5561 @kindex M S (Summary)
5562 @kindex / E (Summary)
5563 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged
5564 Include all expunged articles in the limit
5565 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-expunged}).
5568 @kindex / D (Summary)
5569 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant
5570 Include all dormant articles in the limit
5571 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-dormant}).
5574 @kindex / * (Summary)
5575 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-cached
5576 Include all cached articles in the limit
5577 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-include-cached}).
5580 @kindex / d (Summary)
5581 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant
5582 Exclude all dormant articles from the limit
5583 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-dormant}).
5586 @kindex / M (Summary)
5587 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks
5588 Exclude all marked articles (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-marks}).
5591 @kindex / T (Summary)
5592 @findex gnus-summary-limit-include-thread
5593 Include all the articles in the current thread in the limit.
5596 @kindex / c (Summary)
5597 @findex gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant
5598 Exclude all dormant articles that have no children from the limit
5599 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-exclude-childless-dormant}).
5602 @kindex / C (Summary)
5603 @findex gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read
5604 Mark all excluded unread articles as read
5605 (@code{gnus-summary-limit-mark-excluded-as-read}). If given a prefix,
5606 also mark excluded ticked and dormant articles as read.
5614 @cindex article threading
5616 Gnus threads articles by default. @dfn{To thread} is to put responses
5617 to articles directly after the articles they respond to---in a
5618 hierarchical fashion.
5620 Threading is done by looking at the @code{References} headers of the
5621 articles. In a perfect world, this would be enough to build pretty
5622 trees, but unfortunately, the @code{References} header is often broken
5623 or simply missing. Weird news propagation exacerbates the problem,
5624 so one has to employ other heuristics to get pleasing results. A
5625 plethora of approaches exists, as detailed in horrible detail in
5626 @pxref{Customizing Threading}.
5628 First, a quick overview of the concepts:
5632 The top-most article in a thread; the first article in the thread.
5635 A tree-like article structure.
5638 A small(er) section of this tree-like structure.
5641 Threads often lose their roots due to article expiry, or due to the root
5642 already having been read in a previous session, and not displayed in the
5643 summary buffer. We then typically have many sub-threads that really
5644 belong to one thread, but are without connecting roots. These are
5645 called loose threads.
5647 @item thread gathering
5648 An attempt to gather loose threads into bigger threads.
5650 @item sparse threads
5651 A thread where the missing articles have been ``guessed'' at, and are
5652 displayed as empty lines in the summary buffer.
5658 * Customizing Threading:: Variables you can change to affect the threading.
5659 * Thread Commands:: Thread based commands in the summary buffer.
5663 @node Customizing Threading
5664 @subsection Customizing Threading
5665 @cindex customizing threading
5668 * Loose Threads:: How Gnus gathers loose threads into bigger threads.
5669 * Filling In Threads:: Making the threads displayed look fuller.
5670 * More Threading:: Even more variables for fiddling with threads.
5671 * Low-Level Threading:: You thought it was over... but you were wrong!
5676 @subsubsection Loose Threads
5679 @cindex loose threads
5682 @item gnus-summary-make-false-root
5683 @vindex gnus-summary-make-false-root
5684 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will gather all loose subtrees into one big tree
5685 and create a dummy root at the top. (Wait a minute. Root at the top?
5686 Yup.) Loose subtrees occur when the real root has expired, or you've
5687 read or killed the root in a previous session.
5689 When there is no real root of a thread, Gnus will have to fudge
5690 something. This variable says what fudging method Gnus should use.
5691 There are four possible values:
5695 \gnusfigure{The Summary Buffer}{390}{
5696 \put(0,0){\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-adopt.ps,width=7.5cm}}
5697 \put(445,0){\makebox(0,0)[br]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-empty.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5698 \put(0,400){\makebox(0,0)[tl]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-none.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5699 \put(445,400){\makebox(0,0)[tr]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/summary-dummy.ps,width=7.5cm}}}
5704 @cindex adopting articles
5709 Gnus will make the first of the orphaned articles the parent. This
5710 parent will adopt all the other articles. The adopted articles will be
5711 marked as such by pointy brackets (@samp{<>}) instead of the standard
5712 square brackets (@samp{[]}). This is the default method.
5715 @vindex gnus-summary-dummy-line-format
5716 Gnus will create a dummy summary line that will pretend to be the
5717 parent. This dummy line does not correspond to any real article, so
5718 selecting it will just select the first real article after the dummy
5719 article. @code{gnus-summary-dummy-line-format} is used to specify the
5720 format of the dummy roots. It accepts only one format spec: @samp{S},
5721 which is the subject of the article. @xref{Formatting Variables}.
5724 Gnus won't actually make any article the parent, but simply leave the
5725 subject field of all orphans except the first empty. (Actually, it will
5726 use @code{gnus-summary-same-subject} as the subject (@pxref{Summary
5730 Don't make any article parent at all. Just gather the threads and
5731 display them after one another.
5734 Don't gather loose threads.
5737 @item gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5738 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit
5739 Loose threads are gathered by comparing subjects of articles. If this
5740 variable is @code{nil}, Gnus requires an exact match between the
5741 subjects of the loose threads before gathering them into one big
5742 super-thread. This might be too strict a requirement, what with the
5743 presence of stupid newsreaders that chop off long subject lines. If
5744 you think so, set this variable to, say, 20 to require that only the
5745 first 20 characters of the subjects have to match. If you set this
5746 variable to a really low number, you'll find that Gnus will gather
5747 everything in sight into one thread, which isn't very helpful.
5749 @cindex fuzzy article gathering
5750 If you set this variable to the special value @code{fuzzy}, Gnus will
5751 use a fuzzy string comparison algorithm on the subjects (@pxref{Fuzzy
5754 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5755 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy-regexp
5756 This can either be a regular expression or list of regular expressions
5757 that match strings that will be removed from subjects if fuzzy subject
5758 simplification is used.
5760 @item gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5761 @vindex gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5762 If you set @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit} to something as low
5763 as 10, you might consider setting this variable to something sensible:
5765 @c Written by Michael Ernst <mernst@cs.rice.edu>
5767 (setq gnus-simplify-ignored-prefixes
5773 "wanted" "followup" "summary\\( of\\)?"
5774 "help" "query" "problem" "question"
5775 "answer" "reference" "announce"
5776 "How can I" "How to" "Comparison of"
5781 (mapconcat 'identity
5782 '("for" "for reference" "with" "about")
5784 "\\)?\\]?:?[ \t]*"))
5787 All words that match this regexp will be removed before comparing two
5790 @item gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5791 @vindex gnus-simplify-subject-functions
5792 If non-@code{nil}, this variable overrides
5793 @code{gnus-summary-gather-subject-limit}. This variable should be a
5794 list of functions to apply to the @code{Subject} string iteratively to
5795 arrive at the simplified version of the string.
5797 Useful functions to put in this list include:
5800 @item gnus-simplify-subject-re
5801 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-re
5802 Strip the leading @samp{Re:}.
5804 @item gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5805 @findex gnus-simplify-subject-fuzzy
5808 @item gnus-simplify-whitespace
5809 @findex gnus-simplify-whitespace
5810 Remove excessive whitespace.
5813 You may also write your own functions, of course.
5816 @item gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5817 @vindex gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject
5818 Since loose thread gathering is done on subjects only, that might lead
5819 to many false hits, especially with certain common subjects like
5820 @samp{} and @samp{(none)}. To make the situation slightly better,
5821 you can use the regexp @code{gnus-summary-gather-exclude-subject} to say
5822 what subjects should be excluded from the gathering process.@*
5823 The default is @samp{^ *$\\|^(none)$}.
5825 @item gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5826 @vindex gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5827 Gnus gathers threads by looking at @code{Subject} headers. This means
5828 that totally unrelated articles may end up in the same ``thread'', which
5829 is confusing. An alternate approach is to look at all the
5830 @code{Message-ID}s in all the @code{References} headers to find matches.
5831 This will ensure that no gathered threads ever include unrelated
5832 articles, but it also means that people who have posted with broken
5833 newsreaders won't be gathered properly. The choice is yours---plague or
5837 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5838 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-subject
5839 This function is the default gathering function and looks at
5840 @code{Subject}s exclusively.
5842 @item gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5843 @findex gnus-gather-threads-by-references
5844 This function looks at @code{References} headers exclusively.
5847 If you want to test gathering by @code{References}, you could say
5851 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
5852 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
5858 @node Filling In Threads
5859 @subsubsection Filling In Threads
5862 @item gnus-fetch-old-headers
5863 @vindex gnus-fetch-old-headers
5864 If non-@code{nil}, Gnus will attempt to build old threads by fetching
5865 more old headers---headers to articles marked as read. If you
5866 would like to display as few summary lines as possible, but still
5867 connect as many loose threads as possible, you should set this variable
5868 to @code{some} or a number. If you set it to a number, no more than
5869 that number of extra old headers will be fetched. In either case,
5870 fetching old headers only works if the backend you are using carries
5871 overview files---this would normally be @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and
5872 @code{nnml}. Also remember that if the root of the thread has been
5873 expired by the server, there's not much Gnus can do about that.
5875 This variable can also be set to @code{invisible}. This won't have any
5876 visible effects, but is useful if you use the @kbd{A T} command a lot
5877 (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
5879 @item gnus-build-sparse-threads
5880 @vindex gnus-build-sparse-threads
5881 Fetching old headers can be slow. A low-rent similar effect can be
5882 gotten by setting this variable to @code{some}. Gnus will then look at
5883 the complete @code{References} headers of all articles and try to string
5884 together articles that belong in the same thread. This will leave
5885 @dfn{gaps} in the threading display where Gnus guesses that an article
5886 is missing from the thread. (These gaps appear like normal summary
5887 lines. If you select a gap, Gnus will try to fetch the article in
5888 question.) If this variable is @code{t}, Gnus will display all these
5889 ``gaps'' without regard for whether they are useful for completing the
5890 thread or not. Finally, if this variable is @code{more}, Gnus won't cut
5891 off sparse leaf nodes that don't lead anywhere. This variable is
5892 @code{nil} by default.
5894 @item gnus-read-all-available-headers
5895 @vindex gnus-read-all-available-headers
5896 This is a rather obscure variable that few will find useful. It's
5897 intended for those non-news newsgroups where the backend has to fetch
5898 quite a lot to present the summary buffer, and where it's impossible to
5899 go back to parents of articles. This is mostly the case in the
5900 web-based groups, like the @code{nnultimate} groups.
5902 If you don't use those, then it's safe to leave this as the default
5903 @code{nil}. If you want to use this variable, it should be a regexp
5904 that matches the group name, or @code{t} for all groups.
5909 @node More Threading
5910 @subsubsection More Threading
5913 @item gnus-show-threads
5914 @vindex gnus-show-threads
5915 If this variable is @code{nil}, no threading will be done, and all of
5916 the rest of the variables here will have no effect. Turning threading
5917 off will speed group selection up a bit, but it is sure to make reading
5918 slower and more awkward.
5920 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5921 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-subtree
5922 If non-@code{nil}, all threads will be hidden when the summary buffer is
5925 @item gnus-thread-expunge-below
5926 @vindex gnus-thread-expunge-below
5927 All threads that have a total score (as defined by
5928 @code{gnus-thread-score-function}) less than this number will be
5929 expunged. This variable is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
5930 threads are expunged.
5932 @item gnus-thread-hide-killed
5933 @vindex gnus-thread-hide-killed
5934 if you kill a thread and this variable is non-@code{nil}, the subtree
5937 @item gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5938 @vindex gnus-thread-ignore-subject
5939 Sometimes somebody changes the subject in the middle of a thread. If
5940 this variable is non-@code{nil}, which is the default, the subject
5941 change is ignored. If it is @code{nil}, a change in the subject will
5942 result in a new thread.
5944 @item gnus-thread-indent-level
5945 @vindex gnus-thread-indent-level
5946 This is a number that says how much each sub-thread should be indented.
5949 @item gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5950 @vindex gnus-sort-gathered-threads-function
5951 Sometimes, particularly with mailing lists, the order in which mails
5952 arrive locally is not necessarily the same as the order in which they
5953 arrived on the mailing list. Consequently, when sorting sub-threads
5954 using the default @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number}, responses can end
5955 up appearing before the article to which they are responding to.
5956 Setting this variable to an alternate value
5957 (e.g. @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}), in a group's parameters or in an
5958 appropriate hook (e.g. @code{gnus-summary-generate-hook}) can produce a
5959 more logical sub-thread ordering in such instances.
5964 @node Low-Level Threading
5965 @subsubsection Low-Level Threading
5969 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
5970 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
5971 Hook run before parsing any headers.
5973 @item gnus-alter-header-function
5974 @vindex gnus-alter-header-function
5975 If non-@code{nil}, this function will be called to allow alteration of
5976 article header structures. The function is called with one parameter,
5977 the article header vector, which it may alter in any way. For instance,
5978 if you have a mail-to-news gateway which alters the @code{Message-ID}s
5979 in systematic ways (by adding prefixes and such), you can use this
5980 variable to un-scramble the @code{Message-ID}s so that they are more
5981 meaningful. Here's one example:
5984 (setq gnus-alter-header-function 'my-alter-message-id)
5986 (defun my-alter-message-id (header)
5987 (let ((id (mail-header-id header)))
5989 "\\(<[^<>@@]*\\)\\.?cygnus\\..*@@\\([^<>@@]*>\\)" id)
5991 (concat (match-string 1 id) "@@" (match-string 2 id))
5998 @node Thread Commands
5999 @subsection Thread Commands
6000 @cindex thread commands
6006 @kindex T k (Summary)
6007 @kindex M-C-k (Summary)
6008 @findex gnus-summary-kill-thread
6009 Mark all articles in the current (sub-)thread as read
6010 (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}). If the prefix argument is positive,
6011 remove all marks instead. If the prefix argument is negative, tick
6016 @kindex T l (Summary)
6017 @kindex M-C-l (Summary)
6018 @findex gnus-summary-lower-thread
6019 Lower the score of the current (sub-)thread
6020 (@code{gnus-summary-lower-thread}).
6023 @kindex T i (Summary)
6024 @findex gnus-summary-raise-thread
6025 Increase the score of the current (sub-)thread
6026 (@code{gnus-summary-raise-thread}).
6029 @kindex T # (Summary)
6030 @findex gnus-uu-mark-thread
6031 Set the process mark on the current (sub-)thread
6032 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-thread}).
6035 @kindex T M-# (Summary)
6036 @findex gnus-uu-unmark-thread
6037 Remove the process mark from the current (sub-)thread
6038 (@code{gnus-uu-unmark-thread}).
6041 @kindex T T (Summary)
6042 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-threads
6043 Toggle threading (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-threads}).
6046 @kindex T s (Summary)
6047 @findex gnus-summary-show-thread
6048 Expose the (sub-)thread hidden under the current article, if any
6049 (@code{gnus-summary-show-thread}).
6052 @kindex T h (Summary)
6053 @findex gnus-summary-hide-thread
6054 Hide the current (sub-)thread (@code{gnus-summary-hide-thread}).
6057 @kindex T S (Summary)
6058 @findex gnus-summary-show-all-threads
6059 Expose all hidden threads (@code{gnus-summary-show-all-threads}).
6062 @kindex T H (Summary)
6063 @findex gnus-summary-hide-all-threads
6064 Hide all threads (@code{gnus-summary-hide-all-threads}).
6067 @kindex T t (Summary)
6068 @findex gnus-summary-rethread-current
6069 Re-thread the current article's thread
6070 (@code{gnus-summary-rethread-current}). This works even when the
6071 summary buffer is otherwise unthreaded.
6074 @kindex T ^ (Summary)
6075 @findex gnus-summary-reparent-thread
6076 Make the current article the child of the marked (or previous) article
6077 (@code{gnus-summary-reparent-thread}).
6081 The following commands are thread movement commands. They all
6082 understand the numeric prefix.
6087 @kindex T n (Summary)
6089 @kindex M-C-n (Summary)
6091 @kindex M-down (Summary)
6092 @findex gnus-summary-next-thread
6093 Go to the next thread (@code{gnus-summary-next-thread}).
6096 @kindex T p (Summary)
6098 @kindex M-C-p (Summary)
6100 @kindex M-up (Summary)
6101 @findex gnus-summary-prev-thread
6102 Go to the previous thread (@code{gnus-summary-prev-thread}).
6105 @kindex T d (Summary)
6106 @findex gnus-summary-down-thread
6107 Descend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-down-thread}).
6110 @kindex T u (Summary)
6111 @findex gnus-summary-up-thread
6112 Ascend the thread (@code{gnus-summary-up-thread}).
6115 @kindex T o (Summary)
6116 @findex gnus-summary-top-thread
6117 Go to the top of the thread (@code{gnus-summary-top-thread}).
6120 @vindex gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject
6121 If you ignore subject while threading, you'll naturally end up with
6122 threads that have several different subjects in them. If you then issue
6123 a command like `T k' (@code{gnus-summary-kill-thread}) you might not
6124 wish to kill the entire thread, but just those parts of the thread that
6125 have the same subject as the current article. If you like this idea,
6126 you can fiddle with @code{gnus-thread-operation-ignore-subject}. If it
6127 is non-@code{nil} (which it is by default), subjects will be ignored
6128 when doing thread commands. If this variable is @code{nil}, articles in
6129 the same thread with different subjects will not be included in the
6130 operation in question. If this variable is @code{fuzzy}, only articles
6131 that have subjects fuzzily equal will be included (@pxref{Fuzzy
6135 @node Sorting the Summary Buffer
6136 @section Sorting the Summary Buffer
6138 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score
6139 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-date
6140 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-score
6141 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6142 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-author
6143 @findex gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6144 @vindex gnus-thread-sort-functions
6145 If you are using a threaded summary display, you can sort the threads by
6146 setting @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, which can be either a single
6147 function, a list of functions, or a list containing functions and
6148 @code{(not some-function)} elements.
6150 By default, sorting is done on article numbers. Ready-made sorting
6151 predicate functions include @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number},
6152 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-subject},
6153 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-date}, @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-score}, and
6154 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score}.
6156 Each function takes two threads and returns non-@code{nil} if the first
6157 thread should be sorted before the other. Note that sorting really is
6158 normally done by looking only at the roots of each thread.
6160 If you use more than one function, the primary sort key should be the
6161 last function in the list. You should probably always include
6162 @code{gnus-thread-sort-by-number} in the list of sorting
6163 functions---preferably first. This will ensure that threads that are
6164 equal with respect to the other sort criteria will be displayed in
6165 ascending article order.
6167 If you would like to sort by reverse score, then by subject, and finally
6168 by number, you could do something like:
6171 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6172 '(gnus-thread-sort-by-number
6173 gnus-thread-sort-by-subject
6174 (not gnus-thread-sort-by-total-score)))
6177 The threads that have highest score will be displayed first in the
6178 summary buffer. When threads have the same score, they will be sorted
6179 alphabetically. The threads that have the same score and the same
6180 subject will be sorted by number, which is (normally) the sequence in
6181 which the articles arrived.
6183 If you want to sort by score and then reverse arrival order, you could
6187 (setq gnus-thread-sort-functions
6189 (not (gnus-thread-sort-by-number t1 t2)))
6190 gnus-thread-sort-by-score))
6193 @vindex gnus-thread-score-function
6194 The function in the @code{gnus-thread-score-function} variable (default
6195 @code{+}) is used for calculating the total score of a thread. Useful
6196 functions might be @code{max}, @code{min}, or squared means, or whatever
6199 @findex gnus-article-sort-functions
6200 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-date
6201 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-score
6202 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-subject
6203 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-author
6204 @findex gnus-article-sort-by-number
6205 If you are using an unthreaded display for some strange reason or other,
6206 you have to fiddle with the @code{gnus-article-sort-functions} variable.
6207 It is very similar to the @code{gnus-thread-sort-functions}, except that
6208 it uses slightly different functions for article comparison. Available
6209 sorting predicate functions are @code{gnus-article-sort-by-number},
6210 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-author}, @code{gnus-article-sort-by-subject},
6211 @code{gnus-article-sort-by-date}, and @code{gnus-article-sort-by-score}.
6213 If you want to sort an unthreaded summary display by subject, you could
6217 (setq gnus-article-sort-functions
6218 '(gnus-article-sort-by-number
6219 gnus-article-sort-by-subject))
6224 @node Asynchronous Fetching
6225 @section Asynchronous Article Fetching
6226 @cindex asynchronous article fetching
6227 @cindex article pre-fetch
6230 If you read your news from an @sc{nntp} server that's far away, the
6231 network latencies may make reading articles a chore. You have to wait
6232 for a while after pressing @kbd{n} to go to the next article before the
6233 article appears. Why can't Gnus just go ahead and fetch the article
6234 while you are reading the previous one? Why not, indeed.
6236 First, some caveats. There are some pitfalls to using asynchronous
6237 article fetching, especially the way Gnus does it.
6239 Let's say you are reading article 1, which is short, and article 2 is
6240 quite long, and you are not interested in reading that. Gnus does not
6241 know this, so it goes ahead and fetches article 2. You decide to read
6242 article 3, but since Gnus is in the process of fetching article 2, the
6243 connection is blocked.
6245 To avoid these situations, Gnus will open two (count 'em two)
6246 connections to the server. Some people may think this isn't a very nice
6247 thing to do, but I don't see any real alternatives. Setting up that
6248 extra connection takes some time, so Gnus startup will be slower.
6250 Gnus will fetch more articles than you will read. This will mean that
6251 the link between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server will become more
6252 loaded than if you didn't use article pre-fetch. The server itself will
6253 also become more loaded---both with the extra article requests, and the
6256 Ok, so now you know that you shouldn't really use this thing... unless
6259 @vindex gnus-asynchronous
6260 Here's how: Set @code{gnus-asynchronous} to @code{t}. The rest should
6261 happen automatically.
6263 @vindex gnus-use-article-prefetch
6264 You can control how many articles are to be pre-fetched by setting
6265 @code{gnus-use-article-prefetch}. This is 30 by default, which means
6266 that when you read an article in the group, the backend will pre-fetch
6267 the next 30 articles. If this variable is @code{t}, the backend will
6268 pre-fetch all the articles it can without bound. If it is
6269 @code{nil}, no pre-fetching will be done.
6271 @vindex gnus-async-prefetch-article-p
6272 @findex gnus-async-read-p
6273 There are probably some articles that you don't want to pre-fetch---read
6274 articles, for instance. The @code{gnus-async-prefetch-article-p} variable controls whether an article is to be pre-fetched. This function should
6275 return non-@code{nil} when the article in question is to be
6276 pre-fetched. The default is @code{gnus-async-read-p}, which returns
6277 @code{nil} on read articles. The function is called with an article
6278 data structure as the only parameter.
6280 If, for instance, you wish to pre-fetch only unread articles shorter than 100 lines, you could say something like:
6283 (defun my-async-short-unread-p (data)
6284 "Return non-nil for short, unread articles."
6285 (and (gnus-data-unread-p data)
6286 (< (mail-header-lines (gnus-data-header data))
6289 (setq gnus-async-prefetch-article-p 'my-async-short-unread-p)
6292 These functions will be called many, many times, so they should
6293 preferably be short and sweet to avoid slowing down Gnus too much.
6294 It's probably a good idea to byte-compile things like this.
6296 @vindex gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy
6297 Articles have to be removed from the asynch buffer sooner or later. The
6298 @code{gnus-prefetched-article-deletion-strategy} says when to remove
6299 articles. This is a list that may contain the following elements:
6303 Remove articles when they are read.
6306 Remove articles when exiting the group.
6309 The default value is @code{(read exit)}.
6311 @c @vindex gnus-use-header-prefetch
6312 @c If @code{gnus-use-header-prefetch} is non-@code{nil}, prefetch articles
6313 @c from the next group.
6316 @node Article Caching
6317 @section Article Caching
6318 @cindex article caching
6321 If you have an @emph{extremely} slow @sc{nntp} connection, you may
6322 consider turning article caching on. Each article will then be stored
6323 locally under your home directory. As you may surmise, this could
6324 potentially use @emph{huge} amounts of disk space, as well as eat up all
6325 your inodes so fast it will make your head swim. In vodka.
6327 Used carefully, though, it could be just an easier way to save articles.
6329 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6330 @vindex gnus-cache-directory
6331 @vindex gnus-use-cache
6332 To turn caching on, set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{t}. By default,
6333 all articles ticked or marked as dormant will then be copied
6334 over to your local cache (@code{gnus-cache-directory}). Whether this
6335 cache is flat or hierarchical is controlled by the
6336 @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable, as usual.
6338 When re-selecting a ticked or dormant article, it will be fetched from the
6339 cache instead of from the server. As articles in your cache will never
6340 expire, this might serve as a method of saving articles while still
6341 keeping them where they belong. Just mark all articles you want to save
6342 as dormant, and don't worry.
6344 When an article is marked as read, is it removed from the cache.
6346 @vindex gnus-cache-remove-articles
6347 @vindex gnus-cache-enter-articles
6348 The entering/removal of articles from the cache is controlled by the
6349 @code{gnus-cache-enter-articles} and @code{gnus-cache-remove-articles}
6350 variables. Both are lists of symbols. The first is @code{(ticked
6351 dormant)} by default, meaning that ticked and dormant articles will be
6352 put in the cache. The latter is @code{(read)} by default, meaning that
6353 articles marked as read are removed from the cache. Possibly
6354 symbols in these two lists are @code{ticked}, @code{dormant},
6355 @code{unread} and @code{read}.
6357 @findex gnus-jog-cache
6358 So where does the massive article-fetching and storing come into the
6359 picture? The @code{gnus-jog-cache} command will go through all
6360 subscribed newsgroups, request all unread articles, score them, and
6361 store them in the cache. You should only ever, ever ever ever, use this
6362 command if 1) your connection to the @sc{nntp} server is really, really,
6363 really slow and 2) you have a really, really, really huge disk.
6364 Seriously. One way to cut down on the number of articles downloaded is
6365 to score unwanted articles down and have them marked as read. They will
6366 not then be downloaded by this command.
6368 @vindex gnus-uncacheable-groups
6369 @vindex gnus-cacheable-groups
6370 It is likely that you do not want caching on all groups. For instance,
6371 if your @code{nnml} mail is located under your home directory, it makes no
6372 sense to cache it somewhere else under your home directory. Unless you
6373 feel that it's neat to use twice as much space.
6375 To limit the caching, you could set @code{gnus-cacheable-groups} to a
6376 regexp of groups to cache, @samp{^nntp} for instance, or set the
6377 @code{gnus-uncacheable-groups} regexp to @samp{^nnml}, for instance.
6378 Both variables are @code{nil} by default. If a group matches both
6379 variables, the group is not cached.
6381 @findex gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases
6382 @findex gnus-cache-generate-active
6383 @vindex gnus-cache-active-file
6384 The cache stores information on what articles it contains in its active
6385 file (@code{gnus-cache-active-file}). If this file (or any other parts
6386 of the cache) becomes all messed up for some reason or other, Gnus
6387 offers two functions that will try to set things right. @kbd{M-x
6388 gnus-cache-generate-nov-databases} will (re)build all the @sc{nov}
6389 files, and @kbd{gnus-cache-generate-active} will (re)generate the active
6393 @node Persistent Articles
6394 @section Persistent Articles
6395 @cindex persistent articles
6397 Closely related to article caching, we have @dfn{persistent articles}.
6398 In fact, it's just a different way of looking at caching, and much more
6399 useful in my opinion.
6401 Say you're reading a newsgroup, and you happen on to some valuable gem
6402 that you want to keep and treasure forever. You'd normally just save it
6403 (using one of the many saving commands) in some file. The problem with
6404 that is that it's just, well, yucky. Ideally you'd prefer just having
6405 the article remain in the group where you found it forever; untouched by
6406 the expiry going on at the news server.
6408 This is what a @dfn{persistent article} is---an article that just won't
6409 be deleted. It's implemented using the normal cache functions, but
6410 you use two explicit commands for managing persistent articles:
6416 @findex gnus-cache-enter-article
6417 Make the current article persistent (@code{gnus-cache-enter-article}).
6420 @kindex M-* (Summary)
6421 @findex gnus-cache-remove-article
6422 Remove the current article from the persistent articles
6423 (@code{gnus-cache-remove-article}). This will normally delete the
6427 Both these commands understand the process/prefix convention.
6429 To avoid having all ticked articles (and stuff) entered into the cache,
6430 you should set @code{gnus-use-cache} to @code{passive} if you're just
6431 interested in persistent articles:
6434 (setq gnus-use-cache 'passive)
6438 @node Article Backlog
6439 @section Article Backlog
6441 @cindex article backlog
6443 If you have a slow connection, but the idea of using caching seems
6444 unappealing to you (and it is, really), you can help the situation some
6445 by switching on the @dfn{backlog}. This is where Gnus will buffer
6446 already read articles so that it doesn't have to re-fetch articles
6447 you've already read. This only helps if you are in the habit of
6448 re-selecting articles you've recently read, of course. If you never do
6449 that, turning the backlog on will slow Gnus down a little bit, and
6450 increase memory usage some.
6452 @vindex gnus-keep-backlog
6453 If you set @code{gnus-keep-backlog} to a number @var{n}, Gnus will store
6454 at most @var{n} old articles in a buffer for later re-fetching. If this
6455 variable is non-@code{nil} and is not a number, Gnus will store
6456 @emph{all} read articles, which means that your Emacs will grow without
6457 bound before exploding and taking your machine down with you. I put
6458 that in there just to keep y'all on your toes.
6460 This variable is @code{nil} by default.
6463 @node Saving Articles
6464 @section Saving Articles
6465 @cindex saving articles
6467 Gnus can save articles in a number of ways. Below is the documentation
6468 for saving articles in a fairly straight-forward fashion (i.e., little
6469 processing of the article is done before it is saved). For a different
6470 approach (uudecoding, unsharing) you should use @code{gnus-uu}
6471 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
6473 @vindex gnus-save-all-headers
6474 If @code{gnus-save-all-headers} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will not delete
6475 unwanted headers before saving the article.
6477 @vindex gnus-saved-headers
6478 If the preceding variable is @code{nil}, all headers that match the
6479 @code{gnus-saved-headers} regexp will be kept, while the rest will be
6480 deleted before saving.
6486 @kindex O o (Summary)
6488 @findex gnus-summary-save-article
6489 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article}
6490 Save the current article using the default article saver
6491 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article}).
6494 @kindex O m (Summary)
6495 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-mail
6496 Save the current article in mail format
6497 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-mail}).
6500 @kindex O r (Summary)
6501 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-rmail
6502 Save the current article in rmail format
6503 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-rmail}).
6506 @kindex O f (Summary)
6507 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-file
6508 @c @icon{gnus-summary-save-article-file}
6509 Save the current article in plain file format
6510 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-file}).
6513 @kindex O F (Summary)
6514 @findex gnus-summary-write-article-file
6515 Write the current article in plain file format, overwriting any previous
6516 file contents (@code{gnus-summary-write-article-file}).
6519 @kindex O b (Summary)
6520 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-body-file
6521 Save the current article body in plain file format
6522 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-body-file}).
6525 @kindex O h (Summary)
6526 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-folder
6527 Save the current article in mh folder format
6528 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-folder}).
6531 @kindex O v (Summary)
6532 @findex gnus-summary-save-article-vm
6533 Save the current article in a VM folder
6534 (@code{gnus-summary-save-article-vm}).
6538 @kindex O p (Summary)
6540 @findex gnus-summary-pipe-output
6541 Save the current article in a pipe. Uhm, like, what I mean is---Pipe
6542 the current article to a process (@code{gnus-summary-pipe-output}).
6545 @vindex gnus-prompt-before-saving
6546 All these commands use the process/prefix convention
6547 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). If you save bunches of articles using these
6548 functions, you might get tired of being prompted for files to save each
6549 and every article in. The prompting action is controlled by
6550 the @code{gnus-prompt-before-saving} variable, which is @code{always} by
6551 default, giving you that excessive prompting action you know and
6552 loathe. If you set this variable to @code{t} instead, you'll be prompted
6553 just once for each series of articles you save. If you like to really
6554 have Gnus do all your thinking for you, you can even set this variable
6555 to @code{nil}, which means that you will never be prompted for files to
6556 save articles in. Gnus will simply save all the articles in the default
6560 @vindex gnus-default-article-saver
6561 You can customize the @code{gnus-default-article-saver} variable to make
6562 Gnus do what you want it to. You can use any of the six ready-made
6563 functions below, or you can create your own.
6567 @item gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6568 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-rmail
6569 @vindex gnus-rmail-save-name
6570 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6571 This is the default format, @dfn{babyl}. Uses the function in the
6572 @code{gnus-rmail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6573 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6575 @item gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6576 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-mail
6577 @vindex gnus-mail-save-name
6578 Save in a Unix mail (mbox) file. Uses the function in the
6579 @code{gnus-mail-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6580 article in. The default is @code{gnus-plain-save-name}.
6582 @item gnus-summary-save-in-file
6583 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-file
6584 @vindex gnus-file-save-name
6585 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6586 Append the article straight to an ordinary file. Uses the function in
6587 the @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6588 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6590 @item gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6591 @findex gnus-summary-save-body-in-file
6592 Append the article body to an ordinary file. Uses the function in the
6593 @code{gnus-file-save-name} variable to get a file name to save the
6594 article in. The default is @code{gnus-numeric-save-name}.
6596 @item gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6597 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-folder
6598 @findex gnus-folder-save-name
6599 @findex gnus-Folder-save-name
6600 @vindex gnus-folder-save-name
6603 Save the article to an MH folder using @code{rcvstore} from the MH
6604 library. Uses the function in the @code{gnus-folder-save-name} variable
6605 to get a file name to save the article in. The default is
6606 @code{gnus-folder-save-name}, but you can also use
6607 @code{gnus-Folder-save-name}, which creates capitalized names.
6609 @item gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6610 @findex gnus-summary-save-in-vm
6611 Save the article in a VM folder. You have to have the VM mail
6612 reader to use this setting.
6615 @vindex gnus-article-save-directory
6616 All of these functions, except for the last one, will save the article
6617 in the @code{gnus-article-save-directory}, which is initialized from the
6618 @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable. This is @file{~/News/} by
6621 As you can see above, the functions use different functions to find a
6622 suitable name of a file to save the article in. Below is a list of
6623 available functions that generate names:
6627 @item gnus-Numeric-save-name
6628 @findex gnus-Numeric-save-name
6629 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6631 @item gnus-numeric-save-name
6632 @findex gnus-numeric-save-name
6633 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin/45}.
6635 @item gnus-Plain-save-name
6636 @findex gnus-Plain-save-name
6637 File names like @file{~/News/Alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6639 @item gnus-plain-save-name
6640 @findex gnus-plain-save-name
6641 File names like @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.
6643 @item gnus-sender-save-name
6644 @findex gnus-sender-save-name
6645 File names like @file{~/News/larsi}.
6648 @vindex gnus-split-methods
6649 You can have Gnus suggest where to save articles by plonking a regexp into
6650 the @code{gnus-split-methods} alist. For instance, if you would like to
6651 save articles related to Gnus in the file @file{gnus-stuff}, and articles
6652 related to VM in @code{vm-stuff}, you could set this variable to something
6656 (("^Subject:.*gnus\\|^Newsgroups:.*gnus" "gnus-stuff")
6657 ("^Subject:.*vm\\|^Xref:.*vm" "vm-stuff")
6658 (my-choosing-function "../other-dir/my-stuff")
6659 ((equal gnus-newsgroup-name "mail.misc") "mail-stuff"))
6662 We see that this is a list where each element is a list that has two
6663 elements---the @dfn{match} and the @dfn{file}. The match can either be
6664 a string (in which case it is used as a regexp to match on the article
6665 head); it can be a symbol (which will be called as a function with the
6666 group name as a parameter); or it can be a list (which will be
6667 @code{eval}ed). If any of these actions have a non-@code{nil} result,
6668 the @dfn{file} will be used as a default prompt. In addition, the
6669 result of the operation itself will be used if the function or form
6670 called returns a string or a list of strings.
6672 You basically end up with a list of file names that might be used when
6673 saving the current article. (All ``matches'' will be used.) You will
6674 then be prompted for what you really want to use as a name, with file
6675 name completion over the results from applying this variable.
6677 This variable is @code{((gnus-article-archive-name))} by default, which
6678 means that Gnus will look at the articles it saves for an
6679 @code{Archive-name} line and use that as a suggestion for the file
6682 Here's an example function to clean up file names somewhat. If you have
6683 lots of mail groups called things like
6684 @samp{nnml:mail.whatever}, you may want to chop off the beginning of
6685 these group names before creating the file name to save to. The
6686 following will do just that:
6689 (defun my-save-name (group)
6690 (when (string-match "^nnml:mail." group)
6691 (substring group (match-end 0))))
6693 (setq gnus-split-methods
6694 '((gnus-article-archive-name)
6699 @vindex gnus-use-long-file-name
6700 Finally, you have the @code{gnus-use-long-file-name} variable. If it is
6701 @code{nil}, all the preceding functions will replace all periods
6702 (@samp{.}) in the group names with slashes (@samp{/})---which means that
6703 the functions will generate hierarchies of directories instead of having
6704 all the files in the top level directory
6705 (@file{~/News/alt/andrea-dworkin} instead of
6706 @file{~/News/alt.andrea-dworkin}.) This variable is @code{t} by default
6707 on most systems. However, for historical reasons, this is @code{nil} on
6708 Xenix and usg-unix-v machines by default.
6710 This function also affects kill and score file names. If this variable
6711 is a list, and the list contains the element @code{not-score}, long file
6712 names will not be used for score files, if it contains the element
6713 @code{not-save}, long file names will not be used for saving, and if it
6714 contains the element @code{not-kill}, long file names will not be used
6717 If you'd like to save articles in a hierarchy that looks something like
6721 (setq gnus-use-long-file-name '(not-save)) ; to get a hierarchy
6722 (setq gnus-default-article-saver
6723 'gnus-summary-save-in-file) ; no encoding
6726 Then just save with @kbd{o}. You'd then read this hierarchy with
6727 ephemeral @code{nneething} groups---@kbd{G D} in the group buffer, and
6728 the top level directory as the argument (@file{~/News/}). Then just walk
6729 around to the groups/directories with @code{nneething}.
6732 @node Decoding Articles
6733 @section Decoding Articles
6734 @cindex decoding articles
6736 Sometime users post articles (or series of articles) that have been
6737 encoded in some way or other. Gnus can decode them for you.
6740 * Uuencoded Articles:: Uudecode articles.
6741 * Shell Archives:: Unshar articles.
6742 * PostScript Files:: Split PostScript.
6743 * Other Files:: Plain save and binhex.
6744 * Decoding Variables:: Variables for a happy decoding.
6745 * Viewing Files:: You want to look at the result of the decoding?
6749 @cindex article series
6750 All these functions use the process/prefix convention
6751 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}) for finding out what articles to work on, with
6752 the extension that a ``single article'' means ``a single series''. Gnus
6753 can find out by itself what articles belong to a series, decode all the
6754 articles and unpack/view/save the resulting file(s).
6756 Gnus guesses what articles are in the series according to the following
6757 simplish rule: The subjects must be (nearly) identical, except for the
6758 last two numbers of the line. (Spaces are largely ignored, however.)
6760 For example: If you choose a subject called @samp{cat.gif (2/3)}, Gnus
6761 will find all the articles that match the regexp @samp{^cat.gif
6762 ([0-9]+/[0-9]+).*$}.
6764 Subjects that are non-standard, like @samp{cat.gif (2/3) Part 6 of a
6765 series}, will not be properly recognized by any of the automatic viewing
6766 commands, and you have to mark the articles manually with @kbd{#}.
6769 @node Uuencoded Articles
6770 @subsection Uuencoded Articles
6772 @cindex uuencoded articles
6777 @kindex X u (Summary)
6778 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu
6779 @c @icon{gnus-uu-decode-uu}
6780 Uudecodes the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu}).
6783 @kindex X U (Summary)
6784 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save
6785 Uudecodes and saves the current series
6786 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6789 @kindex X v u (Summary)
6790 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-view
6791 Uudecodes and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-view}).
6794 @kindex X v U (Summary)
6795 @findex gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view
6796 Uudecodes, views and saves the current series
6797 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save-view}).
6801 Remember that these all react to the presence of articles marked with
6802 the process mark. If, for instance, you'd like to decode and save an
6803 entire newsgroup, you'd typically do @kbd{M P a}
6804 (@code{gnus-uu-mark-all}) and then @kbd{X U}
6805 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-uu-and-save}).
6807 All this is very much different from how @code{gnus-uu} worked with
6808 @sc{gnus 4.1}, where you had explicit keystrokes for everything under
6809 the sun. This version of @code{gnus-uu} generally assumes that you mark
6810 articles in some way (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}) and then press
6813 @vindex gnus-uu-notify-files
6814 Note: When trying to decode articles that have names matching
6815 @code{gnus-uu-notify-files}, which is hard-coded to
6816 @samp{[Cc][Ii][Nn][Dd][Yy][0-9]+.\\(gif\\|jpg\\)}, @code{gnus-uu} will
6817 automatically post an article on @samp{comp.unix.wizards} saying that
6818 you have just viewed the file in question. This feature can't be turned
6822 @node Shell Archives
6823 @subsection Shell Archives
6825 @cindex shell archives
6826 @cindex shared articles
6828 Shell archives (``shar files'') used to be a popular way to distribute
6829 sources, but it isn't used all that much today. In any case, we have
6830 some commands to deal with these:
6835 @kindex X s (Summary)
6836 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar
6837 Unshars the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar}).
6840 @kindex X S (Summary)
6841 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save
6842 Unshars and saves the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save}).
6845 @kindex X v s (Summary)
6846 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view
6847 Unshars and views the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-view}).
6850 @kindex X v S (Summary)
6851 @findex gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view
6852 Unshars, views and saves the current series
6853 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-unshar-and-save-view}).
6857 @node PostScript Files
6858 @subsection PostScript Files
6864 @kindex X p (Summary)
6865 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript
6866 Unpack the current PostScript series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript}).
6869 @kindex X P (Summary)
6870 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save
6871 Unpack and save the current PostScript series
6872 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save}).
6875 @kindex X v p (Summary)
6876 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view
6877 View the current PostScript series
6878 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-view}).
6881 @kindex X v P (Summary)
6882 @findex gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view
6883 View and save the current PostScript series
6884 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-postscript-and-save-view}).
6889 @subsection Other Files
6893 @kindex X o (Summary)
6894 @findex gnus-uu-decode-save
6895 Save the current series
6896 (@code{gnus-uu-decode-save}).
6899 @kindex X b (Summary)
6900 @findex gnus-uu-decode-binhex
6901 Unbinhex the current series (@code{gnus-uu-decode-binhex}). This
6902 doesn't really work yet.
6906 @node Decoding Variables
6907 @subsection Decoding Variables
6909 Adjective, not verb.
6912 * Rule Variables:: Variables that say how a file is to be viewed.
6913 * Other Decode Variables:: Other decode variables.
6914 * Uuencoding and Posting:: Variables for customizing uuencoding.
6918 @node Rule Variables
6919 @subsubsection Rule Variables
6920 @cindex rule variables
6922 Gnus uses @dfn{rule variables} to decide how to view a file. All these
6923 variables are of the form
6926 (list '(regexp1 command2)
6933 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6934 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6936 This variable is consulted first when viewing files. If you wish to use,
6937 for instance, @code{sox} to convert an @samp{.au} sound file, you could
6940 (setq gnus-uu-user-view-rules
6941 (list '("\\\\.au$" "sox %s -t .aiff > /dev/audio")))
6944 @item gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6945 @vindex gnus-uu-user-view-rules-end
6946 This variable is consulted if Gnus couldn't make any matches from the
6947 user and default view rules.
6949 @item gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6950 @vindex gnus-uu-user-archive-rules
6951 This variable can be used to say what commands should be used to unpack
6956 @node Other Decode Variables
6957 @subsubsection Other Decode Variables
6960 @vindex gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6962 @item gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions
6963 All functions in this list will be called right after each file has been
6964 successfully decoded---so that you can move or view files right away,
6965 and don't have to wait for all files to be decoded before you can do
6966 anything. Ready-made functions you can put in this list are:
6970 @item gnus-uu-grab-view
6971 @findex gnus-uu-grab-view
6974 @item gnus-uu-grab-move
6975 @findex gnus-uu-grab-move
6976 Move the file (if you're using a saving function.)
6979 @item gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6980 @vindex gnus-uu-be-dangerous
6981 Specifies what to do if unusual situations arise during decoding. If
6982 @code{nil}, be as conservative as possible. If @code{t}, ignore things
6983 that didn't work, and overwrite existing files. Otherwise, ask each
6986 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6987 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-name
6988 Files with name matching this regular expression won't be viewed.
6990 @item gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6991 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-files-by-type
6992 Files with a @sc{mime} type matching this variable won't be viewed.
6993 Note that Gnus tries to guess what type the file is based on the name.
6994 @code{gnus-uu} is not a @sc{mime} package (yet), so this is slightly
6997 @item gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6998 @vindex gnus-uu-tmp-dir
6999 Where @code{gnus-uu} does its work.
7001 @item gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7002 @vindex gnus-uu-do-not-unpack-archives
7003 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} won't peek inside archives
7004 looking for files to display.
7006 @item gnus-uu-view-and-save
7007 @vindex gnus-uu-view-and-save
7008 Non-@code{nil} means that the user will always be asked to save a file
7011 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7012 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-view-rules
7013 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default viewing
7016 @item gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7017 @vindex gnus-uu-ignore-default-archive-rules
7018 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the default archive
7021 @item gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7022 @vindex gnus-uu-kill-carriage-return
7023 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will strip all carriage returns
7026 @item gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7027 @vindex gnus-uu-unmark-articles-not-decoded
7028 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will mark unsuccessfully
7029 decoded articles as unread.
7031 @item gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7032 @vindex gnus-uu-correct-stripped-uucode
7033 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will @emph{try} to fix
7034 uuencoded files that have had trailing spaces deleted.
7036 @item gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7037 @vindex gnus-uu-pre-uudecode-hook
7038 Hook run before sending a message to @code{uudecode}.
7040 @item gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7041 @vindex gnus-uu-view-with-metamail
7043 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ignore the viewing
7044 commands defined by the rule variables and just fudge a @sc{mime}
7045 content type based on the file name. The result will be fed to
7046 @code{metamail} for viewing.
7048 @item gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7049 @vindex gnus-uu-save-in-digest
7050 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu}, when asked to save without
7051 decoding, will save in digests. If this variable is @code{nil},
7052 @code{gnus-uu} will just save everything in a file without any
7053 embellishments. The digesting almost conforms to RFC 1153---no easy way
7054 to specify any meaningful volume and issue numbers were found, so I
7055 simply dropped them.
7060 @node Uuencoding and Posting
7061 @subsubsection Uuencoding and Posting
7065 @item gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7066 @vindex gnus-uu-post-include-before-composing
7067 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will ask for a file to encode
7068 before you compose the article. If this variable is @code{t}, you can
7069 either include an encoded file with @kbd{C-c C-i} or have one included
7070 for you when you post the article.
7072 @item gnus-uu-post-length
7073 @vindex gnus-uu-post-length
7074 Maximum length of an article. The encoded file will be split into how
7075 many articles it takes to post the entire file.
7077 @item gnus-uu-post-threaded
7078 @vindex gnus-uu-post-threaded
7079 Non-@code{nil} means that @code{gnus-uu} will post the encoded file in a
7080 thread. This may not be smart, as no other decoder I have seen is able
7081 to follow threads when collecting uuencoded articles. (Well, I have
7082 seen one package that does that---@code{gnus-uu}, but somehow, I don't
7083 think that counts...) Default is @code{nil}.
7085 @item gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7086 @vindex gnus-uu-post-separate-description
7087 Non-@code{nil} means that the description will be posted in a separate
7088 article. The first article will typically be numbered (0/x). If this
7089 variable is @code{nil}, the description the user enters will be included
7090 at the beginning of the first article, which will be numbered (1/x).
7091 Default is @code{t}.
7097 @subsection Viewing Files
7098 @cindex viewing files
7099 @cindex pseudo-articles
7101 After decoding, if the file is some sort of archive, Gnus will attempt
7102 to unpack the archive and see if any of the files in the archive can be
7103 viewed. For instance, if you have a gzipped tar file @file{pics.tar.gz}
7104 containing the files @file{pic1.jpg} and @file{pic2.gif}, Gnus will
7105 uncompress and de-tar the main file, and then view the two pictures.
7106 This unpacking process is recursive, so if the archive contains archives
7107 of archives, it'll all be unpacked.
7109 Finally, Gnus will normally insert a @dfn{pseudo-article} for each
7110 extracted file into the summary buffer. If you go to these
7111 ``articles'', you will be prompted for a command to run (usually Gnus
7112 will make a suggestion), and then the command will be run.
7114 @vindex gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously
7115 If @code{gnus-view-pseudo-asynchronously} is @code{nil}, Emacs will wait
7116 until the viewing is done before proceeding.
7118 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos
7119 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos} is @code{automatic}, Gnus will not insert
7120 the pseudo-articles into the summary buffer, but view them
7121 immediately. If this variable is @code{not-confirm}, the user won't even
7122 be asked for a confirmation before viewing is done.
7124 @vindex gnus-view-pseudos-separately
7125 If @code{gnus-view-pseudos-separately} is non-@code{nil}, one
7126 pseudo-article will be created for each file to be viewed. If
7127 @code{nil}, all files that use the same viewing command will be given as
7128 a list of parameters to that command.
7130 @vindex gnus-insert-pseudo-articles
7131 If @code{gnus-insert-pseudo-articles} is non-@code{nil}, insert
7132 pseudo-articles when decoding. It is @code{t} by default.
7134 So; there you are, reading your @emph{pseudo-articles} in your
7135 @emph{virtual newsgroup} from the @emph{virtual server}; and you think:
7136 Why isn't anything real anymore? How did we get here?
7139 @node Article Treatment
7140 @section Article Treatment
7142 Reading through this huge manual, you may have quite forgotten that the
7143 object of newsreaders is to actually, like, read what people have
7144 written. Reading articles. Unfortunately, people are quite bad at
7145 writing, so there are tons of functions and variables to make reading
7146 these articles easier.
7149 * Article Highlighting:: You want to make the article look like fruit salad.
7150 * Article Fontisizing:: Making emphasized text look nice.
7151 * Article Hiding:: You also want to make certain info go away.
7152 * Article Washing:: Lots of way-neat functions to make life better.
7153 * Article Buttons:: Click on URLs, Message-IDs, addresses and the like.
7154 * Article Date:: Grumble, UT!
7155 * Article Signature:: What is a signature?
7156 * Article Miscellania:: Various other stuff.
7160 @node Article Highlighting
7161 @subsection Article Highlighting
7162 @cindex highlighting
7164 Not only do you want your article buffer to look like fruit salad, but
7165 you want it to look like technicolor fruit salad.
7170 @kindex W H a (Summary)
7171 @findex gnus-article-highlight
7172 @findex gnus-article-maybe-highlight
7173 Do much highlighting of the current article
7174 (@code{gnus-article-highlight}). This function highlights header, cited
7175 text, the signature, and adds buttons to the body and the head.
7178 @kindex W H h (Summary)
7179 @findex gnus-article-highlight-headers
7180 @vindex gnus-header-face-alist
7181 Highlight the headers (@code{gnus-article-highlight-headers}). The
7182 highlighting will be done according to the @code{gnus-header-face-alist}
7183 variable, which is a list where each element has the form
7184 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{name} @var{content})}.
7185 @var{regexp} is a regular expression for matching the
7186 header, @var{name} is the face used for highlighting the header name
7187 (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}) and @var{content} is the face for highlighting
7188 the header value. The first match made will be used. Note that
7189 @var{regexp} shouldn't have @samp{^} prepended---Gnus will add one.
7192 @kindex W H c (Summary)
7193 @findex gnus-article-highlight-citation
7194 Highlight cited text (@code{gnus-article-highlight-citation}).
7196 Some variables to customize the citation highlights:
7199 @vindex gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7201 @item gnus-cite-parse-max-size
7202 If the article size if bigger than this variable (which is 25000 by
7203 default), no citation highlighting will be performed.
7205 @item gnus-cite-max-prefix
7206 @vindex gnus-cite-max-prefix
7207 Maximum possible length for a citation prefix (default 20).
7209 @item gnus-cite-face-list
7210 @vindex gnus-cite-face-list
7211 List of faces used for highlighting citations (@pxref{Faces and Fonts}).
7212 When there are citations from multiple articles in the same message,
7213 Gnus will try to give each citation from each article its own face.
7214 This should make it easier to see who wrote what.
7216 @item gnus-supercite-regexp
7217 @vindex gnus-supercite-regexp
7218 Regexp matching normal Supercite attribution lines.
7220 @item gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7221 @vindex gnus-supercite-secondary-regexp
7222 Regexp matching mangled Supercite attribution lines.
7224 @item gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7225 @vindex gnus-cite-minimum-match-count
7226 Minimum number of identical prefixes we have to see before we believe
7227 that it's a citation.
7229 @item gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7230 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-prefix
7231 Regexp matching the beginning of an attribution line.
7233 @item gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7234 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-suffix
7235 Regexp matching the end of an attribution line.
7237 @item gnus-cite-attribution-face
7238 @vindex gnus-cite-attribution-face
7239 Face used for attribution lines. It is merged with the face for the
7240 cited text belonging to the attribution.
7246 @kindex W H s (Summary)
7247 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7248 @vindex gnus-signature-face
7249 @findex gnus-article-highlight-signature
7250 Highlight the signature (@code{gnus-article-highlight-signature}).
7251 Everything after @code{gnus-signature-separator} (@pxref{Article
7252 Signature}) in an article will be considered a signature and will be
7253 highlighted with @code{gnus-signature-face}, which is @code{italic} by
7258 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to highlight articles automatically.
7261 @node Article Fontisizing
7262 @subsection Article Fontisizing
7264 @cindex article emphasis
7266 @findex gnus-article-emphasize
7267 @kindex W e (Summary)
7268 People commonly add emphasis to words in news articles by writing things
7269 like @samp{_this_} or @samp{*this*} or @samp{/this/}. Gnus can make
7270 this look nicer by running the article through the @kbd{W e}
7271 (@code{gnus-article-emphasize}) command.
7273 @vindex gnus-emphasis-alist
7274 How the emphasis is computed is controlled by the
7275 @code{gnus-emphasis-alist} variable. This is an alist where the first
7276 element is a regular expression to be matched. The second is a number
7277 that says what regular expression grouping is used to find the entire
7278 emphasized word. The third is a number that says what regexp grouping
7279 should be displayed and highlighted. (The text between these two
7280 groupings will be hidden.) The fourth is the face used for
7284 (setq gnus-emphasis-alist
7285 '(("_\\(\\w+\\)_" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-underline)
7286 ("\\*\\(\\w+\\)\\*" 0 1 gnus-emphasis-bold)))
7295 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline
7296 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold
7297 @vindex gnus-emphasis-italic
7298 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold
7299 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-italic
7300 @vindex gnus-emphasis-bold-italic
7301 @vindex gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic
7302 By default, there are seven rules, and they use the following faces:
7303 @code{gnus-emphasis-bold}, @code{gnus-emphasis-italic},
7304 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline}, @code{gnus-emphasis-bold-italic},
7305 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-italic},
7306 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold}, and
7307 @code{gnus-emphasis-underline-bold-italic}.
7309 If you want to change these faces, you can either use @kbd{M-x
7310 customize}, or you can use @code{copy-face}. For instance, if you want
7311 to make @code{gnus-emphasis-italic} use a red face instead, you could
7315 (copy-face 'red 'gnus-emphasis-italic)
7318 @vindex gnus-group-highlight-words-alist
7320 If you want to highlight arbitrary words, you can use the
7321 @code{gnus-group-highlight-words-alist} variable, which uses the same
7322 syntax as @code{gnus-emphasis-alist}. The @code{highlight-words} group
7323 parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) can also be used.
7325 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to fontize articles automatically.
7328 @node Article Hiding
7329 @subsection Article Hiding
7330 @cindex article hiding
7332 Or rather, hiding certain things in each article. There usually is much
7333 too much cruft in most articles.
7338 @kindex W W a (Summary)
7339 @findex gnus-article-hide
7340 Do quite a lot of hiding on the article buffer
7341 (@kbd{gnus-article-hide}). In particular, this function will hide
7342 headers, PGP, cited text and the signature.
7345 @kindex W W h (Summary)
7346 @findex gnus-article-hide-headers
7347 Hide headers (@code{gnus-article-hide-headers}). @xref{Hiding
7351 @kindex W W b (Summary)
7352 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
7353 Hide headers that aren't particularly interesting
7354 (@code{gnus-article-hide-boring-headers}). @xref{Hiding Headers}.
7357 @kindex W W s (Summary)
7358 @findex gnus-article-hide-signature
7359 Hide signature (@code{gnus-article-hide-signature}). @xref{Article
7363 @kindex W W l (Summary)
7364 @findex gnus-article-hide-list-identifiers
7365 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7366 Strip list identifiers specified in @code{gnus-list-identifiers}. These
7367 are strings some mailing list servers add to the beginning of all
7368 @code{Subject} headers---for example, @samp{[zebra 4711]}. Any leading
7369 @samp{Re: } is skipped before stripping. @code{gnus-list-identifiers}
7370 may not contain @code{\\(..\\)}.
7374 @item gnus-list-identifiers
7375 @vindex gnus-list-identifiers
7376 A regular expression that matches list identifiers to be removed from
7377 subject. This can also be a list of regular expressions.
7382 @kindex W W p (Summary)
7383 @findex gnus-article-hide-pgp
7384 @vindex gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7385 Hide @sc{pgp} signatures (@code{gnus-article-hide-pgp}). The
7386 @code{gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook} hook will be run after a @sc{pgp}
7387 signature has been hidden. For example, to automatically verify
7388 articles that have signatures in them do:
7390 ;;; Hide pgp cruft if any.
7392 (setq gnus-treat-strip-pgp t)
7394 ;;; After hiding pgp, verify the message;
7395 ;;; only happens if pgp signature is found.
7397 (add-hook 'gnus-article-hide-pgp-hook
7400 (set-buffer gnus-original-article-buffer)
7405 @kindex W W P (Summary)
7406 @findex gnus-article-hide-pem
7407 Hide @sc{pem} (privacy enhanced messages) cruft
7408 (@code{gnus-article-hide-pem}).
7411 @kindex W W B (Summary)
7412 @findex gnus-article-strip-banner
7415 @cindex stripping advertisements
7416 @cindex advertisements
7417 Strip the banner specified by the @code{banner} group parameter
7418 (@code{gnus-article-strip-banner}). This is mainly used to hide those
7419 annoying banners and/or signatures that some mailing lists and moderated
7420 groups adds to all the messages. The way to use this function is to add
7421 the @code{banner} group parameter (@pxref{Group Parameters}) to the
7422 group you want banners stripped from. The parameter either be a string,
7423 which will be interpreted as a regular expression matching text to be
7424 removed, or the symbol @code{signature}, meaning that the (last)
7425 signature should be removed, or other symbol, meaning that the
7426 corresponding regular expression in @code{gnus-article-banner-alist} is
7430 @kindex W W c (Summary)
7431 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation
7432 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation}). Some variables for
7433 customizing the hiding:
7437 @item gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7438 @itemx gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7439 @vindex gnus-cited-closed-text-button-line-format
7440 @vindex gnus-cited-opened-text-button-line-format
7441 Gnus adds buttons to show where the cited text has been hidden, and to
7442 allow toggle hiding the text. The format of the variable is specified
7443 by these format-like variable (@pxref{Formatting Variables}). These
7448 Starting point of the hidden text.
7450 Ending point of the hidden text.
7452 Number of characters in the hidden region.
7454 Number of lines of hidden text.
7457 @item gnus-cited-lines-visible
7458 @vindex gnus-cited-lines-visible
7459 The number of lines at the beginning of the cited text to leave
7460 shown. This can also be a cons cell with the number of lines at the top
7461 and bottom of the text, respectively, to remain visible.
7466 @kindex W W C-c (Summary)
7467 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe
7469 Hide citation (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-maybe}) depending on the
7470 following two variables:
7473 @item gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7474 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-percentage
7475 If the cited text is of a bigger percentage than this variable (default
7476 50), hide the cited text.
7478 @item gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7479 @vindex gnus-cite-hide-absolute
7480 The cited text must have at least this length (default 10) before it
7485 @kindex W W C (Summary)
7486 @findex gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups
7487 Hide cited text in articles that aren't roots
7488 (@code{gnus-article-hide-citation-in-followups}). This isn't very
7489 useful as an interactive command, but might be a handy function to stick
7490 have happen automatically (@pxref{Customizing Articles}).
7494 All these ``hiding'' commands are toggles, but if you give a negative
7495 prefix to these commands, they will show what they have previously
7496 hidden. If you give a positive prefix, they will always hide.
7498 Also @pxref{Article Highlighting} for further variables for
7499 citation customization.
7501 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to hide article elements
7505 @node Article Washing
7506 @subsection Article Washing
7508 @cindex article washing
7510 We call this ``article washing'' for a really good reason. Namely, the
7511 @kbd{A} key was taken, so we had to use the @kbd{W} key instead.
7513 @dfn{Washing} is defined by us as ``changing something from something to
7514 something else'', but normally results in something looking better.
7517 @xref{Customizing Articles}, if you want to change how Gnus displays
7518 articles by default.
7523 This is not really washing, it's sort of the opposite of washing. If
7524 you type this, you see the article exactly as it exists on disk or on
7528 @kindex W l (Summary)
7529 @findex gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking
7530 Remove page breaks from the current article
7531 (@code{gnus-summary-stop-page-breaking}). @xref{Misc Article}, for page
7535 @kindex W r (Summary)
7536 @findex gnus-summary-caesar-message
7537 @c @icon{gnus-summary-caesar-message}
7538 Do a Caesar rotate (rot13) on the article buffer
7539 (@code{gnus-summary-caesar-message}).
7540 Unreadable articles that tell you to read them with Caesar rotate or rot13.
7541 (Typically offensive jokes and such.)
7543 It's commonly called ``rot13'' because each letter is rotated 13
7544 positions in the alphabet, e. g. @samp{B} (letter #2) -> @samp{O} (letter
7545 #15). It is sometimes referred to as ``Caesar rotate'' because Caesar
7546 is rumored to have employed this form of, uh, somewhat weak encryption.
7550 @kindex W t (Summary)
7552 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-header
7553 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer
7554 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-header}).
7557 @kindex W v (Summary)
7558 @findex gnus-summary-verbose-header
7559 Toggle whether to display all headers in the article buffer permanently
7560 (@code{gnus-summary-verbose-header}).
7563 @kindex W o (Summary)
7564 @findex gnus-article-treat-overstrike
7565 Treat overstrike (@code{gnus-article-treat-overstrike}).
7568 @kindex W d (Summary)
7569 @findex gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes
7570 @vindex gnus-article-dumbquotes-map
7572 @cindex M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s
7574 Treat M****s*** sm*rtq**t*s according to
7575 @code{gnus-article-dumbquotes-map}
7576 (@code{gnus-article-treat-dumbquotes}). Note that this function guesses
7577 whether a character is a sm*rtq**t* or not, so it should only be used
7580 Sm*rtq**t*s are M****s***'s unilateral extension to the character map in
7581 an attempt to provide more quoting characters. If you see something
7582 like @code{\222} or @code{\264} where you're expecting some kind of
7583 apostrophe or quotation mark, then try this wash.
7586 @kindex W w (Summary)
7587 @findex gnus-article-fill-cited-article
7588 Do word wrap (@code{gnus-article-fill-cited-article}).
7590 You can give the command a numerical prefix to specify the width to use
7594 @kindex W Q (Summary)
7595 @findex gnus-article-fill-long-lines
7596 Fill long lines (@code{gnus-article-fill-long-lines}).
7599 @kindex W C (Summary)
7600 @findex gnus-article-capitalize-sentences
7601 Capitalize the first word in each sentence
7602 (@code{gnus-article-capitalize-sentences}).
7605 @kindex W c (Summary)
7606 @findex gnus-article-remove-cr
7607 Translate CRLF pairs (i. e., @samp{^M}s on the end of the lines) into LF
7608 (this takes care of DOS line endings), and then translate any remaining
7609 CRs into LF (this takes care of Mac line endings)
7610 (@code{gnus-article-remove-cr}).
7613 @kindex W q (Summary)
7614 @findex gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable
7615 Treat quoted-printable (@code{gnus-article-de-quoted-unreadable}).
7616 Quoted-Printable is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending
7617 non-ASCII (i. e., 8-bit) articles. It typically makes strings like
7618 @samp{déjà vu} look like @samp{d=E9j=E0 vu}, which doesn't look very
7619 readable to me. Note that the this is usually done automatically by
7620 Gnus if the message in question has a @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding}
7621 header that says that this encoding has been done.
7622 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7625 @kindex W 6 (Summary)
7626 @findex gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable
7627 Treat base64 (@code{gnus-article-de-base64-unreadable}).
7628 Base64 is one common @sc{mime} encoding employed when sending non-ASCII
7629 (i. e., 8-bit) articles. Note that the this is usually done
7630 automatically by Gnus if the message in question has a
7631 @code{Content-Transfer-Encoding} header that says that this encoding has
7633 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7636 @kindex W Z (Summary)
7637 @findex gnus-article-decode-HZ
7638 Treat HZ or HZP (@code{gnus-article-decode-HZ}). HZ (or HZP) is one
7639 common encoding employed when sending Chinese articles. It typically
7640 makes strings look like @samp{~@{<:Ky2;S@{#,NpJ)l6HK!#~@}}.
7643 @kindex W h (Summary)
7644 @findex gnus-article-wash-html
7645 Treat HTML (@code{gnus-article-wash-html}).
7646 Note that the this is usually done automatically by Gnus if the message
7647 in question has a @code{Content-Type} header that says that this type
7649 If a prefix is given, a charset will be asked for.
7652 @kindex W f (Summary)
7654 @findex gnus-article-display-x-face
7655 @findex gnus-article-x-face-command
7656 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-command
7657 @vindex gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly
7664 Look for and display any X-Face headers
7665 (@code{gnus-article-display-x-face}). The command executed by this
7666 function is given by the @code{gnus-article-x-face-command} variable.
7667 If this variable is a string, this string will be executed in a
7668 sub-shell. If it is a function, this function will be called with the
7669 face as the argument. If the @code{gnus-article-x-face-too-ugly} (which
7670 is a regexp) matches the @code{From} header, the face will not be shown.
7671 The default action under Emacs is to fork off the @code{display}
7672 program@footnote{@code{display} is from the ImageMagick package. For the
7673 @code{uncompface} and @code{icontopbm} programs look for a package
7674 like `compface' or `faces-xface' on a GNU/Linux system.}
7675 to view the face. Under XEmacs or Emacs 21+ with suitable image
7676 support, the default action is to display the face before the
7677 @code{From} header. (It's nicer if XEmacs has been compiled with X-Face
7678 support---that will make display somewhat faster. If there's no native
7679 X-Face support, Gnus will try to convert the @code{X-Face} header using
7680 external programs from the @code{pbmplus} package and
7681 friends.@footnote{On a GNU/Linux system look for packages with names
7682 like @code{netpbm} or @code{libgr-progs}.}) If you
7683 want to have this function in the display hook, it should probably come
7687 @kindex W b (Summary)
7688 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons
7689 Add clickable buttons to the article (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons}).
7690 @xref{Article Buttons}.
7693 @kindex W B (Summary)
7694 @findex gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head
7695 Add clickable buttons to the article headers
7696 (@code{gnus-article-add-buttons-to-head}).
7699 @kindex W p (Summary)
7700 @findex gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig
7701 Verify a signed control message (@code{gnus-article-verify-x-pgp-sig}).
7702 Control messages such as @code{newgroup} and @code{checkgroups} are
7703 usually signed by the hierarchy maintainer. You need to add the PGP
7704 public key of the maintainer to your keyring to verify the
7705 message.@footnote{PGP keys for many hierarchies are available at
7706 @uref{ftp://ftp.isc.org/pub/pgpcontrol/README.html}}
7709 @kindex W W H (Summary)
7710 @findex gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body
7711 Strip headers like the @code{X-No-Archive} header from the beginning of
7712 article bodies (@code{gnus-article-strip-headers-from-body}).
7715 @kindex W E l (Summary)
7716 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines
7717 Remove all blank lines from the beginning of the article
7718 (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-blank-lines}).
7721 @kindex W E m (Summary)
7722 @findex gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines
7723 Replace all blank lines with empty lines and then all multiple empty
7724 lines with a single empty line.
7725 (@code{gnus-article-strip-multiple-blank-lines}).
7728 @kindex W E t (Summary)
7729 @findex gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines
7730 Remove all blank lines at the end of the article
7731 (@code{gnus-article-remove-trailing-blank-lines}).
7734 @kindex W E a (Summary)
7735 @findex gnus-article-strip-blank-lines
7736 Do all the three commands above
7737 (@code{gnus-article-strip-blank-lines}).
7740 @kindex W E A (Summary)
7741 @findex gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines
7742 Remove all blank lines
7743 (@code{gnus-article-strip-all-blank-lines}).
7746 @kindex W E s (Summary)
7747 @findex gnus-article-strip-leading-space
7748 Remove all white space from the beginning of all lines of the article
7749 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-leading-space}).
7752 @kindex W E e (Summary)
7753 @findex gnus-article-strip-trailing-space
7754 Remove all white space from the end of all lines of the article
7755 body (@code{gnus-article-strip-trailing-space}).
7759 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to wash articles automatically.
7762 @node Article Buttons
7763 @subsection Article Buttons
7766 People often include references to other stuff in articles, and it would
7767 be nice if Gnus could just fetch whatever it is that people talk about
7768 with the minimum of fuzz when you hit @kbd{RET} or use the middle mouse
7769 button on these references.
7771 Gnus adds @dfn{buttons} to certain standard references by default:
7772 Well-formed URLs, mail addresses and Message-IDs. This is controlled by
7773 two variables, one that handles article bodies and one that handles
7778 @item gnus-button-alist
7779 @vindex gnus-button-alist
7780 This is an alist where each entry has this form:
7783 (REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7789 All text that match this regular expression will be considered an
7790 external reference. Here's a typical regexp that matches embedded URLs:
7791 @samp{<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>}.
7794 Gnus has to know which parts of the matches is to be highlighted. This
7795 is a number that says what sub-expression of the regexp is to be
7796 highlighted. If you want it all highlighted, you use 0 here.
7799 This form will be @code{eval}ed, and if the result is non-@code{nil},
7800 this is considered a match. This is useful if you want extra sifting to
7801 avoid false matches.
7804 This function will be called when you click on this button.
7807 As with @var{button-par}, this is a sub-expression number, but this one
7808 says which part of the match is to be sent as data to @var{function}.
7812 So the full entry for buttonizing URLs is then
7815 ("<URL:\\([^\n\r>]*\\)>" 0 t gnus-button-url 1)
7818 @item gnus-header-button-alist
7819 @vindex gnus-header-button-alist
7820 This is just like the other alist, except that it is applied to the
7821 article head only, and that each entry has an additional element that is
7822 used to say what headers to apply the buttonize coding to:
7825 (HEADER REGEXP BUTTON-PAR USE-P FUNCTION DATA-PAR)
7828 @var{header} is a regular expression.
7830 @item gnus-button-url-regexp
7831 @vindex gnus-button-url-regexp
7832 A regular expression that matches embedded URLs. It is used in the
7833 default values of the variables above.
7835 @item gnus-article-button-face
7836 @vindex gnus-article-button-face
7837 Face used on buttons.
7839 @item gnus-article-mouse-face
7840 @vindex gnus-article-mouse-face
7841 Face used when the mouse cursor is over a button.
7845 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to buttonize articles automatically.
7849 @subsection Article Date
7851 The date is most likely generated in some obscure timezone you've never
7852 heard of, so it's quite nice to be able to find out what the time was
7853 when the article was sent.
7858 @kindex W T u (Summary)
7859 @findex gnus-article-date-ut
7860 Display the date in UT (aka. GMT, aka ZULU)
7861 (@code{gnus-article-date-ut}).
7864 @kindex W T i (Summary)
7865 @findex gnus-article-date-iso8601
7867 Display the date in international format, aka. ISO 8601
7868 (@code{gnus-article-date-iso8601}).
7871 @kindex W T l (Summary)
7872 @findex gnus-article-date-local
7873 Display the date in the local timezone (@code{gnus-article-date-local}).
7876 @kindex W T p (Summary)
7877 @findex gnus-article-date-english
7878 Display the date in a format that's easily pronounceable in English
7879 (@code{gnus-article-date-english}).
7882 @kindex W T s (Summary)
7883 @vindex gnus-article-time-format
7884 @findex gnus-article-date-user
7885 @findex format-time-string
7886 Display the date using a user-defined format
7887 (@code{gnus-article-date-user}). The format is specified by the
7888 @code{gnus-article-time-format} variable, and is a string that's passed
7889 to @code{format-time-string}. See the documentation of that variable
7890 for a list of possible format specs.
7893 @kindex W T e (Summary)
7894 @findex gnus-article-date-lapsed
7895 @findex gnus-start-date-timer
7896 @findex gnus-stop-date-timer
7897 Say how much time has elapsed between the article was posted and now
7898 (@code{gnus-article-date-lapsed}). It looks something like:
7901 X-Sent: 6 weeks, 4 days, 1 hour, 3 minutes, 8 seconds ago
7904 The value of @code{gnus-article-date-lapsed-new-header} determines
7905 whether this header will just be added below the old Date one, or will
7908 An advantage of using Gnus to read mail is that it converts simple bugs
7909 into wonderful absurdities.
7911 If you want to have this line updated continually, you can put
7914 (gnus-start-date-timer)
7917 in your @file{.gnus.el} file, or you can run it off of some hook. If
7918 you want to stop the timer, you can use the @code{gnus-stop-date-timer}
7922 @kindex W T o (Summary)
7923 @findex gnus-article-date-original
7924 Display the original date (@code{gnus-article-date-original}). This can
7925 be useful if you normally use some other conversion function and are
7926 worried that it might be doing something totally wrong. Say, claiming
7927 that the article was posted in 1854. Although something like that is
7928 @emph{totally} impossible. Don't you trust me? *titter*
7932 @xref{Customizing Articles}, for how to display the date in your
7933 preferred format automatically.
7936 @node Article Signature
7937 @subsection Article Signature
7939 @cindex article signature
7941 @vindex gnus-signature-separator
7942 Each article is divided into two parts---the head and the body. The
7943 body can be divided into a signature part and a text part. The variable
7944 that says what is to be considered a signature is
7945 @code{gnus-signature-separator}. This is normally the standard
7946 @samp{^-- $} as mandated by son-of-RFC 1036. However, many people use
7947 non-standard signature separators, so this variable can also be a list
7948 of regular expressions to be tested, one by one. (Searches are done
7949 from the end of the body towards the beginning.) One likely value is:
7952 (setq gnus-signature-separator
7953 '("^-- $" ; The standard
7954 "^-- *$" ; A common mangling
7955 "^-------*$" ; Many people just use a looong
7956 ; line of dashes. Shame!
7957 "^ *--------*$" ; Double-shame!
7958 "^________*$" ; Underscores are also popular
7959 "^========*$")) ; Pervert!
7962 The more permissive you are, the more likely it is that you'll get false
7965 @vindex gnus-signature-limit
7966 @code{gnus-signature-limit} provides a limit to what is considered a
7967 signature when displaying articles.
7971 If it is an integer, no signature may be longer (in characters) than
7974 If it is a floating point number, no signature may be longer (in lines)
7977 If it is a function, the function will be called without any parameters,
7978 and if it returns @code{nil}, there is no signature in the buffer.
7980 If it is a string, it will be used as a regexp. If it matches, the text
7981 in question is not a signature.
7984 This variable can also be a list where the elements may be of the types
7985 listed above. Here's an example:
7988 (setq gnus-signature-limit
7989 '(200.0 "^---*Forwarded article"))
7992 This means that if there are more than 200 lines after the signature
7993 separator, or the text after the signature separator is matched by
7994 the regular expression @samp{^---*Forwarded article}, then it isn't a
7995 signature after all.
7998 @node Article Miscellania
7999 @subsection Article Miscellania
8003 @kindex A t (Summary)
8004 @findex gnus-article-babel
8005 Translate the article from one language to another
8006 (@code{gnus-article-babel}).
8012 @section @sc{mime} Commands
8013 @cindex MIME decoding
8015 @cindex viewing attachments
8017 The following commands all understand the numerical prefix. For
8018 instance, @kbd{3 b} means ``view the third @sc{mime} part''.
8024 @kindex K v (Summary)
8025 View the @sc{mime} part.
8028 @kindex K o (Summary)
8029 Save the @sc{mime} part.
8032 @kindex K c (Summary)
8033 Copy the @sc{mime} part.
8036 @kindex K e (Summary)
8037 View the @sc{mime} part externally.
8040 @kindex K i (Summary)
8041 View the @sc{mime} part internally.
8044 @kindex K | (Summary)
8045 Pipe the @sc{mime} part to an external command.
8048 The rest of these @sc{mime} commands do not use the numerical prefix in
8053 @kindex K b (Summary)
8054 Make all the @sc{mime} parts have buttons in front of them. This is
8055 mostly useful if you wish to save (or perform other actions) on inlined
8059 @kindex K m (Summary)
8060 @findex gnus-summary-repair-multipart
8061 Some multipart messages are transmitted with missing or faulty headers.
8062 This command will attempt to ``repair'' these messages so that they can
8063 be viewed in a more pleasant manner
8064 (@code{gnus-summary-repair-multipart}).
8067 @kindex X m (Summary)
8068 @findex gnus-summary-save-parts
8069 Save all parts matching a @sc{mime} type to a directory
8070 (@code{gnus-summary-save-parts}). Understands the process/prefix
8071 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8074 @kindex M-t (Summary)
8075 @findex gnus-summary-display-buttonized
8076 Toggle the buttonized display of the article buffer
8077 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-display-buttonized}).
8080 @kindex W M w (Summary)
8081 Decode RFC 2047-encoded words in the article headers
8082 (@code{gnus-article-decode-mime-words}).
8085 @kindex W M c (Summary)
8086 Decode encoded article bodies as well as charsets
8087 (@code{gnus-article-decode-charset}).
8089 This command looks in the @code{Content-Type} header to determine the
8090 charset. If there is no such header in the article, you can give it a
8091 prefix, which will prompt for the charset to decode as. In regional
8092 groups where people post using some common encoding (but do not include
8093 MIME headers), you can set the @code{charset} group/topic parameter to
8094 the required charset (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
8097 @kindex W M v (Summary)
8098 View all the @sc{mime} parts in the current article
8099 (@code{gnus-mime-view-all-parts}).
8106 @item gnus-ignored-mime-types
8107 @vindex gnus-ignored-mime-types
8108 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8109 this list will be completely ignored by Gnus. The default value is
8112 To have all Vcards be ignored, you'd say something like this:
8115 (setq gnus-ignored-mime-types
8119 @item gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8120 @vindex gnus-unbuttonized-mime-types
8121 This is a list of regexps. @sc{mime} types that match a regexp from
8122 this list won't have @sc{mime} buttons inserted unless they aren't
8123 displayed. The default value is @code{(".*/.*")}.
8125 @item gnus-article-mime-part-function
8126 @vindex gnus-article-mime-part-function
8127 For each @sc{mime} part, this function will be called with the @sc{mime}
8128 handle as the parameter. The function is meant to be used to allow
8129 users to gather information from the article (e. g., add Vcard info to
8130 the bbdb database) or to do actions based on parts (e. g., automatically
8131 save all jpegs into some directory).
8133 Here's an example function the does the latter:
8136 (defun my-save-all-jpeg-parts (handle)
8137 (when (equal (car (mm-handle-type handle)) "image/jpeg")
8139 (insert (mm-get-part handle))
8140 (write-region (point-min) (point-max)
8141 (read-file-name "Save jpeg to: ")))))
8142 (setq gnus-article-mime-part-function
8143 'my-save-all-jpeg-parts)
8146 @vindex gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8147 @item gnus-mime-multipart-functions
8148 Alist of @sc{mime} multipart types and functions to handle them.
8150 @vindex mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8151 @item mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8152 List of functions used for rewriting file names of @sc{mime} parts.
8153 Each function takes a file name as input and returns a file name.
8155 Ready-made functions include@*
8156 @code{mm-file-name-delete-whitespace},
8157 @code{mm-file-name-trim-whitespace},
8158 @code{mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace}, and
8159 @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace}. The later uses the value of
8160 the variable @code{mm-file-name-replace-whitespace} to replace each
8161 whitespace character in a file name with that string; default value
8162 is @code{"_"} (a single underscore).
8163 @findex mm-file-name-delete-whitespace
8164 @findex mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8165 @findex mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8166 @findex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8167 @vindex mm-file-name-replace-whitespace
8169 The standard functions @code{capitalize}, @code{downcase},
8170 @code{upcase}, and @code{upcase-initials} may be useful, too.
8172 Everybody knows that whitespace characters in file names are evil,
8173 except those who don't know. If you receive lots of attachments from
8174 such unenlightened users, you can make live easier by adding
8177 (setq mm-file-name-rewrite-functions
8178 '(mm-file-name-trim-whitespace
8179 mm-file-name-collapse-whitespace
8180 mm-file-name-replace-whitespace))
8184 to your @file{.gnus} file.
8193 People use different charsets, and we have @sc{mime} to let us know what
8194 charsets they use. Or rather, we wish we had. Many people use
8195 newsreaders and mailers that do not understand or use @sc{mime}, and
8196 just send out messages without saying what character sets they use. To
8197 help a bit with this, some local news hierarchies have policies that say
8198 what character set is the default. For instance, the @samp{fj}
8199 hierarchy uses @code{iso-2022-jp-2}.
8201 @vindex gnus-group-charset-alist
8202 This knowledge is encoded in the @code{gnus-group-charset-alist}
8203 variable, which is an alist of regexps (use the first item to match full
8204 group names) and default charsets to be used when reading these groups.
8206 In addition, some people do use soi-disant @sc{mime}-aware agents that
8207 aren't. These blithely mark messages as being in @code{iso-8859-1} even
8208 if they really are in @code{koi-8}. To help here, the
8209 @code{gnus-newsgroup-ignored-charsets} variable can be used. The
8210 charsets that are listed here will be ignored. The variable can be set
8211 on a group-by-group basis using the group parameters (@pxref{Group
8212 Parameters}). The default value is @code{(unknown-8bit)}, which is
8213 something some agents insist on having in there.
8215 @vindex gnus-group-posting-charset-alist
8216 When posting, @code{gnus-group-posting-charset-alist} is used to
8217 determine which charsets should not be encoded using the @sc{mime}
8218 encodings. For instance, some hierarchies discourage using
8219 quoted-printable header encoding.
8221 This variable is an alist of regexps and permitted unencoded charsets
8222 for posting. Each element of the alist has the form @code{(}@var{test
8223 header body-list}@code{)}, where:
8227 is either a regular expression matching the newsgroup header or a
8230 is the charset which may be left unencoded in the header (@code{nil}
8231 means encode all charsets),
8233 is a list of charsets which may be encoded using 8bit content-transfer
8234 encoding in the body, or one of the special values @code{nil} (always
8235 encode using quoted-printable) or @code{t} (always use 8bit).
8242 @cindex coding system aliases
8243 @cindex preferred charset
8245 Other charset tricks that may be useful, although not Gnus-specific:
8247 If there are several @sc{mime} charsets that encode the same Emacs
8248 charset, you can choose what charset to use by saying the following:
8251 (put-charset-property 'cyrillic-iso8859-5
8252 'preferred-coding-system 'koi8-r)
8255 This means that Russian will be encoded using @code{koi8-r} instead of
8256 the default @code{iso-8859-5} @sc{mime} charset.
8258 If you want to read messages in @code{koi8-u}, you can cheat and say
8261 (define-coding-system-alias 'koi8-u 'koi8-r)
8264 This will almost do the right thing.
8266 And finally, to read charsets like @code{windows-1251}, you can say
8270 (codepage-setup 1251)
8271 (define-coding-system-alias 'windows-1251 'cp1251)
8275 @node Article Commands
8276 @section Article Commands
8283 @kindex A P (Summary)
8284 @vindex gnus-ps-print-hook
8285 @findex gnus-summary-print-article
8286 Generate and print a PostScript image of the article buffer
8287 (@code{gnus-summary-print-article}). @code{gnus-ps-print-hook} will be
8288 run just before printing the buffer.
8293 @node Summary Sorting
8294 @section Summary Sorting
8295 @cindex summary sorting
8297 You can have the summary buffer sorted in various ways, even though I
8298 can't really see why you'd want that.
8303 @kindex C-c C-s C-n (Summary)
8304 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-number
8305 Sort by article number (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-number}).
8308 @kindex C-c C-s C-a (Summary)
8309 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-author
8310 Sort by author (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-author}).
8313 @kindex C-c C-s C-s (Summary)
8314 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-subject
8315 Sort by subject (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-subject}).
8318 @kindex C-c C-s C-d (Summary)
8319 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-date
8320 Sort by date (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-date}).
8323 @kindex C-c C-s C-l (Summary)
8324 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-lines
8325 Sort by lines (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-lines}).
8328 @kindex C-c C-s C-c (Summary)
8329 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-chars
8330 Sort by article length (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-chars}).
8333 @kindex C-c C-s C-i (Summary)
8334 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-score
8335 Sort by score (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-score}).
8338 @kindex C-c C-s C-o (Summary)
8339 @findex gnus-summary-sort-by-original
8340 Sort using the default sorting method
8341 (@code{gnus-summary-sort-by-original}).
8344 These functions will work both when you use threading and when you don't
8345 use threading. In the latter case, all summary lines will be sorted,
8346 line by line. In the former case, sorting will be done on a
8347 root-by-root basis, which might not be what you were looking for. To
8348 toggle whether to use threading, type @kbd{T T} (@pxref{Thread
8352 @node Finding the Parent
8353 @section Finding the Parent
8354 @cindex parent articles
8355 @cindex referring articles
8360 @findex gnus-summary-refer-parent-article
8361 If you'd like to read the parent of the current article, and it is not
8362 displayed in the summary buffer, you might still be able to. That is,
8363 if the current group is fetched by @sc{nntp}, the parent hasn't expired
8364 and the @code{References} in the current article are not mangled, you
8365 can just press @kbd{^} or @kbd{A r}
8366 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-parent-article}). If everything goes well,
8367 you'll get the parent. If the parent is already displayed in the
8368 summary buffer, point will just move to this article.
8370 If given a positive numerical prefix, fetch that many articles back into
8371 the ancestry. If given a negative numerical prefix, fetch just that
8372 ancestor. So if you say @kbd{3 ^}, Gnus will fetch the parent, the
8373 grandparent and the grandgrandparent of the current article. If you say
8374 @kbd{-3 ^}, Gnus will only fetch the grandgrandparent of the current
8378 @findex gnus-summary-refer-references
8379 @kindex A R (Summary)
8380 Fetch all articles mentioned in the @code{References} header of the
8381 article (@code{gnus-summary-refer-references}).
8384 @findex gnus-summary-refer-thread
8385 @kindex A T (Summary)
8386 Display the full thread where the current article appears
8387 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-thread}). This command has to fetch all the
8388 headers in the current group to work, so it usually takes a while. If
8389 you do it often, you may consider setting @code{gnus-fetch-old-headers}
8390 to @code{invisible} (@pxref{Filling In Threads}). This won't have any
8391 visible effects normally, but it'll make this command work a whole lot
8392 faster. Of course, it'll make group entry somewhat slow.
8394 @vindex gnus-refer-thread-limit
8395 The @code{gnus-refer-thread-limit} variable says how many old (i. e.,
8396 articles before the first displayed in the current group) headers to
8397 fetch when doing this command. The default is 200. If @code{t}, all
8398 the available headers will be fetched. This variable can be overridden
8399 by giving the @kbd{A T} command a numerical prefix.
8402 @findex gnus-summary-refer-article
8403 @kindex M-^ (Summary)
8405 @cindex fetching by Message-ID
8406 You can also ask the @sc{nntp} server for an arbitrary article, no
8407 matter what group it belongs to. @kbd{M-^}
8408 (@code{gnus-summary-refer-article}) will ask you for a
8409 @code{Message-ID}, which is one of those long, hard-to-read thingies
8410 that look something like @samp{<38o6up$6f2@@hymir.ifi.uio.no>}. You
8411 have to get it all exactly right. No fuzzy searches, I'm afraid.
8414 The current select method will be used when fetching by
8415 @code{Message-ID} from non-news select method, but you can override this
8416 by giving this command a prefix.
8418 @vindex gnus-refer-article-method
8419 If the group you are reading is located on a backend that does not
8420 support fetching by @code{Message-ID} very well (like @code{nnspool}),
8421 you can set @code{gnus-refer-article-method} to an @sc{nntp} method. It
8422 would, perhaps, be best if the @sc{nntp} server you consult is the one
8423 updating the spool you are reading from, but that's not really
8426 It can also be a list of select methods, as well as the special symbol
8427 @code{current}, which means to use the current select method. If it
8428 is a list, Gnus will try all the methods in the list until it finds a
8431 Here's an example setting that will first try the current method, and
8432 then ask Deja if that fails:
8435 (setq gnus-refer-article-method
8437 (nnweb "refer" (nnweb-type dejanews))))
8440 Most of the mail backends support fetching by @code{Message-ID}, but do
8441 not do a particularly excellent job at it. That is, @code{nnmbox} and
8442 @code{nnbabyl} are able to locate articles from any groups, while
8443 @code{nnml} and @code{nnfolder} are only able to locate articles that
8444 have been posted to the current group. (Anything else would be too time
8445 consuming.) @code{nnmh} does not support this at all.
8448 @node Alternative Approaches
8449 @section Alternative Approaches
8451 Different people like to read news using different methods. This being
8452 Gnus, we offer a small selection of minor modes for the summary buffers.
8455 * Pick and Read:: First mark articles and then read them.
8456 * Binary Groups:: Auto-decode all articles.
8461 @subsection Pick and Read
8462 @cindex pick and read
8464 Some newsreaders (like @code{nn} and, uhm, @code{Netnews} on VM/CMS) use
8465 a two-phased reading interface. The user first marks in a summary
8466 buffer the articles she wants to read. Then she starts reading the
8467 articles with just an article buffer displayed.
8469 @findex gnus-pick-mode
8470 @kindex M-x gnus-pick-mode
8471 Gnus provides a summary buffer minor mode that allows
8472 this---@code{gnus-pick-mode}. This basically means that a few process
8473 mark commands become one-keystroke commands to allow easy marking, and
8474 it provides one additional command for switching to the summary buffer.
8476 Here are the available keystrokes when using pick mode:
8481 @findex gnus-pick-article-or-thread
8482 Pick the article or thread on the current line
8483 (@code{gnus-pick-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8484 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key selects the
8485 entire thread when used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise,
8486 it selects just the article. If given a numerical prefix, go to that
8487 thread or article and pick it. (The line number is normally displayed
8488 at the beginning of the summary pick lines.)
8491 @kindex SPACE (Pick)
8492 @findex gnus-pick-next-page
8493 Scroll the summary buffer up one page (@code{gnus-pick-next-page}). If
8494 at the end of the buffer, start reading the picked articles.
8498 @findex gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread.
8499 Unpick the thread or article
8500 (@code{gnus-pick-unmark-article-or-thread}). If the variable
8501 @code{gnus-thread-hide-subtree} is true, then this key unpicks the
8502 thread if used at the first article of the thread. Otherwise it unpicks
8503 just the article. You can give this key a numerical prefix to unpick
8504 the thread or article at that line.
8508 @findex gnus-pick-start-reading
8509 @vindex gnus-pick-display-summary
8510 Start reading the picked articles (@code{gnus-pick-start-reading}). If
8511 given a prefix, mark all unpicked articles as read first. If
8512 @code{gnus-pick-display-summary} is non-@code{nil}, the summary buffer
8513 will still be visible when you are reading.
8517 All the normal summary mode commands are still available in the
8518 pick-mode, with the exception of @kbd{u}. However @kbd{!} is available
8519 which is mapped to the same function
8520 @code{gnus-summary-tick-article-forward}.
8522 If this sounds like a good idea to you, you could say:
8525 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
8528 @vindex gnus-pick-mode-hook
8529 @code{gnus-pick-mode-hook} is run in pick minor mode buffers.
8531 @vindex gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read
8532 If @code{gnus-mark-unpicked-articles-as-read} is non-@code{nil}, mark
8533 all unpicked articles as read. The default is @code{nil}.
8535 @vindex gnus-summary-pick-line-format
8536 The summary line format in pick mode is slightly different from the
8537 standard format. At the beginning of each line the line number is
8538 displayed. The pick mode line format is controlled by the
8539 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format} variable (@pxref{Formatting
8540 Variables}). It accepts the same format specs that
8541 @code{gnus-summary-line-format} does (@pxref{Summary Buffer Lines}).
8545 @subsection Binary Groups
8546 @cindex binary groups
8548 @findex gnus-binary-mode
8549 @kindex M-x gnus-binary-mode
8550 If you spend much time in binary groups, you may grow tired of hitting
8551 @kbd{X u}, @kbd{n}, @kbd{RET} all the time. @kbd{M-x gnus-binary-mode}
8552 is a minor mode for summary buffers that makes all ordinary Gnus article
8553 selection functions uudecode series of articles and display the result
8554 instead of just displaying the articles the normal way.
8557 @findex gnus-binary-show-article
8558 The only way, in fact, to see the actual articles is the @kbd{g}
8559 command, when you have turned on this mode
8560 (@code{gnus-binary-show-article}).
8562 @vindex gnus-binary-mode-hook
8563 @code{gnus-binary-mode-hook} is called in binary minor mode buffers.
8567 @section Tree Display
8570 @vindex gnus-use-trees
8571 If you don't like the normal Gnus summary display, you might try setting
8572 @code{gnus-use-trees} to @code{t}. This will create (by default) an
8573 additional @dfn{tree buffer}. You can execute all summary mode commands
8576 There are a few variables to customize the tree display, of course:
8579 @item gnus-tree-mode-hook
8580 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-hook
8581 A hook called in all tree mode buffers.
8583 @item gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8584 @vindex gnus-tree-mode-line-format
8585 A format string for the mode bar in the tree mode buffers (@pxref{Mode
8586 Line Formatting}). The default is @samp{Gnus: %%b %S %Z}. For a list
8587 of valid specs, @pxref{Summary Buffer Mode Line}.
8589 @item gnus-selected-tree-face
8590 @vindex gnus-selected-tree-face
8591 Face used for highlighting the selected article in the tree buffer. The
8592 default is @code{modeline}.
8594 @item gnus-tree-line-format
8595 @vindex gnus-tree-line-format
8596 A format string for the tree nodes. The name is a bit of a misnomer,
8597 though---it doesn't define a line, but just the node. The default value
8598 is @samp{%(%[%3,3n%]%)}, which displays the first three characters of
8599 the name of the poster. It is vital that all nodes are of the same
8600 length, so you @emph{must} use @samp{%4,4n}-like specifiers.
8606 The name of the poster.
8608 The @code{From} header.
8610 The number of the article.
8612 The opening bracket.
8614 The closing bracket.
8619 @xref{Formatting Variables}.
8621 Variables related to the display are:
8624 @item gnus-tree-brackets
8625 @vindex gnus-tree-brackets
8626 This is used for differentiating between ``real'' articles and
8627 ``sparse'' articles. The format is @code{((@var{real-open} . @var{real-close})
8628 (@var{sparse-open} . @var{sparse-close}) (@var{dummy-open} . @var{dummy-close}))}, and the
8629 default is @code{((?[ . ?]) (?( . ?)) (?@{ . ?@}) (?< . ?>))}.
8631 @item gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8632 @vindex gnus-tree-parent-child-edges
8633 This is a list that contains the characters used for connecting parent
8634 nodes to their children. The default is @code{(?- ?\\ ?|)}.
8638 @item gnus-tree-minimize-window
8639 @vindex gnus-tree-minimize-window
8640 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will try to keep the tree
8641 buffer as small as possible to allow more room for the other Gnus
8642 windows. If this variable is a number, the tree buffer will never be
8643 higher than that number. The default is @code{t}. Note that if you
8644 have several windows displayed side-by-side in a frame and the tree
8645 buffer is one of these, minimizing the tree window will also resize all
8646 other windows displayed next to it.
8648 @item gnus-generate-tree-function
8649 @vindex gnus-generate-tree-function
8650 @findex gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8651 @findex gnus-generate-vertical-tree
8652 The function that actually generates the thread tree. Two predefined
8653 functions are available: @code{gnus-generate-horizontal-tree} and
8654 @code{gnus-generate-vertical-tree} (which is the default).
8658 Here's an example from a horizontal tree buffer:
8661 @{***@}-(***)-[odd]-[Gun]
8671 Here's the same thread displayed in a vertical tree buffer:
8675 |--------------------------\-----\-----\
8676 (***) [Bjo] [Gun] [Gun]
8678 [odd] [Jan] [odd] (***) [Jor]
8680 [Gun] [Eri] [Eri] [odd]
8685 If you're using horizontal trees, it might be nice to display the trees
8686 side-by-side with the summary buffer. You could add something like the
8687 following to your @file{.gnus.el} file:
8690 (setq gnus-use-trees t
8691 gnus-generate-tree-function 'gnus-generate-horizontal-tree
8692 gnus-tree-minimize-window nil)
8693 (gnus-add-configuration
8697 (summary 0.75 point)
8702 @xref{Window Layout}.
8705 @node Mail Group Commands
8706 @section Mail Group Commands
8707 @cindex mail group commands
8709 Some commands only make sense in mail groups. If these commands are
8710 invalid in the current group, they will raise a hell and let you know.
8712 All these commands (except the expiry and edit commands) use the
8713 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
8718 @kindex B e (Summary)
8719 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles
8720 Run all expirable articles in the current group through the expiry
8721 process (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles}). That is, delete all
8722 expirable articles in the group that have been around for a while.
8723 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
8726 @kindex B M-C-e (Summary)
8727 @findex gnus-summary-expire-articles-now
8728 Delete all the expirable articles in the group
8729 (@code{gnus-summary-expire-articles-now}). This means that @strong{all}
8730 articles eligible for expiry in the current group will
8731 disappear forever into that big @file{/dev/null} in the sky.
8734 @kindex B DEL (Summary)
8735 @findex gnus-summary-delete-article
8736 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-delete}
8737 Delete the mail article. This is ``delete'' as in ``delete it from your
8738 disk forever and ever, never to return again.'' Use with caution.
8739 (@code{gnus-summary-delete-article}).
8742 @kindex B m (Summary)
8744 @findex gnus-summary-move-article
8745 @vindex gnus-preserve-marks
8746 Move the article from one mail group to another
8747 (@code{gnus-summary-move-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8748 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8751 @kindex B c (Summary)
8753 @findex gnus-summary-copy-article
8754 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-copy}
8755 Copy the article from one group (mail group or not) to a mail group
8756 (@code{gnus-summary-copy-article}). Marks will be preserved if
8757 @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil} (which is the default).
8760 @kindex B B (Summary)
8761 @cindex crosspost mail
8762 @findex gnus-summary-crosspost-article
8763 Crosspost the current article to some other group
8764 (@code{gnus-summary-crosspost-article}). This will create a new copy of
8765 the article in the other group, and the Xref headers of the article will
8766 be properly updated.
8769 @kindex B i (Summary)
8770 @findex gnus-summary-import-article
8771 Import an arbitrary file into the current mail newsgroup
8772 (@code{gnus-summary-import-article}). You will be prompted for a file
8773 name, a @code{From} header and a @code{Subject} header.
8776 @kindex B r (Summary)
8777 @findex gnus-summary-respool-article
8778 Respool the mail article (@code{gnus-summary-respool-article}).
8779 @code{gnus-summary-respool-default-method} will be used as the default
8780 select method when respooling. This variable is @code{nil} by default,
8781 which means that the current group select method will be used instead.
8782 Marks will be preserved if @var{gnus-preserve-marks} is non-@code{nil}
8783 (which is the default).
8787 @kindex B w (Summary)
8789 @findex gnus-summary-edit-article
8790 @kindex C-c C-c (Article)
8791 Edit the current article (@code{gnus-summary-edit-article}). To finish
8792 editing and make the changes permanent, type @kbd{C-c C-c}
8793 (@kbd{gnus-summary-edit-article-done}). If you give a prefix to the
8794 @kbd{C-c C-c} command, Gnus won't re-highlight the article.
8797 @kindex B q (Summary)
8798 @findex gnus-summary-respool-query
8799 If you want to re-spool an article, you might be curious as to what group
8800 the article will end up in before you do the re-spooling. This command
8801 will tell you (@code{gnus-summary-respool-query}).
8804 @kindex B t (Summary)
8805 @findex gnus-summary-respool-trace
8806 Similarly, this command will display all fancy splitting patterns used
8807 when repooling, if any (@code{gnus-summary-respool-trace}).
8810 @kindex B p (Summary)
8811 @findex gnus-summary-article-posted-p
8812 Some people have a tendency to send you "courtesy" copies when they
8813 follow up to articles you have posted. These usually have a
8814 @code{Newsgroups} header in them, but not always. This command
8815 (@code{gnus-summary-article-posted-p}) will try to fetch the current
8816 article from your news server (or rather, from
8817 @code{gnus-refer-article-method} or @code{gnus-select-method}) and will
8818 report back whether it found the article or not. Even if it says that
8819 it didn't find the article, it may have been posted anyway---mail
8820 propagation is much faster than news propagation, and the news copy may
8821 just not have arrived yet.
8825 @vindex gnus-move-split-methods
8826 @cindex moving articles
8827 If you move (or copy) articles regularly, you might wish to have Gnus
8828 suggest where to put the articles. @code{gnus-move-split-methods} is a
8829 variable that uses the same syntax as @code{gnus-split-methods}
8830 (@pxref{Saving Articles}). You may customize that variable to create
8831 suggestions you find reasonable. (Note that
8832 @code{gnus-move-split-methods} uses group names where
8833 @code{gnus-split-methods} uses file names.)
8836 (setq gnus-move-split-methods
8837 '(("^From:.*Lars Magne" "nnml:junk")
8838 ("^Subject:.*gnus" "nnfolder:important")
8839 (".*" "nnml:misc")))
8843 @node Various Summary Stuff
8844 @section Various Summary Stuff
8847 * Summary Group Information:: Information oriented commands.
8848 * Searching for Articles:: Multiple article commands.
8849 * Summary Generation Commands:: (Re)generating the summary buffer.
8850 * Really Various Summary Commands:: Those pesky non-conformant commands.
8854 @vindex gnus-summary-mode-hook
8855 @item gnus-summary-mode-hook
8856 This hook is called when creating a summary mode buffer.
8858 @vindex gnus-summary-generate-hook
8859 @item gnus-summary-generate-hook
8860 This is called as the last thing before doing the threading and the
8861 generation of the summary buffer. It's quite convenient for customizing
8862 the threading variables based on what data the newsgroup has. This hook
8863 is called from the summary buffer after most summary buffer variables
8866 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8867 @item gnus-summary-prepare-hook
8868 It is called after the summary buffer has been generated. You might use
8869 it to, for instance, highlight lines or modify the look of the buffer in
8870 some other ungodly manner. I don't care.
8872 @vindex gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8873 @item gnus-summary-prepared-hook
8874 A hook called as the very last thing after the summary buffer has been
8877 @vindex gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8878 @item gnus-summary-ignore-duplicates
8879 When Gnus discovers two articles that have the same @code{Message-ID},
8880 it has to do something drastic. No articles are allowed to have the
8881 same @code{Message-ID}, but this may happen when reading mail from some
8882 sources. Gnus allows you to customize what happens with this variable.
8883 If it is @code{nil} (which is the default), Gnus will rename the
8884 @code{Message-ID} (for display purposes only) and display the article as
8885 any other article. If this variable is @code{t}, it won't display the
8886 article---it'll be as if it never existed.
8888 @vindex gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8889 @item gnus-alter-articles-to-read-function
8890 This function, which takes two parameters (the group name and the list
8891 of articles to be selected), is called to allow the user to alter the
8892 list of articles to be selected.
8894 For instance, the following function adds the list of cached articles to
8895 the list in one particular group:
8898 (defun my-add-cached-articles (group articles)
8899 (if (string= group "some.group")
8900 (append gnus-newsgroup-cached articles)
8907 @node Summary Group Information
8908 @subsection Summary Group Information
8913 @kindex H f (Summary)
8914 @findex gnus-summary-fetch-faq
8915 @vindex gnus-group-faq-directory
8916 Try to fetch the FAQ (list of frequently asked questions) for the
8917 current group (@code{gnus-summary-fetch-faq}). Gnus will try to get the
8918 FAQ from @code{gnus-group-faq-directory}, which is usually a directory
8919 on a remote machine. This variable can also be a list of directories.
8920 In that case, giving a prefix to this command will allow you to choose
8921 between the various sites. @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will probably
8922 be used for fetching the file.
8925 @kindex H d (Summary)
8926 @findex gnus-summary-describe-group
8927 Give a brief description of the current group
8928 (@code{gnus-summary-describe-group}). If given a prefix, force
8929 rereading the description from the server.
8932 @kindex H h (Summary)
8933 @findex gnus-summary-describe-briefly
8934 Give an extremely brief description of the most important summary
8935 keystrokes (@code{gnus-summary-describe-briefly}).
8938 @kindex H i (Summary)
8939 @findex gnus-info-find-node
8940 Go to the Gnus info node (@code{gnus-info-find-node}).
8944 @node Searching for Articles
8945 @subsection Searching for Articles
8950 @kindex M-s (Summary)
8951 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-forward
8952 Search through all subsequent (raw) articles for a regexp
8953 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-forward}).
8956 @kindex M-r (Summary)
8957 @findex gnus-summary-search-article-backward
8958 Search through all previous (raw) articles for a regexp
8959 (@code{gnus-summary-search-article-backward}).
8963 @findex gnus-summary-execute-command
8964 This command will prompt you for a header, a regular expression to match
8965 on this field, and a command to be executed if the match is made
8966 (@code{gnus-summary-execute-command}). If the header is an empty
8967 string, the match is done on the entire article. If given a prefix,
8968 search backward instead.
8970 For instance, @kbd{& RET some.*string #} will put the process mark on
8971 all articles that have heads or bodies that match @samp{some.*string}.
8974 @kindex M-& (Summary)
8975 @findex gnus-summary-universal-argument
8976 Perform any operation on all articles that have been marked with
8977 the process mark (@code{gnus-summary-universal-argument}).
8980 @node Summary Generation Commands
8981 @subsection Summary Generation Commands
8986 @kindex Y g (Summary)
8987 @findex gnus-summary-prepare
8988 Regenerate the current summary buffer (@code{gnus-summary-prepare}).
8991 @kindex Y c (Summary)
8992 @findex gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles
8993 Pull all cached articles (for the current group) into the summary buffer
8994 (@code{gnus-summary-insert-cached-articles}).
8999 @node Really Various Summary Commands
9000 @subsection Really Various Summary Commands
9006 @kindex C-d (Summary)
9007 @kindex A D (Summary)
9008 @findex gnus-summary-enter-digest-group
9009 If the current article is a collection of other articles (for instance,
9010 a digest), you might use this command to enter a group based on the that
9011 article (@code{gnus-summary-enter-digest-group}). Gnus will try to
9012 guess what article type is currently displayed unless you give a prefix
9013 to this command, which forces a ``digest'' interpretation. Basically,
9014 whenever you see a message that is a collection of other messages of
9015 some format, you @kbd{C-d} and read these messages in a more convenient
9019 @kindex M-C-d (Summary)
9020 @findex gnus-summary-read-document
9021 This command is very similar to the one above, but lets you gather
9022 several documents into one biiig group
9023 (@code{gnus-summary-read-document}). It does this by opening several
9024 @code{nndoc} groups for each document, and then opening an
9025 @code{nnvirtual} group on top of these @code{nndoc} groups. This
9026 command understands the process/prefix convention
9027 (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
9030 @kindex C-t (Summary)
9031 @findex gnus-summary-toggle-truncation
9032 Toggle truncation of summary lines
9033 (@code{gnus-summary-toggle-truncation}). This will probably confuse the
9034 line centering function in the summary buffer, so it's not a good idea
9035 to have truncation switched off while reading articles.
9039 @findex gnus-summary-expand-window
9040 Expand the summary buffer window (@code{gnus-summary-expand-window}).
9041 If given a prefix, force an @code{article} window configuration.
9044 @kindex M-C-e (Summary)
9045 @findex gnus-summary-edit-parameters
9046 Edit the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9047 group (@code{gnus-summary-edit-parameters}).
9050 @kindex M-C-a (Summary)
9051 @findex gnus-summary-customize-parameters
9052 Customize the group parameters (@pxref{Group Parameters}) of the current
9053 group (@code{gnus-summary-customize-parameters}).
9058 @node Exiting the Summary Buffer
9059 @section Exiting the Summary Buffer
9060 @cindex summary exit
9061 @cindex exiting groups
9063 Exiting from the summary buffer will normally update all info on the
9064 group and return you to the group buffer.
9070 @kindex Z Z (Summary)
9072 @findex gnus-summary-exit
9073 @vindex gnus-summary-exit-hook
9074 @vindex gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook
9075 @c @icon{gnus-summary-exit}
9076 Exit the current group and update all information on the group
9077 (@code{gnus-summary-exit}). @code{gnus-summary-prepare-exit-hook} is
9078 called before doing much of the exiting, which calls
9079 @code{gnus-summary-expire-articles} by default.
9080 @code{gnus-summary-exit-hook} is called after finishing the exit
9081 process. @code{gnus-group-no-more-groups-hook} is run when returning to
9082 group mode having no more (unread) groups.
9086 @kindex Z E (Summary)
9088 @findex gnus-summary-exit-no-update
9089 Exit the current group without updating any information on the group
9090 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}).
9094 @kindex Z c (Summary)
9096 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit
9097 @c @icon{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}
9098 Mark all unticked articles in the group as read and then exit
9099 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-exit}).
9102 @kindex Z C (Summary)
9103 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit
9104 Mark all articles, even the ticked ones, as read and then exit
9105 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-all-and-exit}).
9108 @kindex Z n (Summary)
9109 @findex gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group
9110 Mark all articles as read and go to the next group
9111 (@code{gnus-summary-catchup-and-goto-next-group}).
9114 @kindex Z R (Summary)
9115 @findex gnus-summary-reselect-current-group
9116 Exit this group, and then enter it again
9117 (@code{gnus-summary-reselect-current-group}). If given a prefix, select
9118 all articles, both read and unread.
9122 @kindex Z G (Summary)
9123 @kindex M-g (Summary)
9124 @findex gnus-summary-rescan-group
9125 @c @icon{gnus-summary-mail-get}
9126 Exit the group, check for new articles in the group, and select the
9127 group (@code{gnus-summary-rescan-group}). If given a prefix, select all
9128 articles, both read and unread.
9131 @kindex Z N (Summary)
9132 @findex gnus-summary-next-group
9133 Exit the group and go to the next group
9134 (@code{gnus-summary-next-group}).
9137 @kindex Z P (Summary)
9138 @findex gnus-summary-prev-group
9139 Exit the group and go to the previous group
9140 (@code{gnus-summary-prev-group}).
9143 @kindex Z s (Summary)
9144 @findex gnus-summary-save-newsrc
9145 Save the current number of read/marked articles in the dribble buffer
9146 and then save the dribble buffer (@code{gnus-summary-save-newsrc}). If
9147 given a prefix, also save the @file{.newsrc} file(s). Using this
9148 command will make exit without updating (the @kbd{Q} command) worthless.
9151 @vindex gnus-exit-group-hook
9152 @code{gnus-exit-group-hook} is called when you exit the current group
9153 with an ``updating'' exit. For instance @kbd{Q}
9154 (@code{gnus-summary-exit-no-update}) does not call this hook.
9156 @findex gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead
9157 @findex gnus-dead-summary-mode
9158 @vindex gnus-kill-summary-on-exit
9159 If you're in the habit of exiting groups, and then changing your mind
9160 about it, you might set @code{gnus-kill-summary-on-exit} to @code{nil}.
9161 If you do that, Gnus won't kill the summary buffer when you exit it.
9162 (Quelle surprise!) Instead it will change the name of the buffer to
9163 something like @samp{*Dead Summary ... *} and install a minor mode
9164 called @code{gnus-dead-summary-mode}. Now, if you switch back to this
9165 buffer, you'll find that all keys are mapped to a function called
9166 @code{gnus-summary-wake-up-the-dead}. So tapping any keys in a dead
9167 summary buffer will result in a live, normal summary buffer.
9169 There will never be more than one dead summary buffer at any one time.
9171 @vindex gnus-use-cross-reference
9172 The data on the current group will be updated (which articles you have
9173 read, which articles you have replied to, etc.) when you exit the
9174 summary buffer. If the @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} variable is
9175 @code{t} (which is the default), articles that are cross-referenced to
9176 this group and are marked as read, will also be marked as read in the
9177 other subscribed groups they were cross-posted to. If this variable is
9178 neither @code{nil} nor @code{t}, the article will be marked as read in
9179 both subscribed and unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}).
9182 @node Crosspost Handling
9183 @section Crosspost Handling
9187 Marking cross-posted articles as read ensures that you'll never have to
9188 read the same article more than once. Unless, of course, somebody has
9189 posted it to several groups separately. Posting the same article to
9190 several groups (not cross-posting) is called @dfn{spamming}, and you are
9191 by law required to send nasty-grams to anyone who perpetrates such a
9192 heinous crime. You may want to try NoCeM handling to filter out spam
9195 Remember: Cross-posting is kinda ok, but posting the same article
9196 separately to several groups is not. Massive cross-posting (aka.
9197 @dfn{velveeta}) is to be avoided at all costs, and you can even use the
9198 @code{gnus-summary-mail-crosspost-complaint} command to complain about
9199 excessive crossposting (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
9201 @cindex cross-posting
9204 One thing that may cause Gnus to not do the cross-posting thing
9205 correctly is if you use an @sc{nntp} server that supports @sc{xover}
9206 (which is very nice, because it speeds things up considerably) which
9207 does not include the @code{Xref} header in its @sc{nov} lines. This is
9208 Evil, but all too common, alas, alack. Gnus tries to Do The Right Thing
9209 even with @sc{xover} by registering the @code{Xref} lines of all
9210 articles you actually read, but if you kill the articles, or just mark
9211 them as read without reading them, Gnus will not get a chance to snoop
9212 the @code{Xref} lines out of these articles, and will be unable to use
9213 the cross reference mechanism.
9215 @cindex LIST overview.fmt
9216 @cindex overview.fmt
9217 To check whether your @sc{nntp} server includes the @code{Xref} header
9218 in its overview files, try @samp{telnet your.nntp.server nntp},
9219 @samp{MODE READER} on @code{inn} servers, and then say @samp{LIST
9220 overview.fmt}. This may not work, but if it does, and the last line you
9221 get does not read @samp{Xref:full}, then you should shout and whine at
9222 your news admin until she includes the @code{Xref} header in the
9225 @vindex gnus-nov-is-evil
9226 If you want Gnus to get the @code{Xref}s right all the time, you have to
9227 set @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{t}, which slows things down
9232 For an alternative approach, @pxref{Duplicate Suppression}.
9235 @node Duplicate Suppression
9236 @section Duplicate Suppression
9238 By default, Gnus tries to make sure that you don't have to read the same
9239 article more than once by utilizing the crossposting mechanism
9240 (@pxref{Crosspost Handling}). However, that simple and efficient
9241 approach may not work satisfactory for some users for various
9246 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to generate the @code{Xref} header. This
9247 is evil and not very common.
9250 The @sc{nntp} server may fail to include the @code{Xref} header in the
9251 @file{.overview} data bases. This is evil and all too common, alas.
9254 You may be reading the same group (or several related groups) from
9255 different @sc{nntp} servers.
9258 You may be getting mail that duplicates articles posted to groups.
9261 I'm sure there are other situations where @code{Xref} handling fails as
9262 well, but these four are the most common situations.
9264 If, and only if, @code{Xref} handling fails for you, then you may
9265 consider switching on @dfn{duplicate suppression}. If you do so, Gnus
9266 will remember the @code{Message-ID}s of all articles you have read or
9267 otherwise marked as read, and then, as if by magic, mark them as read
9268 all subsequent times you see them---in @emph{all} groups. Using this
9269 mechanism is quite likely to be somewhat inefficient, but not overly
9270 so. It's certainly preferable to reading the same articles more than
9273 Duplicate suppression is not a very subtle instrument. It's more like a
9274 sledge hammer than anything else. It works in a very simple
9275 fashion---if you have marked an article as read, it adds this Message-ID
9276 to a cache. The next time it sees this Message-ID, it will mark the
9277 article as read with the @samp{M} mark. It doesn't care what group it
9281 @item gnus-suppress-duplicates
9282 @vindex gnus-suppress-duplicates
9283 If non-@code{nil}, suppress duplicates.
9285 @item gnus-save-duplicate-list
9286 @vindex gnus-save-duplicate-list
9287 If non-@code{nil}, save the list of duplicates to a file. This will
9288 make startup and shutdown take longer, so the default is @code{nil}.
9289 However, this means that only duplicate articles read in a single Gnus
9290 session are suppressed.
9292 @item gnus-duplicate-list-length
9293 @vindex gnus-duplicate-list-length
9294 This variable says how many @code{Message-ID}s to keep in the duplicate
9295 suppression list. The default is 10000.
9297 @item gnus-duplicate-file
9298 @vindex gnus-duplicate-file
9299 The name of the file to store the duplicate suppression list in. The
9300 default is @file{~/News/suppression}.
9303 If you have a tendency to stop and start Gnus often, setting
9304 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{t} is probably a good idea. If
9305 you leave Gnus running for weeks on end, you may have it @code{nil}. On
9306 the other hand, saving the list makes startup and shutdown much slower,
9307 so that means that if you stop and start Gnus often, you should set
9308 @code{gnus-save-duplicate-list} to @code{nil}. Uhm. I'll leave this up
9309 to you to figure out, I think.
9314 Gnus is able to verify PGP or S/MIME signed messages or decrypt PGP
9319 To verify or decrypt PGP messages, you have to install mailcrypt or
9325 @item mm-verify-option
9326 @vindex mm-verify-option
9327 Option of verifying signed parts. @code{never}, not verify;
9328 @code{always}, always verify; @code{known}, only verify known
9329 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9331 @item mm-decrypt-option
9332 @vindex mm-decrypt-option
9333 Option of decrypting encrypted parts. @code{never}, no decryption;
9334 @code{always}, always decrypt @code{known}, only decrypt known
9335 protocols. Otherwise, ask user.
9340 @section Mailing List
9342 Gnus understands some mailing list fields of RFC 2369.
9347 @kindex C-c C-n h (Summary)
9348 @findex gnus-mailing-list-help
9349 Send a message to fetch mailing list help, if List-Help field exists.
9352 @kindex C-c C-n s (Summary)
9353 @findex gnus-mailing-list-subscribe
9354 Send a message to subscribe the mailing list, if List-Subscribe field exists.
9357 @kindex C-c C-n u (Summary)
9358 @findex gnus-mailing-list-unsubscribe
9359 Send a message to unsubscribe the mailing list, if List-Unsubscribe
9363 @kindex C-c C-n p (Summary)
9364 @findex gnus-mailing-list-post
9365 Post to the mailing list, if List-Post field exists.
9368 @kindex C-c C-n o (Summary)
9369 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9370 Send a message to the mailing list owner, if List-Owner field exists.
9373 @kindex C-c C-n a (Summary)
9374 @findex gnus-mailing-list-owner
9375 Browse the mailing list archive, if List-Archive field exists.
9379 @node Article Buffer
9380 @chapter Article Buffer
9381 @cindex article buffer
9383 The articles are displayed in the article buffer, of which there is only
9384 one. All the summary buffers share the same article buffer unless you
9385 tell Gnus otherwise.
9388 * Hiding Headers:: Deciding what headers should be displayed.
9389 * Using MIME:: Pushing articles through @sc{mime} before reading them.
9390 * Customizing Articles:: Tailoring the look of the articles.
9391 * Article Keymap:: Keystrokes available in the article buffer.
9392 * Misc Article:: Other stuff.
9396 @node Hiding Headers
9397 @section Hiding Headers
9398 @cindex hiding headers
9399 @cindex deleting headers
9401 The top section of each article is the @dfn{head}. (The rest is the
9402 @dfn{body}, but you may have guessed that already.)
9404 @vindex gnus-show-all-headers
9405 There is a lot of useful information in the head: the name of the person
9406 who wrote the article, the date it was written and the subject of the
9407 article. That's well and nice, but there's also lots of information
9408 most people do not want to see---what systems the article has passed
9409 through before reaching you, the @code{Message-ID}, the
9410 @code{References}, etc. ad nauseum---and you'll probably want to get rid
9411 of some of those lines. If you want to keep all those lines in the
9412 article buffer, you can set @code{gnus-show-all-headers} to @code{t}.
9414 Gnus provides you with two variables for sifting headers:
9418 @item gnus-visible-headers
9419 @vindex gnus-visible-headers
9420 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, it should be a regular expression
9421 that says what headers you wish to keep in the article buffer. All
9422 headers that do not match this variable will be hidden.
9424 For instance, if you only want to see the name of the person who wrote
9425 the article and the subject, you'd say:
9428 (setq gnus-visible-headers "^From:\\|^Subject:")
9431 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9434 @item gnus-ignored-headers
9435 @vindex gnus-ignored-headers
9436 This variable is the reverse of @code{gnus-visible-headers}. If this
9437 variable is set (and @code{gnus-visible-headers} is @code{nil}), it
9438 should be a regular expression that matches all lines that you want to
9439 hide. All lines that do not match this variable will remain visible.
9441 For instance, if you just want to get rid of the @code{References} line
9442 and the @code{Xref} line, you might say:
9445 (setq gnus-ignored-headers "^References:\\|^Xref:")
9448 This variable can also be a list of regexps to match headers to
9451 Note that if @code{gnus-visible-headers} is non-@code{nil}, this
9452 variable will have no effect.
9456 @vindex gnus-sorted-header-list
9457 Gnus can also sort the headers for you. (It does this by default.) You
9458 can control the sorting by setting the @code{gnus-sorted-header-list}
9459 variable. It is a list of regular expressions that says in what order
9460 the headers are to be displayed.
9462 For instance, if you want the name of the author of the article first,
9463 and then the subject, you might say something like:
9466 (setq gnus-sorted-header-list '("^From:" "^Subject:"))
9469 Any headers that are to remain visible, but are not listed in this
9470 variable, will be displayed in random order after all the headers listed in this variable.
9472 @findex gnus-article-hide-boring-headers
9473 @vindex gnus-boring-article-headers
9474 You can hide further boring headers by setting
9475 @code{gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers} to @code{head}. What this function
9476 does depends on the @code{gnus-boring-article-headers} variable. It's a
9477 list, but this list doesn't actually contain header names. Instead is
9478 lists various @dfn{boring conditions} that Gnus can check and remove
9481 These conditions are:
9484 Remove all empty headers.
9486 Remove the @code{Followup-To} header if it is identical to the
9487 @code{Newsgroups} header.
9489 Remove the @code{Reply-To} header if it lists the same address as the
9492 Remove the @code{Newsgroups} header if it only contains the current group
9495 Remove the @code{To} header if it only contains the address identical to
9496 the current groups's @code{to-address} parameter.
9498 Remove the @code{Date} header if the article is less than three days
9501 Remove the @code{To} header if it is very long.
9503 Remove all @code{To} headers if there are more than one.
9506 To include these three elements, you could say something like;
9509 (setq gnus-boring-article-headers
9510 '(empty followup-to reply-to))
9513 This is also the default value for this variable.
9517 @section Using @sc{mime}
9520 Mime is a standard for waving your hands through the air, aimlessly,
9521 while people stand around yawning.
9523 @sc{mime}, however, is a standard for encoding your articles, aimlessly,
9524 while all newsreaders die of fear.
9526 @sc{mime} may specify what character set the article uses, the encoding
9527 of the characters, and it also makes it possible to embed pictures and
9528 other naughty stuff in innocent-looking articles.
9530 @vindex gnus-display-mime-function
9531 @findex gnus-display-mime
9532 Gnus pushes @sc{mime} articles through @code{gnus-display-mime-function}
9533 to display the @sc{mime} parts. This is @code{gnus-display-mime} by
9534 default, which creates a bundle of clickable buttons that can be used to
9535 display, save and manipulate the @sc{mime} objects.
9537 The following commands are available when you have placed point over a
9541 @findex gnus-article-press-button
9543 @itemx BUTTON-2 (Article)
9544 Toggle displaying of the @sc{mime} object
9545 (@code{gnus-article-press-button}).
9547 @findex gnus-mime-view-part
9548 @item M-RET (Article)
9550 Prompt for a method, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9551 method (@code{gnus-mime-view-part}).
9553 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-type
9555 View the @sc{mime} object as if it were a different @sc{mime} media type
9556 (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-type}).
9558 @findex gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset
9560 Prompt for a charset, and then view the @sc{mime} object using this
9561 charset (@code{gnus-mime-view-part-as-charset}).
9563 @findex gnus-mime-save-part
9565 Prompt for a file name, and then save the @sc{mime} object
9566 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part}).
9568 @findex gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip
9570 Prompt for a file name, then save the @sc{mime} object and strip it from
9571 the article. Then proceed to article editing, where a reasonable
9572 suggestion is being made on how the altered article should look
9573 like. The stripped @sc{mime} object will be referred via the
9574 message/external-body @sc{mime} type.
9575 (@code{gnus-mime-save-part-and-strip}).
9577 @findex gnus-mime-copy-part
9579 Copy the @sc{mime} object to a fresh buffer and display this buffer
9580 (@code{gnus-mime-copy-part}).
9582 @findex gnus-mime-inline-part
9584 Insert the contents of the @sc{mime} object into the buffer
9585 (@code{gnus-mime-inline-part}) as text/plain. If given a prefix, insert
9586 the raw contents without decoding. If given a numerical prefix, you can
9587 do semi-manual charset stuff (see
9588 @code{gnus-summary-show-article-charset-alist} in @pxref{Paging the
9591 @findex gnus-mime-internalize-part
9593 View the @sc{mime} object with an internal viewer. If no internal
9594 viewer is available, use an external viewer
9595 (@code{gnus-mime-internalize-part}).
9597 @findex gnus-mime-externalize-part
9599 View the @sc{mime} object with an external viewer.
9600 (@code{gnus-mime-externalize-part}).
9602 @findex gnus-mime-pipe-part
9604 Output the @sc{mime} object to a process (@code{gnus-mime-pipe-part}).
9606 @findex gnus-mime-action-on-part
9608 Interactively run an action on the @sc{mime} object
9609 (@code{gnus-mime-action-on-part}).
9613 Gnus will display some @sc{mime} objects automatically. The way Gnus
9614 determines which parts to do this with is described in the Emacs MIME
9617 It might be best to just use the toggling functions from the article
9618 buffer to avoid getting nasty surprises. (For instance, you enter the
9619 group @samp{alt.sing-a-long} and, before you know it, @sc{mime} has
9620 decoded the sound file in the article and some horrible sing-a-long song
9621 comes screaming out your speakers, and you can't find the volume button,
9622 because there isn't one, and people are starting to look at you, and you
9623 try to stop the program, but you can't, and you can't find the program
9624 to control the volume, and everybody else in the room suddenly decides
9625 to look at you disdainfully, and you'll feel rather stupid.)
9627 Any similarity to real events and people is purely coincidental. Ahem.
9629 Also see @pxref{MIME Commands}.
9632 @node Customizing Articles
9633 @section Customizing Articles
9634 @cindex article customization
9636 A slew of functions for customizing how the articles are to look like
9637 exist. You can call these functions interactively, or you can have them
9638 called automatically when you select the articles.
9640 To have them called automatically, you should set the corresponding
9641 ``treatment'' variable. For instance, to have headers hidden, you'd set
9642 @code{gnus-treat-hide-headers}. Below is a list of variables that can
9643 be set, but first we discuss the values these variables can have.
9645 Note: Some values, while valid, make little sense. Check the list below
9646 for sensible values.
9650 @code{nil}: Don't do this treatment.
9653 @code{t}: Do this treatment on all body parts.
9656 @code{head}: Do the treatment on the headers.
9659 @code{last}: Do this treatment on the last part.
9662 An integer: Do this treatment on all body parts that have a length less
9666 A list of strings: Do this treatment on all body parts that are in
9667 articles that are read in groups that have names that match one of the
9668 regexps in the list.
9671 A list where the first element is not a string:
9673 The list is evaluated recursively. The first element of the list is a
9674 predicate. The following predicates are recognized: @code{or},
9675 @code{and}, @code{not} and @code{typep}. Here's an example:
9679 (typep "text/x-vcard"))
9684 You may have noticed that the word @dfn{part} is used here. This refers
9685 to the fact that some messages are @sc{mime} multipart articles that may
9686 be divided into several parts. Articles that are not multiparts are
9687 considered to contain just a single part.
9689 @vindex gnus-article-treat-types
9690 Are the treatments applied to all sorts of multipart parts? Yes, if you
9691 want to, but by default, only @samp{text/plain} parts are given the
9692 treatment. This is controlled by the @code{gnus-article-treat-types}
9693 variable, which is a list of regular expressions that are matched to the
9694 type of the part. This variable is ignored if the value of the
9695 controlling variable is a predicate list, as described above.
9697 The following treatment options are available. The easiest way to
9698 customize this is to examine the @code{gnus-article-treat} customization
9699 group. Values in parenthesis are suggested sensible values. Others are
9700 possible but those listed are probably sufficient for most people.
9703 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last)
9704 @item gnus-treat-buttonize (t, integer)
9705 @item gnus-treat-buttonize-head (head)
9706 @item gnus-treat-emphasize (t, head, integer)
9707 @item gnus-treat-fill-article (t, integer)
9708 @item gnus-treat-strip-cr (t, integer)
9709 @item gnus-treat-hide-headers (head)
9710 @item gnus-treat-hide-boring-headers (head)
9711 @item gnus-treat-hide-signature (t, last)
9712 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation (t, integer)
9713 @item gnus-treat-hide-citation-maybe (t, integer)
9714 @item gnus-treat-strip-pgp (t, last, integer)
9715 @item gnus-treat-x-pgp-sig (head)
9716 @item gnus-treat-strip-pem (t, last, integer)
9717 @item gnus-treat-highlight-headers (head)
9718 @item gnus-treat-highlight-citation (t, integer)
9719 @item gnus-treat-highlight-signature (t, last, integer)
9720 @item gnus-treat-date-ut (head)
9721 @item gnus-treat-date-local (head)
9722 @item gnus-treat-date-english (head)
9723 @item gnus-treat-date-lapsed (head)
9724 @item gnus-treat-date-original (head)
9725 @item gnus-treat-date-iso8601 (head)
9726 @item gnus-treat-date-user-defined (head)
9727 @item gnus-treat-strip-headers-in-body (t, integer)
9728 @item gnus-treat-strip-trailing-blank-lines (t, last, integer)
9729 @item gnus-treat-strip-leading-blank-lines (t, integer)
9730 @item gnus-treat-strip-multiple-blank-lines (t, integer)
9731 @item gnus-treat-overstrike (t, integer)
9732 @item gnus-treat-display-xface (head)
9733 @item gnus-treat-display-smileys (t, integer)
9734 @item gnus-treat-display-picons (head)
9735 @item gnus-treat-capitalize-sentences (t, integer)
9736 @item gnus-treat-fill-long-lines (t, integer)
9737 @item gnus-treat-play-sounds
9738 @item gnus-treat-translate
9741 @vindex gnus-part-display-hook
9742 You can, of course, write your own functions to be called from
9743 @code{gnus-part-display-hook}. The functions are called narrowed to the
9744 part, and you can do anything you like, pretty much. There is no
9745 information that you have to keep in the buffer---you can change
9749 @node Article Keymap
9750 @section Article Keymap
9752 Most of the keystrokes in the summary buffer can also be used in the
9753 article buffer. They should behave as if you typed them in the summary
9754 buffer, which means that you don't actually have to have a summary
9755 buffer displayed while reading. You can do it all from the article
9758 A few additional keystrokes are available:
9763 @kindex SPACE (Article)
9764 @findex gnus-article-next-page
9765 Scroll forwards one page (@code{gnus-article-next-page}).
9768 @kindex DEL (Article)
9769 @findex gnus-article-prev-page
9770 Scroll backwards one page (@code{gnus-article-prev-page}).
9773 @kindex C-c ^ (Article)
9774 @findex gnus-article-refer-article
9775 If point is in the neighborhood of a @code{Message-ID} and you press
9776 @kbd{C-c ^}, Gnus will try to get that article from the server
9777 (@code{gnus-article-refer-article}).
9780 @kindex C-c C-m (Article)
9781 @findex gnus-article-mail
9782 Send a reply to the address near point (@code{gnus-article-mail}). If
9783 given a prefix, include the mail.
9787 @findex gnus-article-show-summary
9788 Reconfigure the buffers so that the summary buffer becomes visible
9789 (@code{gnus-article-show-summary}).
9793 @findex gnus-article-describe-briefly
9794 Give a very brief description of the available keystrokes
9795 (@code{gnus-article-describe-briefly}).
9798 @kindex TAB (Article)
9799 @findex gnus-article-next-button
9800 Go to the next button, if any (@code{gnus-article-next-button}). This
9801 only makes sense if you have buttonizing turned on.
9804 @kindex M-TAB (Article)
9805 @findex gnus-article-prev-button
9806 Go to the previous button, if any (@code{gnus-article-prev-button}).
9812 @section Misc Article
9816 @item gnus-single-article-buffer
9817 @vindex gnus-single-article-buffer
9818 If non-@code{nil}, use the same article buffer for all the groups.
9819 (This is the default.) If @code{nil}, each group will have its own
9822 @vindex gnus-article-decode-hook
9823 @item gnus-article-decode-hook
9825 Hook used to decode @sc{mime} articles. The default value is
9826 @code{(article-decode-charset article-decode-encoded-words)}
9828 @vindex gnus-article-prepare-hook
9829 @item gnus-article-prepare-hook
9830 This hook is called right after the article has been inserted into the
9831 article buffer. It is mainly intended for functions that do something
9832 depending on the contents; it should probably not be used for changing
9833 the contents of the article buffer.
9835 @item gnus-article-mode-hook
9836 @vindex gnus-article-mode-hook
9837 Hook called in article mode buffers.
9839 @item gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9840 @vindex gnus-article-mode-syntax-table
9841 Syntax table used in article buffers. It is initialized from
9842 @code{text-mode-syntax-table}.
9844 @vindex gnus-article-mode-line-format
9845 @item gnus-article-mode-line-format
9846 This variable is a format string along the same lines as
9847 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format} (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}). It
9848 accepts the same format specifications as that variable, with two
9853 The @dfn{wash status} of the article. This is a short string with one
9854 character for each possible article wash operation that may have been
9857 The number of @sc{mime} parts in the article.
9860 @vindex gnus-break-pages
9862 @item gnus-break-pages
9863 Controls whether @dfn{page breaking} is to take place. If this variable
9864 is non-@code{nil}, the articles will be divided into pages whenever a
9865 page delimiter appears in the article. If this variable is @code{nil},
9866 paging will not be done.
9868 @item gnus-page-delimiter
9869 @vindex gnus-page-delimiter
9870 This is the delimiter mentioned above. By default, it is @samp{^L}
9875 @node Composing Messages
9876 @chapter Composing Messages
9877 @cindex composing messages
9880 @cindex sending mail
9886 @kindex C-c C-c (Post)
9887 All commands for posting and mailing will put you in a message buffer
9888 where you can edit the article all you like, before you send the
9889 article by pressing @kbd{C-c C-c}. @xref{Top, , Top, message, The
9890 Message Manual}. Where the message will be posted/mailed to depends
9891 on your setup (@pxref{Posting Server}).
9894 * Mail:: Mailing and replying.
9895 * Posting Server:: What server should you post via?
9896 * Mail and Post:: Mailing and posting at the same time.
9897 * Archived Messages:: Where Gnus stores the messages you've sent.
9898 * Posting Styles:: An easier way to specify who you are.
9899 * Drafts:: Postponing messages and rejected messages.
9900 * Rejected Articles:: What happens if the server doesn't like your article?
9901 * Using GPG:: How to use GPG and MML to sign and encrypt messages
9904 Also see @pxref{Canceling and Superseding} for information on how to
9905 remove articles you shouldn't have posted.
9911 Variables for customizing outgoing mail:
9914 @item gnus-uu-digest-headers
9915 @vindex gnus-uu-digest-headers
9916 List of regexps to match headers included in digested messages. The
9917 headers will be included in the sequence they are matched.
9919 @item gnus-add-to-list
9920 @vindex gnus-add-to-list
9921 If non-@code{nil}, add a @code{to-list} group parameter to mail groups
9922 that have none when you do a @kbd{a}.
9927 @node Posting Server
9928 @section Posting Server
9930 When you press those magical @kbd{C-c C-c} keys to ship off your latest
9931 (extremely intelligent, of course) article, where does it go?
9933 Thank you for asking. I hate you.
9935 @vindex gnus-post-method
9937 It can be quite complicated. Normally, Gnus will post using the same
9938 select method as you're reading from (which might be convenient if
9939 you're reading lots of groups from different private servers).
9940 However. If the server you're reading from doesn't allow posting,
9941 just reading, you probably want to use some other server to post your
9942 (extremely intelligent and fabulously interesting) articles. You can
9943 then set the @code{gnus-post-method} to some other method:
9946 (setq gnus-post-method '(nnspool ""))
9949 Now, if you've done this, and then this server rejects your article, or
9950 this server is down, what do you do then? To override this variable you
9951 can use a non-zero prefix to the @kbd{C-c C-c} command to force using
9952 the ``current'' server, to get back the default behavior, for posting.
9954 If you give a zero prefix (i.e., @kbd{C-u 0 C-c C-c}) to that command,
9955 Gnus will prompt you for what method to use for posting.
9957 You can also set @code{gnus-post-method} to a list of select methods.
9958 If that's the case, Gnus will always prompt you for what method to use
9961 Finally, if you want to always post using the native select method,
9962 you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
9966 @section Mail and Post
9968 Here's a list of variables relevant to both mailing and
9972 @item gnus-mailing-list-groups
9973 @findex gnus-mailing-list-groups
9974 @cindex mailing lists
9976 If your news server offers groups that are really mailing lists
9977 gatewayed to the @sc{nntp} server, you can read those groups without
9978 problems, but you can't post/followup to them without some difficulty.
9979 One solution is to add a @code{to-address} to the group parameters
9980 (@pxref{Group Parameters}). An easier thing to do is set the
9981 @code{gnus-mailing-list-groups} to a regexp that matches the groups that
9982 really are mailing lists. Then, at least, followups to the mailing
9983 lists will work most of the time. Posting to these groups (@kbd{a}) is
9984 still a pain, though.
9988 You may want to do spell-checking on messages that you send out. Or, if
9989 you don't want to spell-check by hand, you could add automatic
9990 spell-checking via the @code{ispell} package:
9993 @findex ispell-message
9995 (add-hook 'message-send-hook 'ispell-message)
9998 If you want to change the @code{ispell} dictionary based on what group
9999 you're in, you could say something like the following:
10002 (add-hook 'gnus-select-group-hook
10006 "^de\\." (gnus-group-real-name gnus-newsgroup-name))
10007 (ispell-change-dictionary "deutsch"))
10009 (ispell-change-dictionary "english")))))
10012 Modify to suit your needs.
10015 @node Archived Messages
10016 @section Archived Messages
10017 @cindex archived messages
10018 @cindex sent messages
10020 Gnus provides a few different methods for storing the mail and news you
10021 send. The default method is to use the @dfn{archive virtual server} to
10022 store the messages. If you want to disable this completely, the
10023 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable should be @code{nil}, which
10026 @vindex gnus-message-archive-method
10027 @code{gnus-message-archive-method} says what virtual server Gnus is to
10028 use to store sent messages. The default is:
10031 (nnfolder "archive"
10032 (nnfolder-directory "~/Mail/archive")
10033 (nnfolder-active-file "~/Mail/archive/active")
10034 (nnfolder-get-new-mail nil)
10035 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t))
10038 You can, however, use any mail select method (@code{nnml},
10039 @code{nnmbox}, etc.). @code{nnfolder} is a quite likable select method
10040 for doing this sort of thing, though. If you don't like the default
10041 directory chosen, you could say something like:
10044 (setq gnus-message-archive-method
10045 '(nnfolder "archive"
10046 (nnfolder-inhibit-expiry t)
10047 (nnfolder-active-file "~/News/sent-mail/active")
10048 (nnfolder-directory "~/News/sent-mail/")))
10051 @vindex gnus-message-archive-group
10053 Gnus will insert @code{Gcc} headers in all outgoing messages that point
10054 to one or more group(s) on that server. Which group to use is
10055 determined by the @code{gnus-message-archive-group} variable.
10057 This variable can be used to do the following:
10061 Messages will be saved in that group.
10063 Note that you can include a select method in the group name, then the
10064 message will not be stored in the select method given by
10065 @code{gnus-message-archive-method}, but in the select method specified
10066 by the group name, instead. Suppose @code{gnus-message-archive-method}
10067 has the default value shown above. Then setting
10068 @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{"foo"} means that outgoing
10069 messages are stored in @samp{nnfolder+archive:foo}, but if you use the
10070 value @code{"nnml:foo"}, then outgoing messages will be stored in
10072 @item a list of strings
10073 Messages will be saved in all those groups.
10074 @item an alist of regexps, functions and forms
10075 When a key ``matches'', the result is used.
10077 No message archiving will take place. This is the default.
10082 Just saving to a single group called @samp{MisK}:
10084 (setq gnus-message-archive-group "MisK")
10087 Saving to two groups, @samp{MisK} and @samp{safe}:
10089 (setq gnus-message-archive-group '("MisK" "safe"))
10092 Save to different groups based on what group you are in:
10094 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10095 '(("^alt" "sent-to-alt")
10096 ("mail" "sent-to-mail")
10097 (".*" "sent-to-misc")))
10100 More complex stuff:
10102 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10103 '((if (message-news-p)
10108 How about storing all news messages in one file, but storing all mail
10109 messages in one file per month:
10112 (setq gnus-message-archive-group
10113 '((if (message-news-p)
10115 (concat "mail." (format-time-string "%Y-%m")))))
10118 (XEmacs 19.13 doesn't have @code{format-time-string}, so you'll have to
10119 use a different value for @code{gnus-message-archive-group} there.)
10121 Now, when you send a message off, it will be stored in the appropriate
10122 group. (If you want to disable storing for just one particular message,
10123 you can just remove the @code{Gcc} header that has been inserted.) The
10124 archive group will appear in the group buffer the next time you start
10125 Gnus, or the next time you press @kbd{F} in the group buffer. You can
10126 enter it and read the articles in it just like you'd read any other
10127 group. If the group gets really big and annoying, you can simply rename
10128 if (using @kbd{G r} in the group buffer) to something
10129 nice---@samp{misc-mail-september-1995}, or whatever. New messages will
10130 continue to be stored in the old (now empty) group.
10132 That's the default method of archiving sent messages. Gnus offers a
10133 different way for the people who don't like the default method. In that
10134 case you should set @code{gnus-message-archive-group} to @code{nil};
10135 this will disable archiving.
10138 @item gnus-outgoing-message-group
10139 @vindex gnus-outgoing-message-group
10140 All outgoing messages will be put in this group. If you want to store
10141 all your outgoing mail and articles in the group @samp{nnml:archive},
10142 you set this variable to that value. This variable can also be a list of
10145 If you want to have greater control over what group to put each
10146 message in, you can set this variable to a function that checks the
10147 current newsgroup name and then returns a suitable group name (or list
10150 This variable can be used instead of @code{gnus-message-archive-group},
10151 but the latter is the preferred method.
10153 @item gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10154 @vindex gnus-inews-mark-gcc-as-read
10155 If non-@code{nil}, automatically mark @code{Gcc} articles as read.
10160 @node Posting Styles
10161 @section Posting Styles
10162 @cindex posting styles
10165 All them variables, they make my head swim.
10167 So what if you want a different @code{Organization} and signature based
10168 on what groups you post to? And you post both from your home machine
10169 and your work machine, and you want different @code{From} lines, and so
10172 @vindex gnus-posting-styles
10173 One way to do stuff like that is to write clever hooks that change the
10174 variables you need to have changed. That's a bit boring, so somebody
10175 came up with the bright idea of letting the user specify these things in
10176 a handy alist. Here's an example of a @code{gnus-posting-styles}
10181 (signature "Peace and happiness")
10182 (organization "What me?"))
10184 (signature "Death to everybody"))
10185 ("comp.emacs.i-love-it"
10186 (organization "Emacs is it")))
10189 As you might surmise from this example, this alist consists of several
10190 @dfn{styles}. Each style will be applicable if the first element
10191 ``matches'', in some form or other. The entire alist will be iterated
10192 over, from the beginning towards the end, and each match will be
10193 applied, which means that attributes in later styles that match override
10194 the same attributes in earlier matching styles. So
10195 @samp{comp.programming.literate} will have the @samp{Death to everybody}
10196 signature and the @samp{What me?} @code{Organization} header.
10198 The first element in each style is called the @code{match}. If it's a
10199 string, then Gnus will try to regexp match it against the group name.
10200 If it is the symbol @code{header}, then Gnus will look for header (the
10201 next element in the match) in the original article , and compare that to
10202 the last regexp in the match. If it's a function symbol, that function
10203 will be called with no arguments. If it's a variable symbol, then the
10204 variable will be referenced. If it's a list, then that list will be
10205 @code{eval}ed. In any case, if this returns a non-@code{nil} value,
10206 then the style is said to @dfn{match}.
10208 Each style may contain a arbitrary amount of @dfn{attributes}. Each
10209 attribute consists of a @code{(@var{name} @var{value})} pair. The
10210 attribute name can be one of @code{signature}, @code{signature-file},
10211 @code{organization}, @code{address}, @code{name} or @code{body}. The
10212 attribute name can also be a string. In that case, this will be used as
10213 a header name, and the value will be inserted in the headers of the
10214 article; if the value is @code{nil}, the header name will be removed.
10215 If the attribute name is @code{eval}, the form is evaluated, and the
10216 result is thrown away.
10218 The attribute value can be a string (used verbatim), a function with
10219 zero arguments (the return value will be used), a variable (its value
10220 will be used) or a list (it will be @code{eval}ed and the return value
10221 will be used). The functions and sexps are called/@code{eval}ed in the
10222 message buffer that is being set up. The headers of the current article
10223 are available through the @code{message-reply-headers} variable.
10225 If you wish to check whether the message you are about to compose is
10226 meant to be a news article or a mail message, you can check the values
10227 of the @code{message-news-p} and @code{message-mail-p} functions.
10229 @findex message-mail-p
10230 @findex message-news-p
10232 So here's a new example:
10235 (setq gnus-posting-styles
10237 (signature-file "~/.signature")
10239 ("X-Home-Page" (getenv "WWW_HOME"))
10240 (organization "People's Front Against MWM"))
10242 (signature my-funny-signature-randomizer))
10243 ((equal (system-name) "gnarly")
10244 (signature my-quote-randomizer))
10246 (signature my-news-signature))
10247 (header "to" "larsi.*org"
10248 (Organization "Somewhere, Inc."))
10249 ((posting-from-work-p)
10250 (signature-file "~/.work-signature")
10251 (address "user@@bar.foo")
10252 (body "You are fired.\n\nSincerely, your boss.")
10253 (organization "Important Work, Inc"))
10255 (From (save-excursion
10256 (set-buffer gnus-article-buffer)
10257 (message-fetch-field "to"))))
10259 (signature-file "~/.mail-signature"))))
10262 The @samp{nnml:.*} rule means that you use the @code{To} address as the
10263 @code{From} address in all your outgoing replies, which might be handy
10264 if you fill many roles.
10271 If you are writing a message (mail or news) and suddenly remember that
10272 you have a steak in the oven (or some pesto in the food processor, you
10273 craaazy vegetarians), you'll probably wish there was a method to save
10274 the message you are writing so that you can continue editing it some
10275 other day, and send it when you feel its finished.
10277 Well, don't worry about it. Whenever you start composing a message of
10278 some sort using the Gnus mail and post commands, the buffer you get will
10279 automatically associate to an article in a special @dfn{draft} group.
10280 If you save the buffer the normal way (@kbd{C-x C-s}, for instance), the
10281 article will be saved there. (Auto-save files also go to the draft
10285 @vindex nndraft-directory
10286 The draft group is a special group (which is implemented as an
10287 @code{nndraft} group, if you absolutely have to know) called
10288 @samp{nndraft:drafts}. The variable @code{nndraft-directory} says where
10289 @code{nndraft} is to store its files. What makes this group special is
10290 that you can't tick any articles in it or mark any articles as
10291 read---all articles in the group are permanently unread.
10293 If the group doesn't exist, it will be created and you'll be subscribed
10294 to it. The only way to make it disappear from the Group buffer is to
10297 @c @findex gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft
10298 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Mail)
10299 @c @kindex C-c M-d (Post)
10300 @c @findex gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft
10301 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Mail)
10302 @c @kindex C-c C-d (Post)
10303 @c If you're writing some super-secret message that you later want to
10304 @c encode with PGP before sending, you may wish to turn the auto-saving
10305 @c (and association with the draft group) off. You never know who might be
10306 @c interested in reading all your extremely valuable and terribly horrible
10307 @c and interesting secrets. The @kbd{C-c M-d}
10308 @c (@code{gnus-dissociate-buffer-from-draft}) command does that for you.
10309 @c If you change your mind and want to turn the auto-saving back on again,
10310 @c @kbd{C-c C-d} (@code{gnus-associate-buffer-with-draft} does that.
10312 @c @vindex gnus-use-draft
10313 @c To leave association with the draft group off by default, set
10314 @c @code{gnus-use-draft} to @code{nil}. It is @code{t} by default.
10316 @findex gnus-draft-edit-message
10317 @kindex D e (Draft)
10318 When you want to continue editing the article, you simply enter the
10319 draft group and push @kbd{D e} (@code{gnus-draft-edit-message}) to do
10320 that. You will be placed in a buffer where you left off.
10322 Rejected articles will also be put in this draft group (@pxref{Rejected
10325 @findex gnus-draft-send-all-messages
10326 @findex gnus-draft-send-message
10327 If you have lots of rejected messages you want to post (or mail) without
10328 doing further editing, you can use the @kbd{D s} command
10329 (@code{gnus-draft-send-message}). This command understands the
10330 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}). The @kbd{D S}
10331 command (@code{gnus-draft-send-all-messages}) will ship off all messages
10334 If you have some messages that you wish not to send, you can use the
10335 @kbd{D t} (@code{gnus-draft-toggle-sending}) command to mark the message
10336 as unsendable. This is a toggling command.
10339 @node Rejected Articles
10340 @section Rejected Articles
10341 @cindex rejected articles
10343 Sometimes a news server will reject an article. Perhaps the server
10344 doesn't like your face. Perhaps it just feels miserable. Perhaps
10345 @emph{there be demons}. Perhaps you have included too much cited text.
10346 Perhaps the disk is full. Perhaps the server is down.
10348 These situations are, of course, totally beyond the control of Gnus.
10349 (Gnus, of course, loves the way you look, always feels great, has angels
10350 fluttering around inside of it, doesn't care about how much cited text
10351 you include, never runs full and never goes down.) So Gnus saves these
10352 articles until some later time when the server feels better.
10354 The rejected articles will automatically be put in a special draft group
10355 (@pxref{Drafts}). When the server comes back up again, you'd then
10356 typically enter that group and send all the articles off.
10362 Gnus has an ALPHA support to GPG that's provided by @file{gpg.el}. See
10363 @code{mm-verify-option} and @code{mm-decrypt-option} to enable Gnus to
10364 verify or decrypt messages accordingly.
10366 To use this correctly with GPG, you'll need the following lisp code in your
10367 @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10371 (setq mml2015-use 'gpg)
10372 (setq gpg-temp-directory (expand-file-name "~/.gnupg/tmp"))
10375 The @code{gpg-temp-directory} need to point to a directory with permissions set
10376 to 700, for your own safety.
10378 If you want to benefit of PGP2.6 compatibility, you might create a script named
10379 @file{gpg-2comp} with these instructions:
10383 exec gpg --rfc1991 "$@@"
10386 If you don't want to use such compatibility, you can add the following line to
10387 your @file{~/.emacs} or @file{~/.gnus}:
10390 (setq gpg-command-default-alist (quote ((gpg . "gpg") (gpg-2comp . "gpg"))))
10393 To sign or encrypt your message you may choose to use the MML Security
10394 menu or @kbd{C-c C-m s p} to sign your message using PGP/MIME, @kbd{C-c
10395 C-m s s} to sign your message using S/MIME. There's also @kbd{C-c C-m c
10396 p} to encrypt your message with PGP/MIME and @kbd{C-c C-m c s} to
10397 encrypt using S/MIME.
10399 Gnus will ask for your passphrase and then it will send your message, if
10400 you've typed it correctly.
10402 @node Select Methods
10403 @chapter Select Methods
10404 @cindex foreign groups
10405 @cindex select methods
10407 A @dfn{foreign group} is a group not read by the usual (or
10408 default) means. It could be, for instance, a group from a different
10409 @sc{nntp} server, it could be a virtual group, or it could be your own
10410 personal mail group.
10412 A foreign group (or any group, really) is specified by a @dfn{name} and
10413 a @dfn{select method}. To take the latter first, a select method is a
10414 list where the first element says what backend to use (e.g. @code{nntp},
10415 @code{nnspool}, @code{nnml}) and the second element is the @dfn{server
10416 name}. There may be additional elements in the select method, where the
10417 value may have special meaning for the backend in question.
10419 One could say that a select method defines a @dfn{virtual server}---so
10420 we do just that (@pxref{Server Buffer}).
10422 The @dfn{name} of the group is the name the backend will recognize the
10425 For instance, the group @samp{soc.motss} on the @sc{nntp} server
10426 @samp{some.where.edu} will have the name @samp{soc.motss} and select
10427 method @code{(nntp "some.where.edu")}. Gnus will call this group
10428 @samp{nntp+some.where.edu:soc.motss}, even though the @code{nntp}
10429 backend just knows this group as @samp{soc.motss}.
10431 The different methods all have their peculiarities, of course.
10434 * Server Buffer:: Making and editing virtual servers.
10435 * Getting News:: Reading USENET news with Gnus.
10436 * Getting Mail:: Reading your personal mail with Gnus.
10437 * Browsing the Web:: Getting messages from a plethora of Web sources.
10438 * Other Sources:: Reading directories, files, SOUP packets.
10439 * Combined Groups:: Combining groups into one group.
10440 * Gnus Unplugged:: Reading news and mail offline.
10444 @node Server Buffer
10445 @section Server Buffer
10447 Traditionally, a @dfn{server} is a machine or a piece of software that
10448 one connects to, and then requests information from. Gnus does not
10449 connect directly to any real servers, but does all transactions through
10450 one backend or other. But that's just putting one layer more between
10451 the actual media and Gnus, so we might just as well say that each
10452 backend represents a virtual server.
10454 For instance, the @code{nntp} backend may be used to connect to several
10455 different actual @sc{nntp} servers, or, perhaps, to many different ports
10456 on the same actual @sc{nntp} server. You tell Gnus which backend to
10457 use, and what parameters to set by specifying a @dfn{select method}.
10459 These select method specifications can sometimes become quite
10460 complicated---say, for instance, that you want to read from the
10461 @sc{nntp} server @samp{news.funet.fi} on port number 13, which
10462 hangs if queried for @sc{nov} headers and has a buggy select. Ahem.
10463 Anyway, if you had to specify that for each group that used this
10464 server, that would be too much work, so Gnus offers a way of naming
10465 select methods, which is what you do in the server buffer.
10467 To enter the server buffer, use the @kbd{^}
10468 (@code{gnus-group-enter-server-mode}) command in the group buffer.
10471 * Server Buffer Format:: You can customize the look of this buffer.
10472 * Server Commands:: Commands to manipulate servers.
10473 * Example Methods:: Examples server specifications.
10474 * Creating a Virtual Server:: An example session.
10475 * Server Variables:: Which variables to set.
10476 * Servers and Methods:: You can use server names as select methods.
10477 * Unavailable Servers:: Some servers you try to contact may be down.
10480 @vindex gnus-server-mode-hook
10481 @code{gnus-server-mode-hook} is run when creating the server buffer.
10484 @node Server Buffer Format
10485 @subsection Server Buffer Format
10486 @cindex server buffer format
10488 @vindex gnus-server-line-format
10489 You can change the look of the server buffer lines by changing the
10490 @code{gnus-server-line-format} variable. This is a @code{format}-like
10491 variable, with some simple extensions:
10496 How the news is fetched---the backend name.
10499 The name of this server.
10502 Where the news is to be fetched from---the address.
10505 The opened/closed/denied status of the server.
10508 @vindex gnus-server-mode-line-format
10509 The mode line can also be customized by using the
10510 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format} variable (@pxref{Mode Line
10511 Formatting}). The following specs are understood:
10521 Also @pxref{Formatting Variables}.
10524 @node Server Commands
10525 @subsection Server Commands
10526 @cindex server commands
10532 @findex gnus-server-add-server
10533 Add a new server (@code{gnus-server-add-server}).
10537 @findex gnus-server-edit-server
10538 Edit a server (@code{gnus-server-edit-server}).
10541 @kindex SPACE (Server)
10542 @findex gnus-server-read-server
10543 Browse the current server (@code{gnus-server-read-server}).
10547 @findex gnus-server-exit
10548 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-server-exit}).
10552 @findex gnus-server-kill-server
10553 Kill the current server (@code{gnus-server-kill-server}).
10557 @findex gnus-server-yank-server
10558 Yank the previously killed server (@code{gnus-server-yank-server}).
10562 @findex gnus-server-copy-server
10563 Copy the current server (@code{gnus-server-copy-server}).
10567 @findex gnus-server-list-servers
10568 List all servers (@code{gnus-server-list-servers}).
10572 @findex gnus-server-scan-server
10573 Request that the server scan its sources for new articles
10574 (@code{gnus-server-scan-server}). This is mainly sensible with mail
10579 @findex gnus-server-regenerate-server
10580 Request that the server regenerate all its data structures
10581 (@code{gnus-server-regenerate-server}). This can be useful if you have
10582 a mail backend that has gotten out of sync.
10587 @node Example Methods
10588 @subsection Example Methods
10590 Most select methods are pretty simple and self-explanatory:
10593 (nntp "news.funet.fi")
10596 Reading directly from the spool is even simpler:
10602 As you can see, the first element in a select method is the name of the
10603 backend, and the second is the @dfn{address}, or @dfn{name}, if you
10606 After these two elements, there may be an arbitrary number of
10607 @code{(@var{variable} @var{form})} pairs.
10609 To go back to the first example---imagine that you want to read from
10610 port 15 on that machine. This is what the select method should
10614 (nntp "news.funet.fi" (nntp-port-number 15))
10617 You should read the documentation to each backend to find out what
10618 variables are relevant, but here's an @code{nnmh} example:
10620 @code{nnmh} is a mail backend that reads a spool-like structure. Say
10621 you have two structures that you wish to access: One is your private
10622 mail spool, and the other is a public one. Here's the possible spec for
10626 (nnmh "private" (nnmh-directory "~/private/mail/"))
10629 (This server is then called @samp{private}, but you may have guessed
10632 Here's the method for a public spool:
10636 (nnmh-directory "/usr/information/spool/")
10637 (nnmh-get-new-mail nil))
10643 If you are behind a firewall and only have access to the @sc{nntp}
10644 server from the firewall machine, you can instruct Gnus to @code{rlogin}
10645 on the firewall machine and telnet from there to the @sc{nntp} server.
10646 Doing this can be rather fiddly, but your virtual server definition
10647 should probably look something like this:
10651 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet)
10652 (nntp-via-address "the.firewall.machine")
10653 (nntp-address "the.real.nntp.host")
10654 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
10657 If you want to use the wonderful @code{ssh} program to provide a
10658 compressed connection over the modem line, you could add the following
10659 configuration to the example above:
10662 (nntp-via-rlogin-command "ssh")
10665 If you're behind a firewall, but have direct access to the outside world
10666 through a wrapper command like "runsocks", you could open a socksified
10667 telnet connection to the news server as follows:
10671 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
10672 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-via-telnet)
10673 (nntp-address "the.news.server")
10674 (nntp-end-of-line "\n"))
10677 This means that you have to have set up @code{ssh-agent} correctly to
10678 provide automatic authorization, of course. And to get a compressed
10679 connection, you have to have the @samp{Compression} option in the
10680 @code{ssh} @file{config} file.
10683 @node Creating a Virtual Server
10684 @subsection Creating a Virtual Server
10686 If you're saving lots of articles in the cache by using persistent
10687 articles, you may want to create a virtual server to read the cache.
10689 First you need to add a new server. The @kbd{a} command does that. It
10690 would probably be best to use @code{nnspool} to read the cache. You
10691 could also use @code{nnml} or @code{nnmh}, though.
10693 Type @kbd{a nnspool RET cache RET}.
10695 You should now have a brand new @code{nnspool} virtual server called
10696 @samp{cache}. You now need to edit it to have the right definitions.
10697 Type @kbd{e} to edit the server. You'll be entered into a buffer that
10698 will contain the following:
10708 (nnspool-spool-directory "~/News/cache/")
10709 (nnspool-nov-directory "~/News/cache/")
10710 (nnspool-active-file "~/News/cache/active"))
10713 Type @kbd{C-c C-c} to return to the server buffer. If you now press
10714 @kbd{RET} over this virtual server, you should be entered into a browse
10715 buffer, and you should be able to enter any of the groups displayed.
10718 @node Server Variables
10719 @subsection Server Variables
10721 One sticky point when defining variables (both on backends and in Emacs
10722 in general) is that some variables are typically initialized from other
10723 variables when the definition of the variables is being loaded. If you
10724 change the "base" variable after the variables have been loaded, you
10725 won't change the "derived" variables.
10727 This typically affects directory and file variables. For instance,
10728 @code{nnml-directory} is @file{~/Mail/} by default, and all @code{nnml}
10729 directory variables are initialized from that variable, so
10730 @code{nnml-active-file} will be @file{~/Mail/active}. If you define a
10731 new virtual @code{nnml} server, it will @emph{not} suffice to set just
10732 @code{nnml-directory}---you have to explicitly set all the file
10733 variables to be what you want them to be. For a complete list of
10734 variables for each backend, see each backend's section later in this
10735 manual, but here's an example @code{nnml} definition:
10739 (nnml-directory "~/my-mail/")
10740 (nnml-active-file "~/my-mail/active")
10741 (nnml-newsgroups-file "~/my-mail/newsgroups"))
10745 @node Servers and Methods
10746 @subsection Servers and Methods
10748 Wherever you would normally use a select method
10749 (e.g. @code{gnus-secondary-select-method}, in the group select method,
10750 when browsing a foreign server) you can use a virtual server name
10751 instead. This could potentially save lots of typing. And it's nice all
10755 @node Unavailable Servers
10756 @subsection Unavailable Servers
10758 If a server seems to be unreachable, Gnus will mark that server as
10759 @code{denied}. That means that any subsequent attempt to make contact
10760 with that server will just be ignored. ``It can't be opened,'' Gnus
10761 will tell you, without making the least effort to see whether that is
10762 actually the case or not.
10764 That might seem quite naughty, but it does make sense most of the time.
10765 Let's say you have 10 groups subscribed to on server
10766 @samp{nephelococcygia.com}. This server is located somewhere quite far
10767 away from you and the machine is quite slow, so it takes 1 minute just
10768 to find out that it refuses connection to you today. If Gnus were to
10769 attempt to do that 10 times, you'd be quite annoyed, so Gnus won't
10770 attempt to do that. Once it has gotten a single ``connection refused'',
10771 it will regard that server as ``down''.
10773 So, what happens if the machine was only feeling unwell temporarily?
10774 How do you test to see whether the machine has come up again?
10776 You jump to the server buffer (@pxref{Server Buffer}) and poke it
10777 with the following commands:
10783 @findex gnus-server-open-server
10784 Try to establish connection to the server on the current line
10785 (@code{gnus-server-open-server}).
10789 @findex gnus-server-close-server
10790 Close the connection (if any) to the server
10791 (@code{gnus-server-close-server}).
10795 @findex gnus-server-deny-server
10796 Mark the current server as unreachable
10797 (@code{gnus-server-deny-server}).
10800 @kindex M-o (Server)
10801 @findex gnus-server-open-all-servers
10802 Open the connections to all servers in the buffer
10803 (@code{gnus-server-open-all-servers}).
10806 @kindex M-c (Server)
10807 @findex gnus-server-close-all-servers
10808 Close the connections to all servers in the buffer
10809 (@code{gnus-server-close-all-servers}).
10813 @findex gnus-server-remove-denials
10814 Remove all marks to whether Gnus was denied connection from any servers
10815 (@code{gnus-server-remove-denials}).
10821 @section Getting News
10822 @cindex reading news
10823 @cindex news backends
10825 A newsreader is normally used for reading news. Gnus currently provides
10826 only two methods of getting news---it can read from an @sc{nntp} server,
10827 or it can read from a local spool.
10830 * NNTP:: Reading news from an @sc{nntp} server.
10831 * News Spool:: Reading news from the local spool.
10836 @subsection @sc{nntp}
10839 Subscribing to a foreign group from an @sc{nntp} server is rather easy.
10840 You just specify @code{nntp} as method and the address of the @sc{nntp}
10841 server as the, uhm, address.
10843 If the @sc{nntp} server is located at a non-standard port, setting the
10844 third element of the select method to this port number should allow you
10845 to connect to the right port. You'll have to edit the group info for
10846 that (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
10848 The name of the foreign group can be the same as a native group. In
10849 fact, you can subscribe to the same group from as many different servers
10850 you feel like. There will be no name collisions.
10852 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nntp}
10857 @item nntp-server-opened-hook
10858 @vindex nntp-server-opened-hook
10859 @cindex @sc{mode reader}
10861 @cindex authentification
10862 @cindex nntp authentification
10863 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10864 @findex nntp-send-mode-reader
10865 is run after a connection has been made. It can be used to send
10866 commands to the @sc{nntp} server after it has been contacted. By
10867 default it sends the command @code{MODE READER} to the server with the
10868 @code{nntp-send-mode-reader} function. This function should always be
10869 present in this hook.
10871 @item nntp-authinfo-function
10872 @vindex nntp-authinfo-function
10873 @findex nntp-send-authinfo
10874 @vindex nntp-authinfo-file
10875 This function will be used to send @samp{AUTHINFO} to the @sc{nntp}
10876 server. The default function is @code{nntp-send-authinfo}, which looks
10877 through your @file{~/.authinfo} (or whatever you've set the
10878 @code{nntp-authinfo-file} variable to) for applicable entries. If none
10879 are found, it will prompt you for a login name and a password. The
10880 format of the @file{~/.authinfo} file is (almost) the same as the
10881 @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file, which is defined in the @code{ftp}
10882 manual page, but here are the salient facts:
10886 The file contains one or more line, each of which define one server.
10889 Each line may contain an arbitrary number of token/value pairs.
10891 The valid tokens include @samp{machine}, @samp{login}, @samp{password},
10892 @samp{default}. In addition Gnus introduces two new tokens, not present
10893 in the original @file{.netrc}/@code{ftp} syntax, namely @samp{port} and
10894 @samp{force}. (This is the only way the @file{.authinfo} file format
10895 deviates from the @file{.netrc} file format.) @samp{port} is used to
10896 indicate what port on the server the credentials apply to and
10897 @samp{force} is explained below.
10901 Here's an example file:
10904 machine news.uio.no login larsi password geheimnis
10905 machine nntp.ifi.uio.no login larsi force yes
10908 The token/value pairs may appear in any order; @samp{machine} doesn't
10909 have to be first, for instance.
10911 In this example, both login name and password have been supplied for the
10912 former server, while the latter has only the login name listed, and the
10913 user will be prompted for the password. The latter also has the
10914 @samp{force} tag, which means that the authinfo will be sent to the
10915 @var{nntp} server upon connection; the default (i.e., when there is not
10916 @samp{force} tag) is to not send authinfo to the @var{nntp} server
10917 until the @var{nntp} server asks for it.
10919 You can also add @samp{default} lines that will apply to all servers
10920 that don't have matching @samp{machine} lines.
10926 This will force sending @samp{AUTHINFO} commands to all servers not
10927 previously mentioned.
10929 Remember to not leave the @file{~/.authinfo} file world-readable.
10931 @item nntp-server-action-alist
10932 @vindex nntp-server-action-alist
10933 This is a list of regexps to match on server types and actions to be
10934 taken when matches are made. For instance, if you want Gnus to beep
10935 every time you connect to innd, you could say something like:
10938 (setq nntp-server-action-alist
10939 '(("innd" (ding))))
10942 You probably don't want to do that, though.
10944 The default value is
10947 '(("nntpd 1\\.5\\.11t"
10948 (remove-hook 'nntp-server-opened-hook
10949 'nntp-send-mode-reader)))
10952 This ensures that Gnus doesn't send the @code{MODE READER} command to
10953 nntpd 1.5.11t, since that command chokes that server, I've been told.
10955 @item nntp-maximum-request
10956 @vindex nntp-maximum-request
10957 If the @sc{nntp} server doesn't support @sc{nov} headers, this backend
10958 will collect headers by sending a series of @code{head} commands. To
10959 speed things up, the backend sends lots of these commands without
10960 waiting for reply, and then reads all the replies. This is controlled
10961 by the @code{nntp-maximum-request} variable, and is 400 by default. If
10962 your network is buggy, you should set this to 1.
10964 @item nntp-connection-timeout
10965 @vindex nntp-connection-timeout
10966 If you have lots of foreign @code{nntp} groups that you connect to
10967 regularly, you're sure to have problems with @sc{nntp} servers not
10968 responding properly, or being too loaded to reply within reasonable
10969 time. This is can lead to awkward problems, which can be helped
10970 somewhat by setting @code{nntp-connection-timeout}. This is an integer
10971 that says how many seconds the @code{nntp} backend should wait for a
10972 connection before giving up. If it is @code{nil}, which is the default,
10973 no timeouts are done.
10975 @c @item nntp-command-timeout
10976 @c @vindex nntp-command-timeout
10977 @c @cindex PPP connections
10978 @c @cindex dynamic IP addresses
10979 @c If you're running Gnus on a machine that has a dynamically assigned
10980 @c address, Gnus may become confused. If the address of your machine
10981 @c changes after connecting to the @sc{nntp} server, Gnus will simply sit
10982 @c waiting forever for replies from the server. To help with this
10983 @c unfortunate problem, you can set this command to a number. Gnus will
10984 @c then, if it sits waiting for a reply from the server longer than that
10985 @c number of seconds, shut down the connection, start a new one, and resend
10986 @c the command. This should hopefully be transparent to the user. A
10987 @c likely number is 30 seconds.
10989 @c @item nntp-retry-on-break
10990 @c @vindex nntp-retry-on-break
10991 @c If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you can also @kbd{C-g} if Gnus
10992 @c hangs. This will have much the same effect as the command timeout
10993 @c described above.
10995 @item nntp-server-hook
10996 @vindex nntp-server-hook
10997 This hook is run as the last step when connecting to an @sc{nntp}
11000 @item nntp-buggy-select
11001 @vindex nntp-buggy-select
11002 Set this to non-@code{nil} if your select routine is buggy.
11004 @item nntp-nov-is-evil
11005 @vindex nntp-nov-is-evil
11006 If the @sc{nntp} server does not support @sc{nov}, you could set this
11007 variable to @code{t}, but @code{nntp} usually checks automatically whether @sc{nov}
11010 @item nntp-xover-commands
11011 @vindex nntp-xover-commands
11014 List of strings used as commands to fetch @sc{nov} lines from a
11015 server. The default value of this variable is @code{("XOVER"
11019 @vindex nntp-nov-gap
11020 @code{nntp} normally sends just one big request for @sc{nov} lines to
11021 the server. The server responds with one huge list of lines. However,
11022 if you have read articles 2-5000 in the group, and only want to read
11023 article 1 and 5001, that means that @code{nntp} will fetch 4999 @sc{nov}
11024 lines that you will not need. This variable says how
11025 big a gap between two consecutive articles is allowed to be before the
11026 @code{XOVER} request is split into several request. Note that if your
11027 network is fast, setting this variable to a really small number means
11028 that fetching will probably be slower. If this variable is @code{nil},
11029 @code{nntp} will never split requests. The default is 5.
11031 @item nntp-prepare-server-hook
11032 @vindex nntp-prepare-server-hook
11033 A hook run before attempting to connect to an @sc{nntp} server.
11035 @item nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11036 @vindex nntp-warn-about-losing-connection
11037 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, some noise will be made when a
11038 server closes connection.
11040 @item nntp-record-commands
11041 @vindex nntp-record-commands
11042 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nntp} will log all commands it sends to the
11043 @sc{nntp} server (along with a timestamp) in the @samp{*nntp-log*}
11044 buffer. This is useful if you are debugging a Gnus/@sc{nntp} connection
11045 that doesn't seem to work.
11047 @item nntp-open-connection-function
11048 @vindex nntp-open-connection-function
11049 It is possible to customize how the connection to the nntp server will
11050 be opened. If you specify an @code{nntp-open-connection-function}
11051 parameter, Gnus will use that function to establish the connection.
11052 Five pre-made functions are supplied. These functions can be grouped in
11053 two categories: direct connection functions (three pre-made), and
11054 indirect ones (two pre-made).
11058 * Direct Functions:: Connecting directly to the server.
11059 * Indirect Functions:: Connecting indirectly to the server.
11060 * Common Variables:: Understood by several connection functions.
11064 @node Direct Functions
11065 @subsubsection Direct Functions
11066 @cindex direct connection functions
11068 These functions are called direct because they open a direct connection
11069 between your machine and the @sc{nntp} server. The behavior of these
11070 functions is also affected by commonly understood variables
11071 (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11074 @findex nntp-open-network-stream
11075 @item nntp-open-network-stream
11076 This is the default, and simply connects to some port or other on the
11079 @findex nntp-open-ssl-stream
11080 @item nntp-open-ssl-stream
11081 Opens a connection to a server over a @dfn{secure} channel. To use this
11082 you must have SSLay installed
11083 (@uref{ftp://ftp.psy.uq.oz.au/pub/Crypto/SSL}, and you also need
11084 @file{ssl.el} (from the W3 distribution, for instance). You then
11085 define a server as follows:
11088 ;; Type `C-c C-c' after you've finished editing.
11090 ;; "snews" is port 563 and is predefined in our /etc/services
11092 (nntp "snews.bar.com"
11093 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-ssl-stream)
11094 (nntp-port-number "snews")
11095 (nntp-address "snews.bar.com"))
11098 @findex nntp-open-telnet-stream
11099 @item nntp-open-telnet-stream
11100 Opens a connection to an @sc{nntp} server by simply @samp{telnet}'ing
11101 it. You might wonder why this function exists, since we have the
11102 default @code{nntp-open-network-stream} which would do the job. (One
11103 of) the reason(s) is that if you are behind a firewall but have direct
11104 connections to the outside world thanks to a command wrapper like
11105 @code{runsocks}, you can use it like this:
11109 (nntp-pre-command "runsocks")
11110 (nntp-open-connection-function nntp-open-telnet-stream)
11111 (nntp-address "the.news.server"))
11114 With the default method, you would need to wrap your whole Emacs
11115 session, which is not a good idea.
11119 @node Indirect Functions
11120 @subsubsection Indirect Functions
11121 @cindex indirect connection functions
11123 These functions are called indirect because they connect to an
11124 intermediate host before actually connecting to the @sc{nntp} server.
11125 All of these functions and related variables are also said to belong to
11126 the "via" family of connection: they're all prefixed with "via" to make
11127 things cleaner. The behavior of these functions is also affected by
11128 commonly understood variables (@pxref{Common Variables}).
11131 @item nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11132 @findex nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet
11133 Does an @samp{rlogin} on a remote system, and then does a @samp{telnet}
11134 to the real @sc{nntp} server from there. This is useful for instance if
11135 you need to connect to a firewall machine first.
11137 @code{nntp-open-via-rlogin-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11140 @item nntp-via-rlogin-command
11141 @vindex nntp-via-rlogin-command
11142 Command used to log in on the intermediate host. The default is
11143 @samp{rsh}, but @samp{ssh} is a popular alternative.
11146 @item nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11147 @findex nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet
11148 Does essentially the same, but uses @samp{telnet} instead of
11149 @samp{rlogin} to connect to the intermediate host.
11151 @code{nntp-open-via-telnet-and-telnet}-specific variables:
11154 @item nntp-via-telnet-command
11155 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-command
11156 Command used to @code{telnet} the intermediate host. The default is
11159 @item nntp-via-telnet-switches
11160 @vindex nntp-via-telnet-switches
11161 List of strings to be used as the switches to the
11162 @code{nntp-via-telnet-command} command. The default is @samp{("-8")}.
11164 @item nntp-via-user-password
11165 @vindex nntp-via-user-password
11166 Password to use when logging in on the intermediate host.
11168 @item nntp-via-envuser
11169 @vindex nntp-via-envuser
11170 If non-@code{nil}, the intermediate @code{telnet} session (client and
11171 server both) will support the @code{ENVIRON} option and not prompt for
11172 login name. This works for Solaris @code{telnet}, for instance.
11174 @item nntp-via-shell-prompt
11175 @vindex nntp-via-shell-prompt
11176 Regexp matching the shell prompt on the intermediate host. The default
11177 is @samp{bash\\|\$ *\r?$\\|> *\r?}.
11184 Here are some additional variables that are understood by all the above
11189 @item nntp-via-user-name
11190 @vindex nntp-via-user-name
11191 User name to use when connecting to the intermediate host.
11193 @item nntp-via-address
11194 @vindex nntp-via-address
11195 Address of the intermediate host to connect to.
11200 @node Common Variables
11201 @subsubsection Common Variables
11203 The following variables affect the behavior of all, or several of the
11204 pre-made connection functions. When not specified, all functions are
11209 @item nntp-pre-command
11210 @vindex nntp-pre-command
11211 A command wrapper to use when connecting through a non native connection
11212 function (all except @code{nntp-open-network-stream} and
11213 @code{nntp-open-ssl-stream}. This is where you would put a @samp{SOCKS}
11214 wrapper for instance.
11217 @vindex nntp-address
11218 The address of the @sc{nntp} server.
11220 @item nntp-port-number
11221 @vindex nntp-port-number
11222 Port number to connect to the @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{nntp}.
11224 @item nntp-end-of-line
11225 @vindex nntp-end-of-line
11226 String to use as end-of-line marker when talking to the @sc{nntp}
11227 server. This is @samp{\r\n} by default, but should be @samp{\n} when
11228 using a non native connection function.
11230 @item nntp-telnet-command
11231 @vindex nntp-telnet-command
11232 Command to use when connecting to the @sc{nntp} server through
11233 @samp{telnet}. This is NOT for an intermediate host. This is just for
11234 the real @sc{nntp} server. The default is @samp{telnet}.
11236 @item nntp-telnet-switches
11237 @vindex nntp-telnet-switches
11238 A list of switches to pass to @code{nntp-telnet-command}. The default
11245 @subsection News Spool
11249 Subscribing to a foreign group from the local spool is extremely easy,
11250 and might be useful, for instance, to speed up reading groups that
11251 contain very big articles---@samp{alt.binaries.pictures.furniture}, for
11254 Anyway, you just specify @code{nnspool} as the method and @code{""} (or
11255 anything else) as the address.
11257 If you have access to a local spool, you should probably use that as the
11258 native select method (@pxref{Finding the News}). It is normally faster
11259 than using an @code{nntp} select method, but might not be. It depends.
11260 You just have to try to find out what's best at your site.
11264 @item nnspool-inews-program
11265 @vindex nnspool-inews-program
11266 Program used to post an article.
11268 @item nnspool-inews-switches
11269 @vindex nnspool-inews-switches
11270 Parameters given to the inews program when posting an article.
11272 @item nnspool-spool-directory
11273 @vindex nnspool-spool-directory
11274 Where @code{nnspool} looks for the articles. This is normally
11275 @file{/usr/spool/news/}.
11277 @item nnspool-nov-directory
11278 @vindex nnspool-nov-directory
11279 Where @code{nnspool} will look for @sc{nov} files. This is normally
11280 @file{/usr/spool/news/over.view/}.
11282 @item nnspool-lib-dir
11283 @vindex nnspool-lib-dir
11284 Where the news lib dir is (@file{/usr/lib/news/} by default).
11286 @item nnspool-active-file
11287 @vindex nnspool-active-file
11288 The path to the active file.
11290 @item nnspool-newsgroups-file
11291 @vindex nnspool-newsgroups-file
11292 The path to the group descriptions file.
11294 @item nnspool-history-file
11295 @vindex nnspool-history-file
11296 The path to the news history file.
11298 @item nnspool-active-times-file
11299 @vindex nnspool-active-times-file
11300 The path to the active date file.
11302 @item nnspool-nov-is-evil
11303 @vindex nnspool-nov-is-evil
11304 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnspool} won't try to use any @sc{nov} files
11307 @item nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11308 @vindex nnspool-sift-nov-with-sed
11310 If non-@code{nil}, which is the default, use @code{sed} to get the
11311 relevant portion from the overview file. If nil, @code{nnspool} will
11312 load the entire file into a buffer and process it there.
11318 @section Getting Mail
11319 @cindex reading mail
11322 Reading mail with a newsreader---isn't that just plain WeIrD? But of
11326 * Mail in a Newsreader:: Important introductory notes.
11327 * Getting Started Reading Mail:: A simple cookbook example.
11328 * Splitting Mail:: How to create mail groups.
11329 * Mail Sources:: How to tell Gnus where to get mail from.
11330 * Mail Backend Variables:: Variables for customizing mail handling.
11331 * Fancy Mail Splitting:: Gnus can do hairy splitting of incoming mail.
11332 * Group Mail Splitting:: Use group customize to drive mail splitting.
11333 * Incorporating Old Mail:: What about the old mail you have?
11334 * Expiring Mail:: Getting rid of unwanted mail.
11335 * Washing Mail:: Removing gruft from the mail you get.
11336 * Duplicates:: Dealing with duplicated mail.
11337 * Not Reading Mail:: Using mail backends for reading other files.
11338 * Choosing a Mail Backend:: Gnus can read a variety of mail formats.
11342 @node Mail in a Newsreader
11343 @subsection Mail in a Newsreader
11345 If you are used to traditional mail readers, but have decided to switch
11346 to reading mail with Gnus, you may find yourself experiencing something
11347 of a culture shock.
11349 Gnus does not behave like traditional mail readers. If you want to make
11350 it behave that way, you can, but it's an uphill battle.
11352 Gnus, by default, handles all its groups using the same approach. This
11353 approach is very newsreaderly---you enter a group, see the new/unread
11354 messages, and when you read the messages, they get marked as read, and
11355 you don't see them any more. (Unless you explicitly ask for them.)
11357 In particular, you do not do anything explicitly to delete messages.
11359 Does this mean that all the messages that have been marked as read are
11360 deleted? How awful!
11362 But, no, it means that old messages are @dfn{expired} according to some
11363 scheme or other. For news messages, the expire process is controlled by
11364 the news administrator; for mail, the expire process is controlled by
11365 you. The expire process for mail is covered in depth in @pxref{Expiring
11368 What many Gnus users find, after using it a while for both news and
11369 mail, is that the transport mechanism has very little to do with how
11370 they want to treat a message.
11372 Many people subscribe to several mailing lists. These are transported
11373 via SMTP, and are therefore mail. But we might go for weeks without
11374 answering, or even reading these messages very carefully. We may not
11375 need to save them because if we should need to read one again, they are
11376 archived somewhere else.
11378 Some people have local news groups which have only a handful of readers.
11379 These are transported via @sc{nntp}, and are therefore news. But we may need
11380 to read and answer a large fraction of the messages very carefully in
11381 order to do our work. And there may not be an archive, so we may need
11382 to save the interesting messages the same way we would personal mail.
11384 The important distinction turns out to be not the transport mechanism,
11385 but other factors such as how interested we are in the subject matter,
11386 or how easy it is to retrieve the message if we need to read it again.
11388 Gnus provides many options for sorting mail into ``groups'' which behave
11389 like newsgroups, and for treating each group (whether mail or news)
11392 Some users never get comfortable using the Gnus (ahem) paradigm and wish
11393 that Gnus should grow up and be a male, er, mail reader. It is possible
11394 to whip Gnus into a more mailreaderly being, but, as said before, it's
11395 not easy. People who prefer proper mail readers should try @sc{vm}
11396 instead, which is an excellent, and proper, mail reader.
11398 I don't mean to scare anybody off, but I want to make it clear that you
11399 may be required to learn a new way of thinking about messages. After
11400 you've been subjected to The Gnus Way, you will come to love it. I can
11401 guarantee it. (At least the guy who sold me the Emacs Subliminal
11402 Brain-Washing Functions that I've put into Gnus did guarantee it. You
11403 Will Be Assimilated. You Love Gnus. You Love The Gnus Mail Way.
11407 @node Getting Started Reading Mail
11408 @subsection Getting Started Reading Mail
11410 It's quite easy to use Gnus to read your new mail. You just plonk the
11411 mail backend of your choice into @code{gnus-secondary-select-methods},
11412 and things will happen automatically.
11414 For instance, if you want to use @code{nnml} (which is a "one file per
11415 mail" backend), you could put the following in your @file{.gnus} file:
11418 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
11421 Now, the next time you start Gnus, this backend will be queried for new
11422 articles, and it will move all the messages in your spool file to its
11423 directory, which is @code{~/Mail/} by default. The new group that will
11424 be created (@samp{mail.misc}) will be subscribed, and you can read it
11425 like any other group.
11427 You will probably want to split the mail into several groups, though:
11430 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11431 '(("junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11432 ("crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11436 This will result in three new @code{nnml} mail groups being created:
11437 @samp{nnml:junk}, @samp{nnml:crazy}, and @samp{nnml:other}. All the
11438 mail that doesn't fit into the first two groups will be placed in the
11441 This should be sufficient for reading mail with Gnus. You might want to
11442 give the other sections in this part of the manual a perusal, though.
11443 Especially @pxref{Choosing a Mail Backend} and @pxref{Expiring Mail}.
11446 @node Splitting Mail
11447 @subsection Splitting Mail
11448 @cindex splitting mail
11449 @cindex mail splitting
11451 @vindex nnmail-split-methods
11452 The @code{nnmail-split-methods} variable says how the incoming mail is
11453 to be split into groups.
11456 (setq nnmail-split-methods
11457 '(("mail.junk" "^From:.*Lars Ingebrigtsen")
11458 ("mail.crazy" "^Subject:.*die\\|^Organization:.*flabby")
11459 ("mail.other" "")))
11462 This variable is a list of lists, where the first element of each of
11463 these lists is the name of the mail group (they do not have to be called
11464 something beginning with @samp{mail}, by the way), and the second
11465 element is a regular expression used on the header of each mail to
11466 determine if it belongs in this mail group. The first string may
11467 contain @samp{\\1} forms, like the ones used by @code{replace-match} to
11468 insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For instance:
11471 ("list.\\1" "From:.* \\(.*\\)-list@@majordomo.com")
11474 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
11475 called narrowed to the headers with the first element of the rule as the
11476 argument. It should return a non-@code{nil} value if it thinks that the
11477 mail belongs in that group.
11479 The last of these groups should always be a general one, and the regular
11480 expression should @emph{always} be @samp{} so that it matches any mails
11481 that haven't been matched by any of the other regexps. (These rules are
11482 processed from the beginning of the alist toward the end. The first
11483 rule to make a match will "win", unless you have crossposting enabled.
11484 In that case, all matching rules will "win".)
11486 If you like to tinker with this yourself, you can set this variable to a
11487 function of your choice. This function will be called without any
11488 arguments in a buffer narrowed to the headers of an incoming mail
11489 message. The function should return a list of group names that it
11490 thinks should carry this mail message.
11492 Note that the mail backends are free to maul the poor, innocent,
11493 incoming headers all they want to. They all add @code{Lines} headers;
11494 some add @code{X-Gnus-Group} headers; most rename the Unix mbox
11495 @code{From<SPACE>} line to something else.
11497 @vindex nnmail-crosspost
11498 The mail backends all support cross-posting. If several regexps match,
11499 the mail will be ``cross-posted'' to all those groups.
11500 @code{nnmail-crosspost} says whether to use this mechanism or not. Note
11501 that no articles are crossposted to the general (@samp{}) group.
11503 @vindex nnmail-crosspost-link-function
11506 @code{nnmh} and @code{nnml} makes crossposts by creating hard links to
11507 the crossposted articles. However, not all file systems support hard
11508 links. If that's the case for you, set
11509 @code{nnmail-crosspost-link-function} to @code{copy-file}. (This
11510 variable is @code{add-name-to-file} by default.)
11512 @kindex M-x nnmail-split-history
11513 @kindex nnmail-split-history
11514 If you wish to see where the previous mail split put the messages, you
11515 can use the @kbd{M-x nnmail-split-history} command. If you wish to see
11516 where re-spooling messages would put the messages, you can use
11517 @code{gnus-summary-respool-trace} and related commands (@pxref{Mail
11520 Gnus gives you all the opportunity you could possibly want for shooting
11521 yourself in the foot. Let's say you create a group that will contain
11522 all the mail you get from your boss. And then you accidentally
11523 unsubscribe from the group. Gnus will still put all the mail from your
11524 boss in the unsubscribed group, and so, when your boss mails you ``Have
11525 that report ready by Monday or you're fired!'', you'll never see it and,
11526 come Tuesday, you'll still believe that you're gainfully employed while
11527 you really should be out collecting empty bottles to save up for next
11528 month's rent money.
11532 @subsection Mail Sources
11534 Mail can be gotten from many different sources---the mail spool, from a
11535 POP mail server, from a procmail directory, or from a maildir, for
11539 * Mail Source Specifiers:: How to specify what a mail source is.
11540 * Mail Source Customization:: Some variables that influence things.
11541 * Fetching Mail:: Using the mail source specifiers.
11545 @node Mail Source Specifiers
11546 @subsubsection Mail Source Specifiers
11548 @cindex mail server
11551 @cindex mail source
11553 You tell Gnus how to fetch mail by setting @code{mail-sources}
11554 (@pxref{Fetching Mail}) to a @dfn{mail source specifier}.
11559 (pop :server "pop3.mailserver.com" :user "myname")
11562 As can be observed, a mail source specifier is a list where the first
11563 element is a @dfn{mail source type}, followed by an arbitrary number of
11564 @dfn{keywords}. Keywords that are not explicitly specified are given
11567 The following mail source types are available:
11571 Get mail from a single file; typically from the mail spool.
11577 The path of the file. Defaults to the value of the @code{MAIL}
11578 environment variable or @file{/usr/mail/spool/user-name}.
11581 An example file mail source:
11584 (file :path "/usr/spool/mail/user-name")
11587 Or using the default path:
11593 If the mail spool file is not located on the local machine, it's best to
11594 use POP or @sc{imap} or the like to fetch the mail. You can not use ange-ftp
11595 file names here---it has no way to lock the mail spool while moving the
11598 If it's impossible to set up a proper server, you can use ssh instead.
11602 '((file :prescript "ssh host bin/getmail >%t")))
11605 The @samp{getmail} script would look something like the following:
11609 # getmail - move mail from spool to stdout
11612 MOVEMAIL=/usr/lib/emacs/20.3/i386-redhat-linux/movemail
11614 rm -f $TMP; $MOVEMAIL $MAIL $TMP >/dev/null && cat $TMP
11617 Alter this script to fit find the @samp{movemail} you want to use.
11621 Get mail from several files in a directory. This is typically used when
11622 you have procmail split the incoming mail into several files. Setting
11623 @code{nnmail-scan-directory-mail-source-once} to non-nil forces Gnus to
11624 scan the mail source only once. This is particularly useful if you want
11625 to scan mail groups at a specified level.
11631 The path of the directory where the files are. There is no default
11635 Only files ending with this suffix are used. The default is
11639 Only files that have this predicate return non-@code{nil} are returned.
11640 The default is @code{identity}. This is used as an additional
11641 filter---only files that have the right suffix @emph{and} satisfy this
11642 predicate are considered.
11646 Script run before/after fetching mail.
11650 An example directory mail source:
11653 (directory :path "/home/user-name/procmail-dir/"
11658 Get mail from a POP server.
11664 The name of the POP server. The default is taken from the
11665 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11668 The port number of the POP server. This can be a number (eg,
11669 @samp{:port 1234}) or a string (eg, @samp{:port "pop3"}). If it is a
11670 string, it should be a service name as listed in @file{/etc/services} on
11671 Unix systems. The default is @samp{"pop3"}. On some systems you might
11672 need to specify it as @samp{"pop-3"} instead.
11675 The user name to give to the POP server. The default is the login
11679 The password to give to the POP server. If not specified, the user is
11683 The program to use to fetch mail from the POP server. This should be
11684 a @code{format}-like string. Here's an example:
11687 fetchmail %u@@%s -P %p %t
11690 The valid format specifier characters are:
11694 The name of the file the mail is to be moved to. This must always be
11695 included in this string.
11698 The name of the server.
11701 The port number of the server.
11704 The user name to use.
11707 The password to use.
11710 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11711 corresponding keywords.
11714 A script to be run before fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11715 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11718 A script to be run after fetching the mail. The syntax is the same as
11719 the @code{:program} keyword. This can also be a function to be run.
11722 The function to use to fetch mail from the POP server. The function is
11723 called with one parameter---the name of the file where the mail should
11726 @item :authentication
11727 This can be either the symbol @code{password} or the symbol @code{apop}
11728 and says what authentication scheme to use. The default is
11733 If the @code{:program} and @code{:function} keywords aren't specified,
11734 @code{pop3-movemail} will be used.
11736 Here are some examples. Fetch from the default POP server, using the
11737 default user name, and default fetcher:
11743 Fetch from a named server with a named user and password:
11746 (pop :server "my.pop.server"
11747 :user "user-name" :password "secret")
11750 Use @samp{movemail} to move the mail:
11753 (pop :program "movemail po:%u %t %p")
11757 Get mail from a maildir. This is a type of mailbox that is supported by
11758 at least qmail and postfix, where each file in a special directory
11759 contains exactly one mail.
11765 The path of the directory where the mails are stored. The default is
11766 taken from the @code{MAILDIR} environment variable or
11769 The subdirectories of the Maildir. The default is
11770 @samp{("new" "cur")}.
11772 @c If you sometimes look at your mail through a pop3 daemon before fetching
11773 @c them with Gnus, you may also have to fetch your mails from the
11774 @c @code{cur} directory inside the maildir, like in the first example
11777 You can also get mails from remote hosts (because maildirs don't suffer
11778 from locking problems).
11782 Two example maildir mail sources:
11785 (maildir :path "/home/user-name/Maildir/"
11786 :subdirs ("cur" "new"))
11790 (maildir :path "/user@@remotehost.org:~/Maildir/"
11795 Get mail from a @sc{imap} server. If you don't want to use @sc{imap}
11796 as intended, as a network mail reading protocol (ie with nnimap), for
11797 some reason or other, Gnus let you treat it similar to a POP server
11798 and fetches articles from a given @sc{imap} mailbox. @xref{IMAP}, for
11805 The name of the @sc{imap} server. The default is taken from the
11806 @code{MAILHOST} environment variable.
11809 The port number of the @sc{imap} server. The default is @samp{143}, or
11810 @samp{993} for SSL connections.
11813 The user name to give to the @sc{imap} server. The default is the login
11817 The password to give to the @sc{imap} server. If not specified, the user is
11821 What stream to use for connecting to the server, this is one of the
11822 symbols in @code{imap-stream-alist}. Right now, this means
11823 @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{ssl} or the default @samp{network}.
11825 @item :authentication
11826 Which authenticator to use for authenticating to the server, this is one
11827 of the symbols in @code{imap-authenticator-alist}. Right now, this
11828 means @samp{kerberos4}, @samp{cram-md5}, @samp{anonymous} or the default
11832 When using the `shell' :stream, the contents of this variable is
11833 mapped into the `imap-shell-program' variable. This should be a
11834 @code{format}-like string (or list of strings). Here's an example:
11840 The valid format specifier characters are:
11844 The name of the server.
11847 User name from `imap-default-user'.
11850 The port number of the server.
11853 The values used for these specs are taken from the values you give the
11854 corresponding keywords.
11857 The name of the mailbox to get mail from. The default is @samp{INBOX}
11858 which normally is the mailbox which receive incoming mail.
11861 The predicate used to find articles to fetch. The default, @samp{UNSEEN
11862 UNDELETED}, is probably the best choice for most people, but if you
11863 sometimes peek in your mailbox with a @sc{imap} client and mark some
11864 articles as read (or; SEEN) you might want to set this to @samp{nil}.
11865 Then all articles in the mailbox is fetched, no matter what. For a
11866 complete list of predicates, see RFC 2060 §6.4.4.
11869 How to flag fetched articles on the server, the default @samp{\Deleted}
11870 will mark them as deleted, an alternative would be @samp{\Seen} which
11871 would simply mark them as read. These are the two most likely choices,
11872 but more flags are defined in RFC 2060 §2.3.2.
11875 If non-nil, don't remove all articles marked as deleted in the mailbox
11876 after finishing the fetch.
11880 An example @sc{imap} mail source:
11883 (imap :server "mail.mycorp.com"
11885 :fetchflag "\\Seen")
11889 Get mail from a webmail server, such as www.hotmail.com,
11890 webmail.netscape.com, www.netaddress.com, www.my-deja.com.
11892 NOTE: Now mail.yahoo.com provides POP3 service, so @sc{pop} mail source
11895 NOTE: Webmail largely depends cookies. A "one-line-cookie" patch is
11896 required for url "4.0pre.46".
11898 WARNING: Mails may lost. NO WARRANTY.
11904 The type of the webmail server. The default is @code{hotmail}. The
11905 alternatives are @code{netscape}, @code{netaddress}, @code{my-deja}.
11908 The user name to give to the webmail server. The default is the login
11912 The password to give to the webmail server. If not specified, the user is
11916 If non-nil, only fetch unread articles and don't move them to trash
11917 folder after finishing the fetch.
11921 An example webmail source:
11924 (webmail :subtype 'hotmail
11926 :password "secret")
11931 @item Common Keywords
11932 Common keywords can be used in any type of mail source.
11938 If non-nil, fetch the mail even when Gnus is unplugged. If you use
11939 directory source to get mail, you can specify it as in this example:
11943 '((directory :path "/home/pavel/.Spool/"
11948 Gnus will then fetch your mail even when you are unplugged. This is
11949 useful when you use local mail and news.
11954 @subsubsection Function Interface
11956 Some of the above keywords specify a Lisp function to be executed.
11957 For each keyword @code{:foo}, the Lisp variable @code{foo} is bound to
11958 the value of the keyword while the function is executing. For example,
11959 consider the following mail-source setting:
11962 (setq mail-sources '((pop :user "jrl"
11963 :server "pophost" :function fetchfunc)))
11966 While the function @code{fetchfunc} is executing, the symbol @code{user}
11967 is bound to @code{"jrl"}, and the symbol @code{server} is bound to
11968 @code{"pophost"}. The symbols @code{port}, @code{password},
11969 @code{program}, @code{prescript}, @code{postscript}, @code{function},
11970 and @code{authentication} are also bound (to their default values).
11972 See above for a list of keywords for each type of mail source.
11975 @node Mail Source Customization
11976 @subsubsection Mail Source Customization
11978 The following is a list of variables that influence how the mail is
11979 fetched. You would normally not need to set or change any of these
11983 @item mail-source-crash-box
11984 @vindex mail-source-crash-box
11985 File where mail will be stored while processing it. The default is
11986 @file{~/.emacs-mail-crash-box}.
11988 @item mail-source-delete-incoming
11989 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
11990 If non-@code{nil}, delete incoming files after handling them.
11992 @item mail-source-directory
11993 @vindex mail-source-directory
11994 Directory where files (if any) will be stored. The default is
11995 @file{~/Mail/}. At present, the only thing this is used for is to say
11996 where the incoming files will be stored if the previous variable is
11999 @item mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12000 @vindex mail-source-incoming-file-prefix
12001 Prefix for file name for storing incoming mail. The default is
12002 @file{Incoming}, in which case files will end up with names like
12003 @file{Incoming30630D_} or @file{Incoming298602ZD}. This is really only
12004 relevant if @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} is @code{nil}.
12006 @item mail-source-default-file-modes
12007 @vindex mail-source-default-file-modes
12008 All new mail files will get this file mode. The default is 384.
12013 @node Fetching Mail
12014 @subsubsection Fetching Mail
12016 @vindex mail-sources
12017 @vindex nnmail-spool-file
12018 The way to actually tell Gnus where to get new mail from is to set
12019 @code{mail-sources} to a list of mail source specifiers
12020 (@pxref{Mail Source Specifiers}).
12022 If this variable (and the obsolescent @code{nnmail-spool-file}) is
12023 @code{nil}, the mail backends will never attempt to fetch mail by
12026 If you want to fetch mail both from your local spool as well as a POP
12027 mail server, you'd say something like:
12032 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12033 :password "secret")))
12036 Or, if you don't want to use any of the keyword defaults:
12040 '((file :path "/var/spool/mail/user-name")
12041 (pop :server "pop3.mail.server"
12044 :password "secret")))
12048 When you use a mail backend, Gnus will slurp all your mail from your
12049 inbox and plonk it down in your home directory. Gnus doesn't move any
12050 mail if you're not using a mail backend---you have to do a lot of magic
12051 invocations first. At the time when you have finished drawing the
12052 pentagram, lightened the candles, and sacrificed the goat, you really
12053 shouldn't be too surprised when Gnus moves your mail.
12057 @node Mail Backend Variables
12058 @subsection Mail Backend Variables
12060 These variables are (for the most part) pertinent to all the various
12064 @vindex nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12065 @item nnmail-read-incoming-hook
12066 The mail backends all call this hook after reading new mail. You can
12067 use this hook to notify any mail watch programs, if you want to.
12069 @vindex nnmail-split-hook
12070 @item nnmail-split-hook
12071 @findex article-decode-encoded-words
12072 @findex RFC 1522 decoding
12073 @findex RFC 2047 decoding
12074 Hook run in the buffer where the mail headers of each message is kept
12075 just before the splitting based on these headers is done. The hook is
12076 free to modify the buffer contents in any way it sees fit---the buffer
12077 is discarded after the splitting has been done, and no changes performed
12078 in the buffer will show up in any files.
12079 @code{gnus-article-decode-encoded-words} is one likely function to add
12082 @vindex nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12083 @vindex nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12084 @item nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12085 @itemx nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12086 These are two useful hooks executed when treating new incoming
12087 mail---@code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook} (is called just before
12088 starting to handle the new mail) and
12089 @code{nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook} (is called when the mail handling
12090 is done). Here's and example of using these two hooks to change the
12091 default file modes the new mail files get:
12094 (add-hook 'nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook
12095 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 511)))
12097 (add-hook 'nnmail-post-get-new-mail-hook
12098 (lambda () (set-default-file-modes 551)))
12101 @item nnmail-use-long-file-names
12102 @vindex nnmail-use-long-file-names
12103 If non-@code{nil}, the mail backends will use long file and directory
12104 names. Groups like @samp{mail.misc} will end up in directories
12105 (assuming use of @code{nnml} backend) or files (assuming use of
12106 @code{nnfolder} backend) like @file{mail.misc}. If it is @code{nil},
12107 the same group will end up in @file{mail/misc}.
12109 @item nnmail-delete-file-function
12110 @vindex nnmail-delete-file-function
12111 @findex delete-file
12112 Function called to delete files. It is @code{delete-file} by default.
12114 @item nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12115 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12116 If non-@code{nil}, put the @code{Message-ID}s of articles imported into
12117 the backend (via @code{Gcc}, for instance) into the mail duplication
12118 discovery cache. The default is @code{nil}.
12123 @node Fancy Mail Splitting
12124 @subsection Fancy Mail Splitting
12125 @cindex mail splitting
12126 @cindex fancy mail splitting
12128 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy
12129 @findex nnmail-split-fancy
12130 If the rather simple, standard method for specifying how to split mail
12131 doesn't allow you to do what you want, you can set
12132 @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy}. Then you can
12133 play with the @code{nnmail-split-fancy} variable.
12135 Let's look at an example value of this variable first:
12138 ;; Messages from the mailer daemon are not crossposted to any of
12139 ;; the ordinary groups. Warnings are put in a separate group
12140 ;; from real errors.
12141 (| ("from" mail (| ("subject" "warn.*" "mail.warning")
12143 ;; Non-error messages are crossposted to all relevant
12144 ;; groups, but we don't crosspost between the group for the
12145 ;; (ding) list and the group for other (ding) related mail.
12146 (& (| (any "ding@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "ding.list")
12147 ("subject" "ding" "ding.misc"))
12148 ;; Other mailing lists...
12149 (any "procmail@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "procmail.list")
12150 (any "SmartList@@informatik\\.rwth-aachen\\.de" "SmartList.list")
12151 ;; Both lists below have the same suffix, so prevent
12152 ;; cross-posting to mkpkg.list of messages posted only to
12153 ;; the bugs- list, but allow cross-posting when the
12154 ;; message was really cross-posted.
12155 (any "bugs-mypackage@@somewhere" "mypkg.bugs")
12156 (any "mypackage@@somewhere\" - "bugs-mypackage" "mypkg.list")
12158 (any "larsi@@ifi\\.uio\\.no" "people.Lars_Magne_Ingebrigtsen"))
12159 ;; Unmatched mail goes to the catch all group.
12163 This variable has the format of a @dfn{split}. A split is a (possibly)
12164 recursive structure where each split may contain other splits. Here are
12165 the five possible split syntaxes:
12170 @samp{group}: If the split is a string, that will be taken as a group
12171 name. Normal regexp match expansion will be done. See below for
12175 @code{(@var{field} @var{value} @code{[-} @var{restrict}
12176 @code{[@dots{}]}@code{]} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, the
12177 first element of which is a string, then store the message as
12178 specified by @var{split}, if header @var{field} (a regexp) contains
12179 @var{value} (also a regexp). If @var{restrict} (yet another regexp)
12180 matches some string after @var{field} and before the end of the
12181 matched @var{value}, the @var{split} is ignored. If none of the
12182 @var{restrict} clauses match, @var{split} is processed.
12185 @code{(| @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12186 element is @code{|} (vertical bar), then process each @var{split} until
12187 one of them matches. A @var{split} is said to match if it will cause
12188 the mail message to be stored in one or more groups.
12191 @code{(& @var{split}@dots{})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12192 element is @code{&}, then process all @var{split}s in the list.
12195 @code{junk}: If the split is the symbol @code{junk}, then don't save
12196 this message. Use with extreme caution.
12199 @code{(: @var{function} @var{arg1} @var{arg2} @dots{})}: If the split is
12200 a list, and the first element is @code{:}, then the second element will
12201 be called as a function with @var{args} given as arguments. The
12202 function should return a @var{split}.
12205 For instance, the following function could be used to split based on the
12206 body of the messages:
12209 (defun split-on-body ()
12211 (set-buffer " *nnmail incoming*")
12212 (goto-char (point-min))
12213 (when (re-search-forward "Some.*string" nil t)
12217 The @samp{" *nnmail incoming*"} is narrowed to the message in question
12218 when the @code{:} function is run.
12221 @code{(! @var{func} @var{split})}: If the split is a list, and the first
12222 element is @code{!}, then SPLIT will be processed, and FUNC will be
12223 called as a function with the result of SPLIT as argument. FUNC should
12227 @code{nil}: If the split is @code{nil}, it is ignored.
12231 In these splits, @var{field} must match a complete field name.
12232 @var{value} must match a complete word according to the fundamental mode
12233 syntax table. You can use @code{.*} in the regexps to match partial
12234 field names or words. In other words, all @var{value}'s are wrapped in
12235 @samp{\<} and @samp{\>} pairs.
12237 @vindex nnmail-split-abbrev-alist
12238 @var{field} and @var{value} can also be lisp symbols, in that case they
12239 are expanded as specified by the variable
12240 @code{nnmail-split-abbrev-alist}. This is an alist of cons cells, where
12241 the @code{car} of a cell contains the key, and the @code{cdr} contains the associated
12244 @vindex nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table
12245 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-syntax-table} is the syntax table in effect
12246 when all this splitting is performed.
12248 If you want to have Gnus create groups dynamically based on some
12249 information in the headers (i.e., do @code{replace-match}-like
12250 substitutions in the group names), you can say things like:
12253 (any "debian-\\b\\(\\w+\\)@@lists.debian.org" "mail.debian.\\1")
12256 In this example, messages sent to @samp{debian-foo@@lists.debian.org}
12257 will be filed in @samp{mail.debian.foo}.
12259 If the string contains the element @samp{\&}, then the previously
12260 matched string will be substituted. Similarly, the elements @samp{\\1}
12261 up to @samp{\\9} will be substituted with the text matched by the
12262 groupings 1 through 9.
12264 @findex nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent
12265 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} is a function which allows you to
12266 split followups into the same groups their parents are in. Sometimes
12267 you can't make splitting rules for all your mail. For example, your
12268 boss might send you personal mail regarding different projects you are
12269 working on, and as you can't tell your boss to put a distinguishing
12270 string into the subject line, you have to resort to manually moving the
12271 messages into the right group. With this function, you only have to do
12272 it once per thread.
12274 To use this feature, you have to set @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to a
12275 non-nil value. And then you can include
12276 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} using the colon feature, like so:
12278 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12279 '(| (: nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent)
12280 ;; other splits go here
12284 This feature works as follows: when @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} is
12285 non-nil, Gnus records the message id of every message it sees in the
12286 file specified by the variable @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file},
12287 together with the group it is in (the group is omitted for non-mail
12288 messages). When mail splitting is invoked, the function
12289 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent} then looks at the References (and
12290 In-Reply-To) header of each message to split and searches the file
12291 specified by @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file} for the message ids.
12292 When it has found a parent, it returns the corresponding group name
12293 unless the group name matches the regexp
12294 @code{nnmail-split-fancy-with-parent-ignore-groups}. It is recommended
12295 that you set @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length} to a somewhat higher
12296 number than the default so that the message ids are still in the cache.
12297 (A value of 5000 appears to create a file some 300 kBytes in size.)
12298 @vindex nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids
12299 When @code{nnmail-cache-accepted-message-ids} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus
12300 also records the message ids of moved articles, so that the followup
12301 messages goes into the new group.
12304 @node Group Mail Splitting
12305 @subsection Group Mail Splitting
12306 @cindex mail splitting
12307 @cindex group mail splitting
12309 @findex gnus-group-split
12310 If you subscribe to dozens of mailing lists but you don't want to
12311 maintain mail splitting rules manually, group mail splitting is for you.
12312 You just have to set @var{to-list} and/or @var{to-address} in group
12313 parameters or group customization and set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to
12314 @code{gnus-group-split}. This splitting function will scan all groups
12315 for those parameters and split mail accordingly, i.e., messages posted
12316 from or to the addresses specified in the parameters @var{to-list} or
12317 @var{to-address} of a mail group will be stored in that group.
12319 Sometimes, mailing lists have multiple addresses, and you may want mail
12320 splitting to recognize them all: just set the @var{extra-aliases} group
12321 parameter to the list of additional addresses and it's done. If you'd
12322 rather use a regular expression, set @var{split-regexp}.
12324 All these parameters in a group will be used to create an
12325 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split, in which the @var{field} is @samp{any},
12326 the @var{value} is a single regular expression that matches
12327 @var{to-list}, @var{to-address}, all of @var{extra-aliases} and all
12328 matches of @var{split-regexp}, and the @var{split} is the name of the
12329 group. @var{restrict}s are also supported: just set the
12330 @var{split-exclude} parameter to a list of regular expressions.
12332 If you can't get the right split to be generated using all these
12333 parameters, or you just need something fancier, you can set the
12334 parameter @var{split-spec} to an @code{nnmail-split-fancy} split. In
12335 this case, all other aforementioned parameters will be ignored by
12336 @code{gnus-group-split}. In particular, @var{split-spec} may be set to
12337 @code{nil}, in which case the group will be ignored by
12338 @code{gnus-group-split}.
12340 @vindex gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group
12341 @code{gnus-group-split} will do cross-posting on all groups that match,
12342 by defining a single @code{&} fancy split containing one split for each
12343 group. If a message doesn't match any split, it will be stored in the
12344 group named in @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}, unless
12345 some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all}, in which case
12346 that group is used as the catch-all group. Even though this variable is
12347 often used just to name a group, it may also be set to an arbitrarily
12348 complex fancy split (after all, a group name is a fancy split), and this
12349 may be useful to split mail that doesn't go to any mailing list to
12350 personal mail folders. Note that this fancy split is added as the last
12351 element of a @code{|} split list that also contains a @code{&} split
12352 with the rules extracted from group parameters.
12354 It's time for an example. Assume the following group parameters have
12359 ((to-address . "bar@@femail.com")
12360 (split-regexp . ".*@@femail\\.com"))
12362 ((to-list . "foo@@nowhere.gov")
12363 (extra-aliases "foo@@localhost" "foo-redist@@home")
12364 (split-exclude "bugs-foo" "rambling-foo")
12365 (admin-address . "foo-request@@nowhere.gov"))
12367 ((split-spec . catch-all))
12370 Setting @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{gnus-group-split} will
12371 behave as if @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been selected and variable
12372 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} had been set as follows:
12375 (| (& (any "\\(bar@@femail\\.com\\|.*@@femail\\.com\\)" "mail.bar")
12376 (any "\\(foo@@nowhere\\.gov\\|foo@@localhost\\|foo-redist@@home\\)"
12377 - "bugs-foo" - "rambling-foo" "mail.foo"))
12381 @findex gnus-group-split-fancy
12382 If you'd rather not use group splitting for all your mail groups, you
12383 may use it for only some of them, by using @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
12387 (: gnus-mlsplt-fancy GROUPS NO-CROSSPOST CATCH-ALL)
12390 @var{groups} may be a regular expression or a list of group names whose
12391 parameters will be scanned to generate the output split.
12392 @var{no-crosspost} can be used to disable cross-posting; in this case, a
12393 single @code{|} split will be output. @var{catch-all} is the fallback
12394 fancy split, used like @var{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group}.
12395 If @var{catch-all} is @code{nil}, or if @var{split-regexp} matches the
12396 empty string in any selected group, no catch-all split will be issued.
12397 Otherwise, if some group has @var{split-spec} set to @code{catch-all},
12398 this group will override the value of the @var{catch-all} argument.
12400 @findex gnus-group-split-setup
12401 Unfortunately, scanning all groups and their parameters can be quite
12402 slow, especially considering that it has to be done for every message.
12403 But don't despair! The function @code{gnus-group-split-setup} can be
12404 used to enable @code{gnus-group-split} in a much more efficient way. It
12405 sets @code{nnmail-split-methods} to @code{nnmail-split-fancy} and sets
12406 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} to the split produced by
12407 @code{gnus-group-split-fancy}. Thus, the group parameters are only
12408 scanned once, no matter how many messages are split.
12410 @findex gnus-group-split-update
12411 However, if you change group parameters, you'd have to update
12412 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} manually. You can do it by running
12413 @code{gnus-group-split-update}. If you'd rather have it updated
12414 automatically, just tell @code{gnus-group-split-setup} to do it for
12415 you. For example, add to your @file{.gnus}:
12418 (gnus-group-split-setup AUTO-UPDATE CATCH-ALL)
12421 If @var{auto-update} is non-@code{nil}, @code{gnus-group-split-update}
12422 will be added to @code{nnmail-pre-get-new-mail-hook}, so you won't ever
12423 have to worry about updating @code{nnmail-split-fancy} again. If you
12424 don't omit @var{catch-all} (it's optional, equivalent to @code{nil}),
12425 @code{gnus-group-split-default-catch-all-group} will be set to its
12428 @vindex gnus-group-split-updated-hook
12429 Because you may want to change @code{nnmail-split-fancy} after it is set
12430 by @code{gnus-group-split-update}, this function will run
12431 @code{gnus-group-split-updated-hook} just before finishing.
12433 @node Incorporating Old Mail
12434 @subsection Incorporating Old Mail
12435 @cindex incorporating old mail
12436 @cindex import old mail
12438 Most people have lots of old mail stored in various file formats. If
12439 you have set up Gnus to read mail using one of the spiffy Gnus mail
12440 backends, you'll probably wish to have that old mail incorporated into
12443 Doing so can be quite easy.
12445 To take an example: You're reading mail using @code{nnml}
12446 (@pxref{Mail Spool}), and have set @code{nnmail-split-methods} to a
12447 satisfactory value (@pxref{Splitting Mail}). You have an old Unix mbox
12448 file filled with important, but old, mail. You want to move it into
12449 your @code{nnml} groups.
12455 Go to the group buffer.
12458 Type `G f' and give the path to the mbox file when prompted to create an
12459 @code{nndoc} group from the mbox file (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
12462 Type `SPACE' to enter the newly created group.
12465 Type `M P b' to process-mark all articles in this group's buffer
12466 (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
12469 Type `B r' to respool all the process-marked articles, and answer
12470 @samp{nnml} when prompted (@pxref{Mail Group Commands}).
12473 All the mail messages in the mbox file will now also be spread out over
12474 all your @code{nnml} groups. Try entering them and check whether things
12475 have gone without a glitch. If things look ok, you may consider
12476 deleting the mbox file, but I wouldn't do that unless I was absolutely
12477 sure that all the mail has ended up where it should be.
12479 Respooling is also a handy thing to do if you're switching from one mail
12480 backend to another. Just respool all the mail in the old mail groups
12481 using the new mail backend.
12484 @node Expiring Mail
12485 @subsection Expiring Mail
12486 @cindex article expiry
12488 Traditional mail readers have a tendency to remove mail articles when
12489 you mark them as read, in some way. Gnus takes a fundamentally
12490 different approach to mail reading.
12492 Gnus basically considers mail just to be news that has been received in
12493 a rather peculiar manner. It does not think that it has the power to
12494 actually change the mail, or delete any mail messages. If you enter a
12495 mail group, and mark articles as ``read'', or kill them in some other
12496 fashion, the mail articles will still exist on the system. I repeat:
12497 Gnus will not delete your old, read mail. Unless you ask it to, of
12500 To make Gnus get rid of your unwanted mail, you have to mark the
12501 articles as @dfn{expirable}. This does not mean that the articles will
12502 disappear right away, however. In general, a mail article will be
12503 deleted from your system if, 1) it is marked as expirable, AND 2) it is
12504 more than one week old. If you do not mark an article as expirable, it
12505 will remain on your system until hell freezes over. This bears
12506 repeating one more time, with some spurious capitalizations: IF you do
12507 NOT mark articles as EXPIRABLE, Gnus will NEVER delete those ARTICLES.
12509 @vindex gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12510 You do not have to mark articles as expirable by hand. Groups that
12511 match the regular expression @code{gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups} will
12512 have all articles that you read marked as expirable automatically. All
12513 articles marked as expirable have an @samp{E} in the first
12514 column in the summary buffer.
12516 By default, if you have auto expiry switched on, Gnus will mark all the
12517 articles you read as expirable, no matter if they were read or unread
12518 before. To avoid having articles marked as read marked as expirable
12519 automatically, you can put something like the following in your
12522 @vindex gnus-mark-article-hook
12524 (remove-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook
12525 'gnus-summary-mark-read-and-unread-as-read)
12526 (add-hook 'gnus-mark-article-hook 'gnus-summary-mark-unread-as-read)
12529 Note that making a group auto-expirable doesn't mean that all read
12530 articles are expired---only the articles marked as expirable
12531 will be expired. Also note that using the @kbd{d} command won't make
12532 articles expirable---only semi-automatic marking of articles as read will
12533 mark the articles as expirable in auto-expirable groups.
12535 Let's say you subscribe to a couple of mailing lists, and you want the
12536 articles you have read to disappear after a while:
12539 (setq gnus-auto-expirable-newsgroups
12540 "mail.nonsense-list\\|mail.nice-list")
12543 Another way to have auto-expiry happen is to have the element
12544 @code{auto-expire} in the group parameters of the group.
12546 If you use adaptive scoring (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}) and
12547 auto-expiring, you'll have problems. Auto-expiring and adaptive scoring
12548 don't really mix very well.
12550 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait
12551 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable supplies the default time an
12552 expirable article has to live. Gnus starts counting days from when the
12553 message @emph{arrived}, not from when it was sent. The default is seven
12556 Gnus also supplies a function that lets you fine-tune how long articles
12557 are to live, based on what group they are in. Let's say you want to
12558 have one month expiry period in the @samp{mail.private} group, a one day
12559 expiry period in the @samp{mail.junk} group, and a six day expiry period
12562 @vindex nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12564 (setq nnmail-expiry-wait-function
12566 (cond ((string= group "mail.private")
12568 ((string= group "mail.junk")
12570 ((string= group "important")
12576 The group names this function is fed are ``unadorned'' group
12577 names---no @samp{nnml:} prefixes and the like.
12579 The @code{nnmail-expiry-wait} variable and
12580 @code{nnmail-expiry-wait-function} function can either be a number (not
12581 necessarily an integer) or one of the symbols @code{immediate} or
12584 You can also use the @code{expiry-wait} group parameter to selectively
12585 change the expiry period (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
12587 @vindex nnmail-expiry-target
12588 The normal action taken when expiring articles is to delete them.
12589 However, in some circumstances it might make more sense to move them to
12590 other groups instead of deleting them. The variable @code{nnmail-expiry-target}
12591 (and the @code{expiry-target} group parameter) controls this. The
12592 variable supplies a default value for all groups, which can be
12593 overridden for specific groups by the group parameter.
12594 default value is @code{delete}, but this can also be a string (which
12595 should be the name of the group the message should be moved to), or a
12596 function (which will be called in a buffer narrowed to the message in
12597 question, and with the name of the group being moved from as its
12598 parameter) which should return a target -- either a group name or
12601 Here's an example for specifying a group name:
12603 (setq nnmail-expiry-target "nnml:expired")
12607 @vindex nnmail-keep-last-article
12608 If @code{nnmail-keep-last-article} is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will never
12609 expire the final article in a mail newsgroup. This is to make life
12610 easier for procmail users.
12612 @vindex gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups
12613 By the way: That line up there, about Gnus never expiring non-expirable
12614 articles, is a lie. If you put @code{total-expire} in the group
12615 parameters, articles will not be marked as expirable, but all read
12616 articles will be put through the expiry process. Use with extreme
12617 caution. Even more dangerous is the
12618 @code{gnus-total-expirable-newsgroups} variable. All groups that match
12619 this regexp will have all read articles put through the expiry process,
12620 which means that @emph{all} old mail articles in the groups in question
12621 will be deleted after a while. Use with extreme caution, and don't come
12622 crying to me when you discover that the regexp you used matched the
12623 wrong group and all your important mail has disappeared. Be a
12624 @emph{man}! Or a @emph{woman}! Whatever you feel more comfortable
12627 Most people make most of their mail groups total-expirable, though.
12629 @vindex gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire
12630 If @code{gnus-inhibit-user-auto-expire} is non-@code{nil}, user marking
12631 commands will not mark an article as expirable, even if the group has
12632 auto-expire turned on.
12636 @subsection Washing Mail
12637 @cindex mail washing
12638 @cindex list server brain damage
12639 @cindex incoming mail treatment
12641 Mailers and list servers are notorious for doing all sorts of really,
12642 really stupid things with mail. ``Hey, RFC 822 doesn't explicitly
12643 prohibit us from adding the string @code{wE aRe ElItE!!!!!1!!} to the
12644 end of all lines passing through our server, so let's do that!!!!1!''
12645 Yes, but RFC 822 wasn't designed to be read by morons. Things that were
12646 considered to be self-evident were not discussed. So. Here we are.
12648 Case in point: The German version of Microsoft Exchange adds @samp{AW:
12649 } to the subjects of replies instead of @samp{Re: }. I could pretend to
12650 be shocked and dismayed by this, but I haven't got the energy. It is to
12653 Gnus provides a plethora of functions for washing articles while
12654 displaying them, but it might be nicer to do the filtering before
12655 storing the mail to disc. For that purpose, we have three hooks and
12656 various functions that can be put in these hooks.
12659 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12660 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-hook
12661 This hook is called before doing anything with the mail and is meant for
12662 grand, sweeping gestures. It is called in a buffer that contains all
12663 the new, incoming mail. Functions to be used include:
12666 @item nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12667 @findex nnheader-ms-strip-cr
12668 Remove trailing carriage returns from each line. This is default on
12669 Emacs running on MS machines.
12673 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12674 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-header-hook
12675 This hook is called narrowed to each header. It can be used when
12676 cleaning up the headers. Functions that can be used include:
12679 @item nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12680 @findex nnmail-remove-leading-whitespace
12681 Clear leading white space that ``helpful'' listservs have added to the
12682 headers to make them look nice. Aaah.
12684 @item nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12685 @findex nnmail-remove-list-identifiers
12686 Some list servers add an identifier---for example, @samp{(idm)}---to the
12687 beginning of all @code{Subject} headers. I'm sure that's nice for
12688 people who use stone age mail readers. This function will remove
12689 strings that match the @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} regexp, which can
12690 also be a list of regexp. @code{nnmail-list-identifiers} may not contain
12693 For instance, if you want to remove the @samp{(idm)} and the
12694 @samp{nagnagnag} identifiers:
12697 (setq nnmail-list-identifiers
12698 '("(idm)" "nagnagnag"))
12701 This can also be done non-destructively with
12702 @code{gnus-list-identifiers}, @xref{Article Hiding}.
12704 @item nnmail-remove-tabs
12705 @findex nnmail-remove-tabs
12706 Translate all @samp{TAB} characters into @samp{SPACE} characters.
12708 @item nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12709 @findex nnmail-fix-eudora-headers
12711 Eudora produces broken @code{References} headers, but OK
12712 @code{In-Reply-To} headers. This function will get rid of the
12713 @code{References} headers.
12717 @item nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12718 @vindex nnmail-prepare-incoming-message-hook
12719 This hook is called narrowed to each message. Functions to be used
12723 @item article-de-quoted-unreadable
12724 @findex article-de-quoted-unreadable
12725 Decode Quoted Readable encoding.
12732 @subsection Duplicates
12734 @vindex nnmail-treat-duplicates
12735 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-length
12736 @vindex nnmail-message-id-cache-file
12737 @cindex duplicate mails
12738 If you are a member of a couple of mailing lists, you will sometimes
12739 receive two copies of the same mail. This can be quite annoying, so
12740 @code{nnmail} checks for and treats any duplicates it might find. To do
12741 this, it keeps a cache of old @code{Message-ID}s---
12742 @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-file}, which is @file{~/.nnmail-cache} by
12743 default. The approximate maximum number of @code{Message-ID}s stored
12744 there is controlled by the @code{nnmail-message-id-cache-length}
12745 variable, which is 1000 by default. (So 1000 @code{Message-ID}s will be
12746 stored.) If all this sounds scary to you, you can set
12747 @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} to @code{warn} (which is what it is by
12748 default), and @code{nnmail} won't delete duplicate mails. Instead it
12749 will insert a warning into the head of the mail saying that it thinks
12750 that this is a duplicate of a different message.
12752 This variable can also be a function. If that's the case, the function
12753 will be called from a buffer narrowed to the message in question with
12754 the @code{Message-ID} as a parameter. The function must return either
12755 @code{nil}, @code{warn}, or @code{delete}.
12757 You can turn this feature off completely by setting the variable to
12760 If you want all the duplicate mails to be put into a special
12761 @dfn{duplicates} group, you could do that using the normal mail split
12765 (setq nnmail-split-fancy
12766 '(| ;; Messages duplicates go to a separate group.
12767 ("gnus-warning" "duplicat\\(e\\|ion\\) of message" "duplicate")
12768 ;; Message from daemons, postmaster, and the like to another.
12769 (any mail "mail.misc")
12776 (setq nnmail-split-methods
12777 '(("duplicates" "^Gnus-Warning:.*duplicate")
12782 Here's a neat feature: If you know that the recipient reads her mail
12783 with Gnus, and that she has @code{nnmail-treat-duplicates} set to
12784 @code{delete}, you can send her as many insults as you like, just by
12785 using a @code{Message-ID} of a mail that you know that she's already
12786 received. Think of all the fun! She'll never see any of it! Whee!
12789 @node Not Reading Mail
12790 @subsection Not Reading Mail
12792 If you start using any of the mail backends, they have the annoying
12793 habit of assuming that you want to read mail with them. This might not
12794 be unreasonable, but it might not be what you want.
12796 If you set @code{mail-sources} and @code{nnmail-spool-file} to
12797 @code{nil}, none of the backends will ever attempt to read incoming
12798 mail, which should help.
12800 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12801 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12802 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12803 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
12804 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
12805 This might be too much, if, for instance, you are reading mail quite
12806 happily with @code{nnml} and just want to peek at some old @sc{rmail}
12807 file you have stashed away with @code{nnbabyl}. All backends have
12808 variables called backend-@code{get-new-mail}. If you want to disable
12809 the @code{nnbabyl} mail reading, you edit the virtual server for the
12810 group to have a setting where @code{nnbabyl-get-new-mail} to @code{nil}.
12812 All the mail backends will call @code{nn}*@code{-prepare-save-mail-hook}
12813 narrowed to the article to be saved before saving it when reading
12817 @node Choosing a Mail Backend
12818 @subsection Choosing a Mail Backend
12820 Gnus will read the mail spool when you activate a mail group. The mail
12821 file is first copied to your home directory. What happens after that
12822 depends on what format you want to store your mail in.
12824 There are five different mail backends in the standard Gnus, and more
12825 backends are available separately. The mail backend most people use
12826 (because it is the fastest and most flexible) is @code{nnml}
12827 (@pxref{Mail Spool}).
12830 * Unix Mail Box:: Using the (quite) standard Un*x mbox.
12831 * Rmail Babyl:: Emacs programs use the rmail babyl format.
12832 * Mail Spool:: Store your mail in a private spool?
12833 * MH Spool:: An mhspool-like backend.
12834 * Mail Folders:: Having one file for each group.
12835 * Comparing Mail Backends:: An in-depth looks at pros and cons.
12839 @node Unix Mail Box
12840 @subsubsection Unix Mail Box
12842 @cindex unix mail box
12844 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12845 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12846 The @dfn{nnmbox} backend will use the standard Un*x mbox file to store
12847 mail. @code{nnmbox} will add extra headers to each mail article to say
12848 which group it belongs in.
12850 Virtual server settings:
12853 @item nnmbox-mbox-file
12854 @vindex nnmbox-mbox-file
12855 The name of the mail box in the user's home directory. Default is
12858 @item nnmbox-active-file
12859 @vindex nnmbox-active-file
12860 The name of the active file for the mail box. Default is
12861 @file{~/.mbox-active}.
12863 @item nnmbox-get-new-mail
12864 @vindex nnmbox-get-new-mail
12865 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmbox} will read incoming mail and split it
12866 into groups. Default is @code{t}.
12871 @subsubsection Rmail Babyl
12875 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12876 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12877 The @dfn{nnbabyl} backend will use a babyl mail box (aka. @dfn{rmail
12878 mbox}) to store mail. @code{nnbabyl} will add extra headers to each
12879 mail article to say which group it belongs in.
12881 Virtual server settings:
12884 @item nnbabyl-mbox-file
12885 @vindex nnbabyl-mbox-file
12886 The name of the rmail mbox file. The default is @file{~/RMAIL}
12888 @item nnbabyl-active-file
12889 @vindex nnbabyl-active-file
12890 The name of the active file for the rmail box. The default is
12891 @file{~/.rmail-active}
12893 @item nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12894 @vindex nnbabyl-get-new-mail
12895 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnbabyl} will read incoming mail. Default is
12901 @subsubsection Mail Spool
12903 @cindex mail @sc{nov} spool
12905 The @dfn{nnml} spool mail format isn't compatible with any other known
12906 format. It should be used with some caution.
12908 @vindex nnml-directory
12909 If you use this backend, Gnus will split all incoming mail into files,
12910 one file for each mail, and put the articles into the corresponding
12911 directories under the directory specified by the @code{nnml-directory}
12912 variable. The default value is @file{~/Mail/}.
12914 You do not have to create any directories beforehand; Gnus will take
12917 If you have a strict limit as to how many files you are allowed to store
12918 in your account, you should not use this backend. As each mail gets its
12919 own file, you might very well occupy thousands of inodes within a few
12920 weeks. If this is no problem for you, and it isn't a problem for you
12921 having your friendly systems administrator walking around, madly,
12922 shouting ``Who is eating all my inodes?! Who? Who!?!'', then you should
12923 know that this is probably the fastest format to use. You do not have
12924 to trudge through a big mbox file just to read your new mail.
12926 @code{nnml} is probably the slowest backend when it comes to article
12927 splitting. It has to create lots of files, and it also generates
12928 @sc{nov} databases for the incoming mails. This makes it the fastest
12929 backend when it comes to reading mail.
12931 Virtual server settings:
12934 @item nnml-directory
12935 @vindex nnml-directory
12936 All @code{nnml} directories will be placed under this directory.
12937 The default is the value of `message-directory' (whose default value is
12940 @item nnml-active-file
12941 @vindex nnml-active-file
12942 The active file for the @code{nnml} server. The default is
12943 @file{~/Mail/active"}.
12945 @item nnml-newsgroups-file
12946 @vindex nnml-newsgroups-file
12947 The @code{nnml} group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
12948 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}.
12950 @item nnml-get-new-mail
12951 @vindex nnml-get-new-mail
12952 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnml} will read incoming mail. The default is
12955 @item nnml-nov-is-evil
12956 @vindex nnml-nov-is-evil
12957 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
12958 default is @code{nil}
12960 @item nnml-nov-file-name
12961 @vindex nnml-nov-file-name
12962 The name of the @sc{nov} files. The default is @file{.overview}.
12964 @item nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12965 @vindex nnml-prepare-save-mail-hook
12966 Hook run narrowed to an article before saving.
12970 @findex nnml-generate-nov-databases
12971 If your @code{nnml} groups and @sc{nov} files get totally out of whack,
12972 you can do a complete update by typing @kbd{M-x
12973 nnml-generate-nov-databases}. This command will trawl through the
12974 entire @code{nnml} hierarchy, looking at each and every article, so it
12975 might take a while to complete. A better interface to this
12976 functionality can be found in the server buffer (@pxref{Server
12981 @subsubsection MH Spool
12983 @cindex mh-e mail spool
12985 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, except that is doesn't generate
12986 @sc{nov} databases and it doesn't keep an active file. This makes
12987 @code{nnmh} a @emph{much} slower backend than @code{nnml}, but it also
12988 makes it easier to write procmail scripts for.
12990 Virtual server settings:
12993 @item nnmh-directory
12994 @vindex nnmh-directory
12995 All @code{nnmh} directories will be located under this directory. The
12996 default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
12999 @item nnmh-get-new-mail
13000 @vindex nnmh-get-new-mail
13001 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will read incoming mail. The default is
13005 @vindex nnmh-be-safe
13006 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnmh} will go to ridiculous lengths to make
13007 sure that the articles in the folder are actually what Gnus thinks they
13008 are. It will check date stamps and stat everything in sight, so
13009 setting this to @code{t} will mean a serious slow-down. If you never
13010 use anything but Gnus to read the @code{nnmh} articles, you do not have
13011 to set this variable to @code{t}. The default is @code{nil}.
13016 @subsubsection Mail Folders
13018 @cindex mbox folders
13019 @cindex mail folders
13021 @code{nnfolder} is a backend for storing each mail group in a separate
13022 file. Each file is in the standard Un*x mbox format. @code{nnfolder}
13023 will add extra headers to keep track of article numbers and arrival
13026 Virtual server settings:
13029 @item nnfolder-directory
13030 @vindex nnfolder-directory
13031 All the @code{nnfolder} mail boxes will be stored under this directory.
13032 The default is the value of @code{message-directory} (whose default is
13035 @item nnfolder-active-file
13036 @vindex nnfolder-active-file
13037 The name of the active file. The default is @file{~/Mail/active}.
13039 @item nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13040 @vindex nnfolder-newsgroups-file
13041 The name of the group descriptions file. @xref{Newsgroups File
13042 Format}. The default is @file{~/Mail/newsgroups"}
13044 @item nnfolder-get-new-mail
13045 @vindex nnfolder-get-new-mail
13046 If non-@code{nil}, @code{nnfolder} will read incoming mail. The default
13049 @item nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13050 @vindex nnfolder-save-buffer-hook
13051 @cindex backup files
13052 Hook run before saving the folders. Note that Emacs does the normal
13053 backup renaming of files even with the @code{nnfolder} buffers. If you
13054 wish to switch this off, you could say something like the following in
13055 your @file{.emacs} file:
13058 (defun turn-off-backup ()
13059 (set (make-local-variable 'backup-inhibited) t))
13061 (add-hook 'nnfolder-save-buffer-hook 'turn-off-backup)
13064 @item nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13065 @vindex nnfolder-delete-mail-hook
13066 Hook run in a buffer narrowed to the message that is to be deleted.
13067 This function can be used to copy the message to somewhere else, or to
13068 extract some information from it before removing it.
13070 @item nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13071 @vindex nnfolder-nov-is-evil
13072 If non-@code{nil}, this backend will ignore any @sc{nov} files. The
13073 default is @code{nil}.
13078 @findex nnfolder-generate-active-file
13079 @kindex M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file
13080 If you have lots of @code{nnfolder}-like files you'd like to read with
13081 @code{nnfolder}, you can use the @kbd{M-x nnfolder-generate-active-file}
13082 command to make @code{nnfolder} aware of all likely files in
13083 @code{nnfolder-directory}. This only works if you use long file names,
13086 @node Comparing Mail Backends
13087 @subsubsection Comparing Mail Backends
13089 First, just for terminology, the @dfn{backend} is the common word for a
13090 low-level access method---a transport, if you will, by which something
13091 is acquired. The sense is that one's mail has to come from somewhere,
13092 and so selection of a suitable backend is required in order to get that
13093 mail within spitting distance of Gnus.
13095 The same concept exists for Usenet itself: Though access to articles is
13096 typically done by @sc{nntp} these days, once upon a midnight dreary, everyone
13097 in the world got at Usenet by running a reader on the machine where the
13098 articles lay (the machine which today we call an @sc{nntp} server), and
13099 access was by the reader stepping into the articles' directory spool
13100 area directly. One can still select between either the @code{nntp} or
13101 @code{nnspool} backends, to select between these methods, if one happens
13102 actually to live on the server (or can see its spool directly, anyway,
13105 The goal in selecting a mail backend is to pick one which
13106 simultaneously represents a suitable way of dealing with the original
13107 format plus leaving mail in a form that is convenient to use in the
13108 future. Here are some high and low points on each:
13113 UNIX systems have historically had a single, very common, and well-
13114 defined format. All messages arrive in a single @dfn{spool file}, and
13115 they are delineated by a line whose regular expression matches
13116 @samp{^From_}. (My notational use of @samp{_} is to indicate a space,
13117 to make it clear in this instance that this is not the RFC-specified
13118 @samp{From:} header.) Because Emacs and therefore Gnus emanate
13119 historically from the Unix environment, it is simplest if one does not
13120 mess a great deal with the original mailbox format, so if one chooses
13121 this backend, Gnus' primary activity in getting mail from the real spool
13122 area to Gnus' preferred directory is simply to copy it, with no
13123 (appreciable) format change in the process. It is the ``dumbest'' way
13124 to move mail into availability in the Gnus environment. This makes it
13125 fast to move into place, but slow to parse, when Gnus has to look at
13130 Once upon a time, there was the DEC-10 and DEC-20, running operating
13131 systems called TOPS and related things, and the usual (only?) mail
13132 reading environment was a thing called Babyl. I don't know what format
13133 was used for mail landing on the system, but Babyl had its own internal
13134 format to which mail was converted, primarily involving creating a
13135 spool-file-like entity with a scheme for inserting Babyl-specific
13136 headers and status bits above the top of each message in the file.
13137 RMAIL was Emacs' first mail reader, it was written by Richard Stallman,
13138 and Stallman came out of that TOPS/Babyl environment, so he wrote RMAIL
13139 to understand the mail files folks already had in existence. Gnus (and
13140 VM, for that matter) continue to support this format because it's
13141 perceived as having some good qualities in those mailer-specific
13142 headers/status bits stuff. RMAIL itself still exists as well, of
13143 course, and is still maintained by Stallman.
13145 Both of the above forms leave your mail in a single file on your
13146 filesystem, and they must parse that entire file each time you take a
13151 @code{nnml} is the backend which smells the most as though you were
13152 actually operating with an @code{nnspool}-accessed Usenet system. (In
13153 fact, I believe @code{nnml} actually derived from @code{nnspool} code,
13154 lo these years ago.) One's mail is taken from the original spool file,
13155 and is then cut up into individual message files, 1:1. It maintains a
13156 Usenet-style active file (analogous to what one finds in an INN- or
13157 CNews-based news system in (for instance) @file{/var/lib/news/active},
13158 or what is returned via the @samp{NNTP LIST} verb) and also creates
13159 @dfn{overview} files for efficient group entry, as has been defined for
13160 @sc{nntp} servers for some years now. It is slower in mail-splitting,
13161 due to the creation of lots of files, updates to the @code{nnml} active
13162 file, and additions to overview files on a per-message basis, but it is
13163 extremely fast on access because of what amounts to the indexing support
13164 provided by the active file and overviews.
13166 @code{nnml} costs @dfn{inodes} in a big way; that is, it soaks up the
13167 resource which defines available places in the filesystem to put new
13168 files. Sysadmins take a dim view of heavy inode occupation within
13169 tight, shared filesystems. But if you live on a personal machine where
13170 the filesystem is your own and space is not at a premium, @code{nnml}
13173 It is also problematic using this backend if you are living in a
13174 FAT16-based Windows world, since much space will be wasted on all these
13179 The Rand MH mail-reading system has been around UNIX systems for a very
13180 long time; it operates by splitting one's spool file of messages into
13181 individual files, but with little or no indexing support -- @code{nnmh}
13182 is considered to be semantically equivalent to ``@code{nnml} without
13183 active file or overviews''. This is arguably the worst choice, because
13184 one gets the slowness of individual file creation married to the
13185 slowness of access parsing when learning what's new in one's groups.
13189 Basically the effect of @code{nnfolder} is @code{nnmbox} (the first
13190 method described above) on a per-group basis. That is, @code{nnmbox}
13191 itself puts *all* one's mail in one file; @code{nnfolder} provides a
13192 little bit of optimization to this so that each of one's mail groups has
13193 a Unix mail box file. It's faster than @code{nnmbox} because each group
13194 can be parsed separately, and still provides the simple Unix mail box
13195 format requiring minimal effort in moving the mail around. In addition,
13196 it maintains an ``active'' file making it much faster for Gnus to figure
13197 out how many messages there are in each separate group.
13199 If you have groups that are expected to have a massive amount of
13200 messages, @code{nnfolder} is not the best choice, but if you receive
13201 only a moderate amount of mail, @code{nnfolder} is probably the most
13202 friendly mail backend all over.
13207 @node Browsing the Web
13208 @section Browsing the Web
13210 @cindex browsing the web
13214 Web-based discussion forums are getting more and more popular. On many
13215 subjects, the web-based forums have become the most important forums,
13216 eclipsing the importance of mailing lists and news groups. The reason
13217 is easy to understand---they are friendly to new users; you just point
13218 and click, and there's the discussion. With mailing lists, you have to
13219 go through a cumbersome subscription procedure, and most people don't
13220 even know what a news group is.
13222 The problem with this scenario is that web browsers are not very good at
13223 being newsreaders. They do not keep track of what articles you've read;
13224 they do not allow you to score on subjects you're interested in; they do
13225 not allow off-line browsing; they require you to click around and drive
13226 you mad in the end.
13228 So---if web browsers suck at reading discussion forums, why not use Gnus
13231 Gnus has been getting a bit of a collection of backends for providing
13232 interfaces to these sources.
13235 * Web Searches:: Creating groups from articles that match a string.
13236 * Slashdot:: Reading the Slashdot comments.
13237 * Ultimate:: The Ultimate Bulletin Board systems.
13238 * Web Archive:: Reading mailing list archived on web.
13239 * RSS:: Reading RDF site summary.
13240 * Customizing w3:: Doing stuff to Emacs/w3 from Gnus.
13243 All the web sources require Emacs/w3 and the url library to work.
13245 The main caveat with all these web sources is that they probably won't
13246 work for a very long time. Gleaning information from the @sc{html} data
13247 is guesswork at best, and when the layout is altered, the Gnus backend
13248 will fail. If you have reasonably new versions of these backends,
13249 though, you should be ok.
13251 One thing all these Web methods have in common is that the Web sources
13252 are often down, unavailable or just plain too slow to be fun. In those
13253 cases, it makes a lot of sense to let the Gnus Agent (@pxref{Gnus
13254 Unplugged}) handle downloading articles, and then you can read them at
13255 leisure from your local disk. No more World Wide Wait for you.
13259 @subsection Web Searches
13263 @cindex InReference
13264 @cindex Usenet searches
13265 @cindex searching the Usenet
13267 It's, like, too neat to search the Usenet for articles that match a
13268 string, but it, like, totally @emph{sucks}, like, totally, to use one of
13269 those, like, Web browsers, and you, like, have to, rilly, like, look at
13270 the commercials, so, like, with Gnus you can do @emph{rad}, rilly,
13271 searches without having to use a browser.
13273 The @code{nnweb} backend allows an easy interface to the mighty search
13274 engine. You create an @code{nnweb} group, enter a search pattern, and
13275 then enter the group and read the articles like you would any normal
13276 group. The @kbd{G w} command in the group buffer (@pxref{Foreign
13277 Groups}) will do this in an easy-to-use fashion.
13279 @code{nnweb} groups don't really lend themselves to being solid
13280 groups---they have a very fleeting idea of article numbers. In fact,
13281 each time you enter an @code{nnweb} group (not even changing the search
13282 pattern), you are likely to get the articles ordered in a different
13283 manner. Not even using duplicate suppression (@pxref{Duplicate
13284 Suppression}) will help, since @code{nnweb} doesn't even know the
13285 @code{Message-ID} of the articles before reading them using some search
13286 engines (DejaNews, for instance). The only possible way to keep track
13287 of which articles you've read is by scoring on the @code{Date}
13288 header---mark all articles posted before the last date you read the
13291 If the search engine changes its output substantially, @code{nnweb}
13292 won't be able to parse it and will fail. One could hardly fault the Web
13293 providers if they were to do this---their @emph{raison d'être} is to
13294 make money off of advertisements, not to provide services to the
13295 community. Since @code{nnweb} washes the ads off all the articles, one
13296 might think that the providers might be somewhat miffed. We'll see.
13298 You must have the @code{url} and @code{w3} package installed to be able
13299 to use @code{nnweb}.
13301 Virtual server variables:
13306 What search engine type is being used. The currently supported types
13307 are @code{dejanews}, @code{dejanewsold}, @code{altavista} and
13311 @vindex nnweb-search
13312 The search string to feed to the search engine.
13314 @item nnweb-max-hits
13315 @vindex nnweb-max-hits
13316 Advisory maximum number of hits per search to display. The default is
13319 @item nnweb-type-definition
13320 @vindex nnweb-type-definition
13321 Type-to-definition alist. This alist says what @code{nnweb} should do
13322 with the various search engine types. The following elements must be
13327 Function to decode the article and provide something that Gnus
13331 Function to create an article number to message header and URL alist.
13334 Function to send the search string to the search engine.
13337 The address the aforementioned function should send the search string
13341 Format string URL to fetch an article by @code{Message-ID}.
13348 @subsection Slashdot
13352 Slashdot (@uref{http://slashdot.org/}) is a popular news site, with
13353 lively discussion following the news articles. @code{nnslashdot} will
13354 let you read this forum in a convenient manner.
13356 The easiest way to read this source is to put something like the
13357 following in your @file{.gnus.el} file:
13360 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
13361 '((nnslashdot "")))
13364 This will make Gnus query the @code{nnslashdot} backend for new comments
13365 and groups. The @kbd{F} command will subscribe each new news article as
13366 a new Gnus group, and you can read the comments by entering these
13367 groups. (Note that the default subscription method is to subscribe new
13368 groups as zombies. Other methods are available (@pxref{Subscription
13371 If you want to remove an old @code{nnslashdot} group, the @kbd{G DEL}
13372 command is the most handy tool (@pxref{Foreign Groups}).
13374 When following up to @code{nnslashdot} comments (or posting new
13375 comments), some light @sc{html}izations will be performed. In
13376 particular, text quoted with @samp{> } will be quoted with
13377 @code{blockquote} instead, and signatures will have @code{br} added to
13378 the end of each line. Other than that, you can just write @sc{html}
13379 directly into the message buffer. Note that Slashdot filters out some
13382 The following variables can be altered to change its behavior:
13385 @item nnslashdot-threaded
13386 Whether @code{nnslashdot} should display threaded groups or not. The
13387 default is @code{t}. To be able to display threads, @code{nnslashdot}
13388 has to retrieve absolutely all comments in a group upon entry. If a
13389 threaded display is not required, @code{nnslashdot} will only retrieve
13390 the comments that are actually wanted by the user. Threading is nicer,
13391 but much, much slower than untreaded.
13393 @item nnslashdot-login-name
13394 @vindex nnslashdot-login-name
13395 The login name to use when posting.
13397 @item nnslashdot-password
13398 @vindex nnslashdot-password
13399 The password to use when posting.
13401 @item nnslashdot-directory
13402 @vindex nnslashdot-directory
13403 Where @code{nnslashdot} will store its files. The default is
13404 @samp{~/News/slashdot/}.
13406 @item nnslashdot-active-url
13407 @vindex nnslashdot-active-url
13408 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the information on
13409 news articles and comments. The default is
13410 @samp{http://slashdot.org/search.pl?section=&min=%d}.
13412 @item nnslashdot-comments-url
13413 @vindex nnslashdot-comments-url
13414 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch comments. The
13416 @samp{http://slashdot.org/comments.pl?sid=%s&threshold=%d&commentsort=%d&mode=flat&startat=%d}.
13418 @item nnslashdot-article-url
13419 @vindex nnslashdot-article-url
13420 The @sc{url} format string that will be used to fetch the news article. The
13422 @samp{http://slashdot.org/article.pl?sid=%s&mode=nocomment}.
13424 @item nnslashdot-threshold
13425 @vindex nnslashdot-threshold
13426 The score threshold. The default is -1.
13428 @item nnslashdot-group-number
13429 @vindex nnslashdot-group-number
13430 The number of old groups, in addition to the ten latest, to keep
13431 updated. The default is 0.
13438 @subsection Ultimate
13440 @cindex Ultimate Bulletin Board
13442 The Ultimate Bulletin Board (@uref{http://www.ultimatebb.com/}) is
13443 probably the most popular Web bulletin board system used. It has a
13444 quite regular and nice interface, and it's possible to get the
13445 information Gnus needs to keep groups updated.
13447 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnultimate} is to say
13448 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnultimate RET
13449 http://www.tcj.com/messboard/ubbcgi/ RET}. (Substitute the @sc{url}
13450 (not including @samp{Ultimate.cgi} or the like at the end) for a forum
13451 you're interested in; there's quite a list of them on the Ultimate web
13452 site.) Then subscribe to the groups you're interested in from the
13453 server buffer, and read them from the group buffer.
13455 The following @code{nnultimate} variables can be altered:
13458 @item nnultimate-directory
13459 @vindex nnultimate-directory
13460 The directory where @code{nnultimate} stores its files. The default is
13461 @samp{~/News/ultimate/}.
13466 @subsection Web Archive
13468 @cindex Web Archive
13470 Some mailing lists only have archives on Web servers, such as
13471 @uref{http://www.egroups.com/} and
13472 @uref{http://www.mail-archive.com/}. It has a quite regular and nice
13473 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13476 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnwarchive} is to say
13477 something like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{M-x
13478 gnus-group-make-warchive-group RET an_egroup RET egroups RET
13479 www.egroups.com RET your@@email.address RET}. (Substitute the
13480 @sc{an_egroup} with the mailing list you subscribed, the
13481 @sc{your@@email.address} with your email address.), or to browse the
13482 backend by @kbd{B nnwarchive RET mail-archive RET}.
13484 The following @code{nnwarchive} variables can be altered:
13487 @item nnwarchive-directory
13488 @vindex nnwarchive-directory
13489 The directory where @code{nnwarchive} stores its files. The default is
13490 @samp{~/News/warchive/}.
13492 @item nnwarchive-login
13493 @vindex nnwarchive-login
13494 The account name on the web server.
13496 @item nnwarchive-passwd
13497 @vindex nnwarchive-passwd
13498 The password for your account on the web server.
13506 Some sites have RDF site summary (RSS)
13507 @uref{http://purl.org/rss/1.0/spec}. It has a quite regular and nice
13508 interface, and it's possible to get the information Gnus needs to keep
13511 The easiest way to get started with @code{nnrss} is to say something
13512 like the following in the group buffer: @kbd{B nnrss RET RET}, then
13515 The following @code{nnrss} variables can be altered:
13518 @item nnrss-directory
13519 @vindex nnrss-directory
13520 The directory where @code{nnrss} stores its files. The default is
13521 @samp{~/News/rss/}.
13525 The following code may be helpful, if you want to show the description in
13526 the summary buffer.
13529 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-description-field)
13530 (setq gnus-summary-line-format "%U%R%z%I%(%[%4L: %-15,15f%]%) %s%uX\n")
13532 (defun gnus-user-format-function-X (header)
13534 (assq nnrss-description-field (mail-header-extra header))))
13535 (if descr (concat "\n\t" (cdr descr)) "")))
13538 The following code may be useful to open an nnrss url directly from the
13541 (require 'browse-url)
13543 (defun browse-nnrss-url( arg )
13545 (let ((url (assq nnrss-url-field
13548 (assq (gnus-summary-article-number)
13549 gnus-newsgroup-data))))))
13551 (browse-url (cdr url))
13552 (gnus-summary-scroll-up arg))))
13554 (eval-after-load "gnus"
13555 #'(define-key gnus-summary-mode-map
13556 (kbd "<RET>") 'browse-nnrss-url))
13557 (add-to-list 'nnmail-extra-headers nnrss-url-field)
13560 @node Customizing w3
13561 @subsection Customizing w3
13567 Gnus uses the url library to fetch web pages and Emacs/w3 to display web
13568 pages. Emacs/w3 is documented in its own manual, but there are some
13569 things that may be more relevant for Gnus users.
13571 For instance, a common question is how to make Emacs/w3 follow links
13572 using the @code{browse-url} functions (which will call some external web
13573 browser like Netscape). Here's one way:
13576 (eval-after-load "w3"
13578 (fset 'w3-fetch-orig (symbol-function 'w3-fetch))
13579 (defun w3-fetch (&optional url target)
13580 (interactive (list (w3-read-url-with-default)))
13581 (if (eq major-mode 'gnus-article-mode)
13583 (w3-fetch-orig url target)))))
13586 Put that in your @file{.emacs} file, and hitting links in w3-rendered
13587 @sc{html} in the Gnus article buffers will use @code{browse-url} to
13591 @node Other Sources
13592 @section Other Sources
13594 Gnus can do more than just read news or mail. The methods described
13595 below allow Gnus to view directories and files as if they were
13599 * Directory Groups:: You can read a directory as if it was a newsgroup.
13600 * Anything Groups:: Dired? Who needs dired?
13601 * Document Groups:: Single files can be the basis of a group.
13602 * SOUP:: Reading @sc{soup} packets ``offline''.
13603 * Mail-To-News Gateways:: Posting articles via mail-to-news gateways.
13604 * IMAP:: Using Gnus as a @sc{imap} client.
13608 @node Directory Groups
13609 @subsection Directory Groups
13611 @cindex directory groups
13613 If you have a directory that has lots of articles in separate files in
13614 it, you might treat it as a newsgroup. The files have to have numerical
13617 This might be an opportune moment to mention @code{ange-ftp} (and its
13618 successor @code{efs}), that most wonderful of all wonderful Emacs
13619 packages. When I wrote @code{nndir}, I didn't think much about it---a
13620 backend to read directories. Big deal.
13622 @code{ange-ftp} changes that picture dramatically. For instance, if you
13623 enter the @code{ange-ftp} file name
13624 @file{/ftp.hpc.uh.edu:/pub/emacs/ding-list/} as the directory name,
13625 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs} will actually allow you to read this
13626 directory over at @samp{sina} as a newsgroup. Distributed news ahoy!
13628 @code{nndir} will use @sc{nov} files if they are present.
13630 @code{nndir} is a ``read-only'' backend---you can't delete or expire
13631 articles with this method. You can use @code{nnmh} or @code{nnml} for
13632 whatever you use @code{nndir} for, so you could switch to any of those
13633 methods if you feel the need to have a non-read-only @code{nndir}.
13636 @node Anything Groups
13637 @subsection Anything Groups
13640 From the @code{nndir} backend (which reads a single spool-like
13641 directory), it's just a hop and a skip to @code{nneething}, which
13642 pretends that any arbitrary directory is a newsgroup. Strange, but
13645 When @code{nneething} is presented with a directory, it will scan this
13646 directory and assign article numbers to each file. When you enter such
13647 a group, @code{nneething} must create ``headers'' that Gnus can use.
13648 After all, Gnus is a newsreader, in case you're forgetting.
13649 @code{nneething} does this in a two-step process. First, it snoops each
13650 file in question. If the file looks like an article (i.e., the first
13651 few lines look like headers), it will use this as the head. If this is
13652 just some arbitrary file without a head (e.g. a C source file),
13653 @code{nneething} will cobble up a header out of thin air. It will use
13654 file ownership, name and date and do whatever it can with these
13657 All this should happen automatically for you, and you will be presented
13658 with something that looks very much like a newsgroup. Totally like a
13659 newsgroup, to be precise. If you select an article, it will be displayed
13660 in the article buffer, just as usual.
13662 If you select a line that represents a directory, Gnus will pop you into
13663 a new summary buffer for this @code{nneething} group. And so on. You can
13664 traverse the entire disk this way, if you feel like, but remember that
13665 Gnus is not dired, really, and does not intend to be, either.
13667 There are two overall modes to this action---ephemeral or solid. When
13668 doing the ephemeral thing (i.e., @kbd{G D} from the group buffer), Gnus
13669 will not store information on what files you have read, and what files
13670 are new, and so on. If you create a solid @code{nneething} group the
13671 normal way with @kbd{G m}, Gnus will store a mapping table between
13672 article numbers and file names, and you can treat this group like any
13673 other groups. When you activate a solid @code{nneething} group, you will
13674 be told how many unread articles it contains, etc., etc.
13679 @item nneething-map-file-directory
13680 @vindex nneething-map-file-directory
13681 All the mapping files for solid @code{nneething} groups will be stored
13682 in this directory, which defaults to @file{~/.nneething/}.
13684 @item nneething-exclude-files
13685 @vindex nneething-exclude-files
13686 All files that match this regexp will be ignored. Nice to use to exclude
13687 auto-save files and the like, which is what it does by default.
13689 @item nneething-include-files
13690 @vindex nneething-include-files
13691 Regexp saying what files to include in the group. If this variable is
13692 non-@code{nil}, only files matching this regexp will be included.
13694 @item nneething-map-file
13695 @vindex nneething-map-file
13696 Name of the map files.
13700 @node Document Groups
13701 @subsection Document Groups
13703 @cindex documentation group
13706 @code{nndoc} is a cute little thing that will let you read a single file
13707 as a newsgroup. Several files types are supported:
13714 The babyl (rmail) mail box.
13719 The standard Unix mbox file.
13721 @cindex MMDF mail box
13723 The MMDF mail box format.
13726 Several news articles appended into a file.
13729 @cindex rnews batch files
13730 The rnews batch transport format.
13731 @cindex forwarded messages
13734 Forwarded articles.
13737 Netscape mail boxes.
13740 MIME multipart messages.
13742 @item standard-digest
13743 The standard (RFC 1153) digest format.
13746 Non-standard digest format---matches most things, but does it badly.
13749 You can also use the special ``file type'' @code{guess}, which means
13750 that @code{nndoc} will try to guess what file type it is looking at.
13751 @code{digest} means that @code{nndoc} should guess what digest type the
13754 @code{nndoc} will not try to change the file or insert any extra headers into
13755 it---it will simply, like, let you use the file as the basis for a
13756 group. And that's it.
13758 If you have some old archived articles that you want to insert into your
13759 new & spiffy Gnus mail backend, @code{nndoc} can probably help you with
13760 that. Say you have an old @file{RMAIL} file with mail that you now want
13761 to split into your new @code{nnml} groups. You look at that file using
13762 @code{nndoc} (using the @kbd{G f} command in the group buffer
13763 (@pxref{Foreign Groups})), set the process mark on all the articles in
13764 the buffer (@kbd{M P b}, for instance), and then re-spool (@kbd{B r})
13765 using @code{nnml}. If all goes well, all the mail in the @file{RMAIL}
13766 file is now also stored in lots of @code{nnml} directories, and you can
13767 delete that pesky @file{RMAIL} file. If you have the guts!
13769 Virtual server variables:
13772 @item nndoc-article-type
13773 @vindex nndoc-article-type
13774 This should be one of @code{mbox}, @code{babyl}, @code{digest},
13775 @code{news}, @code{rnews}, @code{mmdf}, @code{forward}, @code{rfc934},
13776 @code{rfc822-forward}, @code{mime-parts}, @code{standard-digest},
13777 @code{slack-digest}, @code{clari-briefs}, @code{nsmail} or @code{guess}.
13779 @item nndoc-post-type
13780 @vindex nndoc-post-type
13781 This variable says whether Gnus is to consider the group a news group or
13782 a mail group. There are two valid values: @code{mail} (the default)
13787 * Document Server Internals:: How to add your own document types.
13791 @node Document Server Internals
13792 @subsubsection Document Server Internals
13794 Adding new document types to be recognized by @code{nndoc} isn't
13795 difficult. You just have to whip up a definition of what the document
13796 looks like, write a predicate function to recognize that document type,
13797 and then hook into @code{nndoc}.
13799 First, here's an example document type definition:
13803 (article-begin . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n")
13804 (body-end . "^\^A\^A\^A\^A\n"))
13807 The definition is simply a unique @dfn{name} followed by a series of
13808 regexp pseudo-variable settings. Below are the possible
13809 variables---don't be daunted by the number of variables; most document
13810 types can be defined with very few settings:
13813 @item first-article
13814 If present, @code{nndoc} will skip past all text until it finds
13815 something that match this regexp. All text before this will be
13818 @item article-begin
13819 This setting has to be present in all document type definitions. It
13820 says what the beginning of each article looks like.
13822 @item head-begin-function
13823 If present, this should be a function that moves point to the head of
13826 @item nndoc-head-begin
13827 If present, this should be a regexp that matches the head of the
13830 @item nndoc-head-end
13831 This should match the end of the head of the article. It defaults to
13832 @samp{^$}---the empty line.
13834 @item body-begin-function
13835 If present, this function should move point to the beginning of the body
13839 This should match the beginning of the body of the article. It defaults
13842 @item body-end-function
13843 If present, this function should move point to the end of the body of
13847 If present, this should match the end of the body of the article.
13850 If present, this should match the end of the file. All text after this
13851 regexp will be totally ignored.
13855 So, using these variables @code{nndoc} is able to dissect a document
13856 file into a series of articles, each with a head and a body. However, a
13857 few more variables are needed since not all document types are all that
13858 news-like---variables needed to transform the head or the body into
13859 something that's palatable for Gnus:
13862 @item prepare-body-function
13863 If present, this function will be called when requesting an article. It
13864 will be called with point at the start of the body, and is useful if the
13865 document has encoded some parts of its contents.
13867 @item article-transform-function
13868 If present, this function is called when requesting an article. It's
13869 meant to be used for more wide-ranging transformation of both head and
13870 body of the article.
13872 @item generate-head-function
13873 If present, this function is called to generate a head that Gnus can
13874 understand. It is called with the article number as a parameter, and is
13875 expected to generate a nice head for the article in question. It is
13876 called when requesting the headers of all articles.
13880 Let's look at the most complicated example I can come up with---standard
13885 (first-article . ,(concat "^" (make-string 70 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13886 (article-begin . ,(concat "\n\n" (make-string 30 ?-) "\n\n+"))
13887 (prepare-body-function . nndoc-unquote-dashes)
13888 (body-end-function . nndoc-digest-body-end)
13889 (head-end . "^ ?$")
13890 (body-begin . "^ ?\n")
13891 (file-end . "^End of .*digest.*[0-9].*\n\\*\\*\\|^End of.*Digest *$")
13892 (subtype digest guess))
13895 We see that all text before a 70-width line of dashes is ignored; all
13896 text after a line that starts with that @samp{^End of} is also ignored;
13897 each article begins with a 30-width line of dashes; the line separating
13898 the head from the body may contain a single space; and that the body is
13899 run through @code{nndoc-unquote-dashes} before being delivered.
13901 To hook your own document definition into @code{nndoc}, use the
13902 @code{nndoc-add-type} function. It takes two parameters---the first is
13903 the definition itself and the second (optional) parameter says where in
13904 the document type definition alist to put this definition. The alist is
13905 traversed sequentially, and @code{nndoc-TYPE-type-p} is called for a given type @code{TYPE}. So @code{nndoc-mmdf-type-p} is called to see whether a document
13906 is of @code{mmdf} type, and so on. These type predicates should return
13907 @code{nil} if the document is not of the correct type; @code{t} if it is
13908 of the correct type; and a number if the document might be of the
13909 correct type. A high number means high probability; a low number means
13910 low probability with @samp{0} being the lowest valid number.
13918 In the PC world people often talk about ``offline'' newsreaders. These
13919 are thingies that are combined reader/news transport monstrosities.
13920 With built-in modem programs. Yecchh!
13922 Of course, us Unix Weenie types of human beans use things like
13923 @code{uucp} and, like, @code{nntpd} and set up proper news and mail
13924 transport things like Ghod intended. And then we just use normal
13927 However, it can sometimes be convenient to do something that's a bit
13928 easier on the brain if you have a very slow modem, and you're not really
13929 that interested in doing things properly.
13931 A file format called @sc{soup} has been developed for transporting news
13932 and mail from servers to home machines and back again. It can be a bit
13935 First some terminology:
13940 This is the machine that is connected to the outside world and where you
13941 get news and/or mail from.
13944 This is the machine that you want to do the actual reading and responding
13945 on. It is typically not connected to the rest of the world in any way.
13948 Something that contains messages and/or commands. There are two kinds
13952 @item message packets
13953 These are packets made at the server, and typically contain lots of
13954 messages for you to read. These are called @file{SoupoutX.tgz} by
13955 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13957 @item response packets
13958 These are packets made at the home machine, and typically contains
13959 replies that you've written. These are called @file{SoupinX.tgz} by
13960 default, where @var{x} is a number.
13970 You log in on the server and create a @sc{soup} packet. You can either
13971 use a dedicated @sc{soup} thingie (like the @code{awk} program), or you
13972 can use Gnus to create the packet with its @sc{soup} commands (@kbd{O
13973 s} and/or @kbd{G s b}; and then @kbd{G s p}) (@pxref{SOUP Commands}).
13976 You transfer the packet home. Rail, boat, car or modem will do fine.
13979 You put the packet in your home directory.
13982 You fire up Gnus on your home machine using the @code{nnsoup} backend as
13983 the native or secondary server.
13986 You read articles and mail and answer and followup to the things you
13987 want (@pxref{SOUP Replies}).
13990 You do the @kbd{G s r} command to pack these replies into a @sc{soup}
13994 You transfer this packet to the server.
13997 You use Gnus to mail this packet out with the @kbd{G s s} command.
14000 You then repeat until you die.
14004 So you basically have a bipartite system---you use @code{nnsoup} for
14005 reading and Gnus for packing/sending these @sc{soup} packets.
14008 * SOUP Commands:: Commands for creating and sending @sc{soup} packets
14009 * SOUP Groups:: A backend for reading @sc{soup} packets.
14010 * SOUP Replies:: How to enable @code{nnsoup} to take over mail and news.
14014 @node SOUP Commands
14015 @subsubsection SOUP Commands
14017 These are commands for creating and manipulating @sc{soup} packets.
14021 @kindex G s b (Group)
14022 @findex gnus-group-brew-soup
14023 Pack all unread articles in the current group
14024 (@code{gnus-group-brew-soup}). This command understands the
14025 process/prefix convention.
14028 @kindex G s w (Group)
14029 @findex gnus-soup-save-areas
14030 Save all @sc{soup} data files (@code{gnus-soup-save-areas}).
14033 @kindex G s s (Group)
14034 @findex gnus-soup-send-replies
14035 Send all replies from the replies packet
14036 (@code{gnus-soup-send-replies}).
14039 @kindex G s p (Group)
14040 @findex gnus-soup-pack-packet
14041 Pack all files into a @sc{soup} packet (@code{gnus-soup-pack-packet}).
14044 @kindex G s r (Group)
14045 @findex nnsoup-pack-replies
14046 Pack all replies into a replies packet (@code{nnsoup-pack-replies}).
14049 @kindex O s (Summary)
14050 @findex gnus-soup-add-article
14051 This summary-mode command adds the current article to a @sc{soup} packet
14052 (@code{gnus-soup-add-article}). It understands the process/prefix
14053 convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
14058 There are a few variables to customize where Gnus will put all these
14063 @item gnus-soup-directory
14064 @vindex gnus-soup-directory
14065 Directory where Gnus will save intermediate files while composing
14066 @sc{soup} packets. The default is @file{~/SoupBrew/}.
14068 @item gnus-soup-replies-directory
14069 @vindex gnus-soup-replies-directory
14070 This is what Gnus will use as a temporary directory while sending our
14071 reply packets. @file{~/SoupBrew/SoupReplies/} is the default.
14073 @item gnus-soup-prefix-file
14074 @vindex gnus-soup-prefix-file
14075 Name of the file where Gnus stores the last used prefix. The default is
14076 @samp{gnus-prefix}.
14078 @item gnus-soup-packer
14079 @vindex gnus-soup-packer
14080 A format string command for packing a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
14081 @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupout%d.tgz}.
14083 @item gnus-soup-unpacker
14084 @vindex gnus-soup-unpacker
14085 Format string command for unpacking a @sc{soup} packet. The default is
14086 @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
14088 @item gnus-soup-packet-directory
14089 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-directory
14090 Where Gnus will look for reply packets. The default is @file{~/}.
14092 @item gnus-soup-packet-regexp
14093 @vindex gnus-soup-packet-regexp
14094 Regular expression matching @sc{soup} reply packets in
14095 @code{gnus-soup-packet-directory}.
14101 @subsubsection @sc{soup} Groups
14104 @code{nnsoup} is the backend for reading @sc{soup} packets. It will
14105 read incoming packets, unpack them, and put them in a directory where
14106 you can read them at leisure.
14108 These are the variables you can use to customize its behavior:
14112 @item nnsoup-tmp-directory
14113 @vindex nnsoup-tmp-directory
14114 When @code{nnsoup} unpacks a @sc{soup} packet, it does it in this
14115 directory. (@file{/tmp/} by default.)
14117 @item nnsoup-directory
14118 @vindex nnsoup-directory
14119 @code{nnsoup} then moves each message and index file to this directory.
14120 The default is @file{~/SOUP/}.
14122 @item nnsoup-replies-directory
14123 @vindex nnsoup-replies-directory
14124 All replies will be stored in this directory before being packed into a
14125 reply packet. The default is @file{~/SOUP/replies/"}.
14127 @item nnsoup-replies-format-type
14128 @vindex nnsoup-replies-format-type
14129 The @sc{soup} format of the replies packets. The default is @samp{?n}
14130 (rnews), and I don't think you should touch that variable. I probably
14131 shouldn't even have documented it. Drats! Too late!
14133 @item nnsoup-replies-index-type
14134 @vindex nnsoup-replies-index-type
14135 The index type of the replies packet. The default is @samp{?n}, which
14136 means ``none''. Don't fiddle with this one either!
14138 @item nnsoup-active-file
14139 @vindex nnsoup-active-file
14140 Where @code{nnsoup} stores lots of information. This is not an ``active
14141 file'' in the @code{nntp} sense; it's an Emacs Lisp file. If you lose
14142 this file or mess it up in any way, you're dead. The default is
14143 @file{~/SOUP/active}.
14145 @item nnsoup-packer
14146 @vindex nnsoup-packer
14147 Format string command for packing a reply @sc{soup} packet. The default
14148 is @samp{tar cf - %s | gzip > $HOME/Soupin%d.tgz}.
14150 @item nnsoup-unpacker
14151 @vindex nnsoup-unpacker
14152 Format string command for unpacking incoming @sc{soup} packets. The
14153 default is @samp{gunzip -c %s | tar xvf -}.
14155 @item nnsoup-packet-directory
14156 @vindex nnsoup-packet-directory
14157 Where @code{nnsoup} will look for incoming packets. The default is
14160 @item nnsoup-packet-regexp
14161 @vindex nnsoup-packet-regexp
14162 Regular expression matching incoming @sc{soup} packets. The default is
14165 @item nnsoup-always-save
14166 @vindex nnsoup-always-save
14167 If non-@code{nil}, save the replies buffer after each posted message.
14173 @subsubsection SOUP Replies
14175 Just using @code{nnsoup} won't mean that your postings and mailings end
14176 up in @sc{soup} reply packets automagically. You have to work a bit
14177 more for that to happen.
14179 @findex nnsoup-set-variables
14180 The @code{nnsoup-set-variables} command will set the appropriate
14181 variables to ensure that all your followups and replies end up in the
14184 In specific, this is what it does:
14187 (setq message-send-news-function 'nnsoup-request-post)
14188 (setq message-send-mail-function 'nnsoup-request-mail)
14191 And that's it, really. If you only want news to go into the @sc{soup}
14192 system you just use the first line. If you only want mail to be
14193 @sc{soup}ed you use the second.
14196 @node Mail-To-News Gateways
14197 @subsection Mail-To-News Gateways
14198 @cindex mail-to-news gateways
14201 If your local @code{nntp} server doesn't allow posting, for some reason
14202 or other, you can post using one of the numerous mail-to-news gateways.
14203 The @code{nngateway} backend provides the interface.
14205 Note that you can't read anything from this backend---it can only be
14211 @item nngateway-address
14212 @vindex nngateway-address
14213 This is the address of the mail-to-news gateway.
14215 @item nngateway-header-transformation
14216 @vindex nngateway-header-transformation
14217 News headers often have to be transformed in some odd way or other
14218 for the mail-to-news gateway to accept it. This variable says what
14219 transformation should be called, and defaults to
14220 @code{nngateway-simple-header-transformation}. The function is called
14221 narrowed to the headers to be transformed and with one parameter---the
14224 This default function just inserts a new @code{To} header based on the
14225 @code{Newsgroups} header and the gateway address.
14226 For instance, an article with this @code{Newsgroups} header:
14229 Newsgroups: alt.religion.emacs
14232 will get this @code{From} header inserted:
14235 To: alt-religion-emacs@@GATEWAY
14238 The following pre-defined functions exist:
14240 @findex nngateway-simple-header-transformation
14243 @item nngateway-simple-header-transformation
14244 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
14245 @var{newsgroup}@@@code{nngateway-address}.
14247 @findex nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
14249 @item nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation
14250 Creates a @code{To} header that looks like
14251 @code{nngateway-address}.
14256 (setq gnus-post-method
14258 "mail2news@@replay.com"
14259 (nngateway-header-transformation
14260 nngateway-mail2news-header-transformation)))
14268 So, to use this, simply say something like:
14271 (setq gnus-post-method '(nngateway "GATEWAY.ADDRESS"))
14277 @subsection @sc{imap}
14281 @sc{imap} is a network protocol for reading mail (or news, or ...),
14282 think of it as a modernized @sc{nntp}. Connecting to a @sc{imap}
14283 server is much similar to connecting to a news server, you just
14284 specify the network address of the server.
14286 @sc{imap} has two properties. First, @sc{imap} can do everything that
14287 POP can, it can hence be viewed as POP++. Secondly, @sc{imap} is a
14288 mail storage protocol, similar to @sc{nntp} being a news storage
14289 protocol. (@sc{imap} offers more features than @sc{nntp} because news
14290 is more or less read-only whereas mail is read-write.)
14292 If you want to use @sc{imap} as POP++, use an imap entry in
14293 mail-sources. With this, Gnus will fetch mails from the @sc{imap}
14294 server and store them on the local disk. This is not the usage
14295 described in this section. @xref{Mail Sources}.
14297 If you want to use @sc{imap} as a mail storage protocol, use an nnimap
14298 entry in gnus-secondary-select-methods. With this, Gnus will
14299 manipulate mails stored on the @sc{imap} server. This is the kind of
14300 usage explained in this section.
14302 A server configuration in @code{~/.gnus} with a few @sc{imap} servers
14303 might look something like this:
14306 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods
14307 '((nnimap "simpleserver") ; no special configuration
14308 ; perhaps a ssh port forwarded server:
14310 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14311 (nnimap-server-port 1430))
14312 ; a UW server running on localhost
14314 (nnimap-server-port 143)
14315 (nnimap-address "localhost")
14316 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "mail/*")))
14317 ; anonymous public cyrus server:
14318 (nnimap "cyrus.andrew.cmu.edu"
14319 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous)
14320 (nnimap-list-pattern "archive.*")
14321 (nnimap-stream network))
14322 ; a ssl server on a non-standard port:
14324 (nnimap-address "vic20.somewhere.com")
14325 (nnimap-server-port 9930)
14326 (nnimap-stream ssl))))
14329 The following variables can be used to create a virtual @code{nnimap}
14334 @item nnimap-address
14335 @vindex nnimap-address
14337 The address of the remote @sc{imap} server. Defaults to the virtual
14338 server name if not specified.
14340 @item nnimap-server-port
14341 @vindex nnimap-server-port
14342 Port on server to contact. Defaults to port 143, or 993 for SSL.
14344 Note that this should be a integer, example server specification:
14347 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14348 (nnimap-server-port 4711))
14351 @item nnimap-list-pattern
14352 @vindex nnimap-list-pattern
14353 String or list of strings of mailboxes to limit available groups to.
14354 This is used when the server has very many mailboxes and you're only
14355 interested in a few -- some servers export your home directory via
14356 @sc{imap}, you'll probably want to limit the mailboxes to those in
14357 @file{~/Mail/*} then.
14359 The string can also be a cons of REFERENCE and the string as above, what
14360 REFERENCE is used for is server specific, but on the University of
14361 Washington server it's a directory that will be concatenated with the
14364 Example server specification:
14367 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14368 (nnimap-list-pattern ("INBOX" "Mail/*" "alt.sex.*"
14369 ("~friend/Mail/" . "list/*"))))
14372 @item nnimap-stream
14373 @vindex nnimap-stream
14374 The type of stream used to connect to your server. By default, nnimap
14375 will detect and automatically use all of the below, with the exception
14376 of SSL. (SSL is being replaced by STARTTLS, which can be automatically
14377 detected, but it's not widely deployed yet).
14379 Example server specification:
14382 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14383 (nnimap-stream ssl))
14386 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-stream} is a symbol!
14390 @dfn{gssapi:} Connect with GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5). Requires the
14391 @samp{imtest} program.
14393 @dfn{kerberos4:} Connect with kerberos 4. Requires the @samp{imtest} program.
14395 @dfn{starttls:} Connect via the STARTTLS extension (similar to
14396 SSL). Requires the external library @samp{starttls.el} and program
14399 @dfn{ssl:} Connect through SSL. Requires OpenSSL (the
14400 program @samp{openssl}) or SSLeay (@samp{s_client}).
14402 @dfn{shell:} Use a shell command to start @sc{imap} connection.
14404 @dfn{network:} Plain, TCP/IP network connection.
14407 @vindex imap-kerberos4-program
14408 The @samp{imtest} program is shipped with Cyrus IMAPD. If you're
14409 using @samp{imtest} from Cyrus IMAPD < 2.0.14 (which includes version
14410 1.5.x and 1.6.x) you need to frob @code{imap-process-connection-type}
14411 to make @code{imap.el} use a pty instead of a pipe when communicating
14412 with @samp{imtest}. You will then suffer from a line length
14413 restrictions on IMAP commands, which might make Gnus seem to hang
14414 indefinitely if you have many articles in a mailbox. The variable
14415 @code{imap-kerberos4-program} contain parameters to pass to the imtest
14418 @vindex imap-ssl-program
14419 For SSL connections, the OpenSSL program is available from
14420 @uref{http://www.openssl.org/}. OpenSSL was formerly known as SSLeay,
14421 and nnimap support it too - altough the most recent versions of
14422 SSLeay, 0.9.x, are known to have serious bugs making it
14423 useless. Earlier versions, especially 0.8.x, of SSLeay are known to
14424 work. The variable @code{imap-ssl-program} contain parameters to pass
14427 @vindex imap-shell-program
14428 @vindex imap-shell-host
14429 For @sc{imap} connections using the @code{shell} stream, the variable
14430 @code{imap-shell-program} specify what program to call.
14432 @item nnimap-authenticator
14433 @vindex nnimap-authenticator
14435 The authenticator used to connect to the server. By default, nnimap
14436 will use the most secure authenticator your server is capable of.
14438 Example server specification:
14441 (nnimap "mail.server.com"
14442 (nnimap-authenticator anonymous))
14445 Please note that the value of @code{nnimap-authenticator} is a symbol!
14449 @dfn{gssapi:} GSSAPI (usually kerberos 5) authentication. Require
14450 external program @code{imtest}.
14452 @dfn{kerberos4:} Kerberos authentication. Require external program
14455 @dfn{digest-md5:} Encrypted username/password via DIGEST-MD5. Require
14456 external library @code{digest-md5.el}.
14458 @dfn{cram-md5:} Encrypted username/password via CRAM-MD5.
14460 @dfn{login:} Plain-text username/password via LOGIN.
14462 @dfn{anonymous:} Login as `anonymous', supplying your emailadress as password.
14465 @item nnimap-expunge-on-close
14467 @vindex nnimap-expunge-on-close
14468 Unlike Parmenides the @sc{imap} designers has decided that things that
14469 doesn't exist actually does exist. More specifically, @sc{imap} has
14470 this concept of marking articles @code{Deleted} which doesn't actually
14471 delete them, and this (marking them @code{Deleted}, that is) is what
14472 nnimap does when you delete a article in Gnus (with @kbd{G DEL} or
14475 Since the articles aren't really removed when we mark them with the
14476 @code{Deleted} flag we'll need a way to actually delete them. Feel like
14477 running in circles yet?
14479 Traditionally, nnimap has removed all articles marked as @code{Deleted}
14480 when closing a mailbox but this is now configurable by this server
14483 The possible options are:
14488 The default behavior, delete all articles marked as "Deleted" when
14491 Never actually delete articles. Currently there is no way of showing
14492 the articles marked for deletion in nnimap, but other @sc{imap} clients
14493 may allow you to do this. If you ever want to run the EXPUNGE command
14494 manually, @xref{Expunging mailboxes}.
14496 When closing mailboxes, nnimap will ask if you wish to expunge deleted
14501 @item nnimap-importantize-dormant
14502 @vindex nnimap-importantize-dormant
14504 If non-nil, marks dormant articles as ticked (as well), for other IMAP
14505 clients. Within Gnus, dormant articles will naturally still (only) be
14506 marked as ticked. This is to make dormant articles stand out, just
14507 like ticked articles, in other IMAP clients. (In other words, Gnus has
14508 two ``Tick'' marks and IMAP has only one.)
14510 Probably the only reason for frobing this would be if you're trying
14511 enable per-user persistant dormant flags, using something like:
14514 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-flag-alist)
14515 (format "gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14516 (setcdr (assq 'dormant nnimap-mark-to-predicate-alist)
14517 (format "KEYWORD gnus-dormant-%s" (user-login-name)))
14520 In this case, you would not want the per-user dormant flag showing up
14521 as ticked for other users.
14523 @item nnimap-expunge-search-string
14525 @vindex nnimap-expunge-search-string
14527 This variable contain the IMAP search command sent to server when
14528 searching for articles eligible for expiring. The default is
14529 @code{"UID %s NOT SINCE %s"}, where the first @code{%s} is replaced by
14530 UID set and the second @code{%s} is replaced by a date.
14532 Probably the only useful value to change this to is
14533 @code{"UID %s NOT SENTSINCE %s"}, which makes nnimap use the Date: in
14534 messages instead of the internal article date. See section 6.4.4 of
14535 RFC 2060 for more information on valid strings.
14537 @item nnimap-authinfo-file
14538 @vindex nnimap-authinfo-file
14540 A file containing credentials used to log in on servers. The format is
14541 (almost) the same as the @code{ftp} @file{~/.netrc} file. See the
14542 variable @code{nntp-authinfo-file} for exact syntax; also see
14548 * Splitting in IMAP:: Splitting mail with nnimap.
14549 * Editing IMAP ACLs:: Limiting/enabling other users access to a mailbox.
14550 * Expunging mailboxes:: Equivalent of a "compress mailbox" button.
14555 @node Splitting in IMAP
14556 @subsubsection Splitting in @sc{imap}
14557 @cindex splitting imap mail
14559 Splitting is something Gnus users has loved and used for years, and now
14560 the rest of the world is catching up. Yeah, dream on, not many
14561 @sc{imap} server has server side splitting and those that have splitting
14562 seem to use some non-standard protocol. This means that @sc{imap}
14563 support for Gnus has to do it's own splitting.
14567 Here are the variables of interest:
14571 @item nnimap-split-crosspost
14572 @cindex splitting, crosspost
14574 @vindex nnimap-split-crosspost
14576 If non-nil, do crossposting if several split methods match the mail. If
14577 nil, the first match in @code{nnimap-split-rule} found will be used.
14579 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-crosspost}.
14581 @item nnimap-split-inbox
14582 @cindex splitting, inbox
14584 @vindex nnimap-split-inbox
14586 A string or a list of strings that gives the name(s) of @sc{imap}
14587 mailboxes to split from. Defaults to nil, which means that splitting is
14591 (setq nnimap-split-inbox
14592 '("INBOX" ("~/friend/Mail" . "lists/*") "lists.imap"))
14595 No nnmail equivalent.
14597 @item nnimap-split-rule
14598 @cindex Splitting, rules
14599 @vindex nnimap-split-rule
14601 New mail found in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be split according to
14604 This variable contains a list of lists, where the first element in the
14605 sublist gives the name of the @sc{imap} mailbox to move articles
14606 matching the regexp in the second element in the sublist. Got that?
14607 Neither did I, we need examples.
14610 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14612 "^Sender: owner-nnimap@@vic20.globalcom.se")
14613 ("INBOX.junk" "^Subject:.*MAKE MONEY")
14614 ("INBOX.private" "")))
14617 This will put all articles from the nnimap mailing list into mailbox
14618 INBOX.nnimap, all articles containing MAKE MONEY in the Subject: line
14619 into INBOX.junk and everything else in INBOX.private.
14621 The first string may contain `\\1' forms, like the ones used by
14622 replace-match to insert sub-expressions from the matched text. For
14626 ("INBOX.lists.\\1" "^Sender: owner-\\([a-z-]+\\)@@")
14629 The second element can also be a function. In that case, it will be
14630 called with the first element of the rule as the argument, in a buffer
14631 containing the headers of the article. It should return a non-nil value
14632 if it thinks that the mail belongs in that group.
14634 Nnmail users might recollect that the last regexp had to be empty to
14635 match all articles (like in the example above). This is not required in
14636 nnimap. Articles not matching any of the regexps will not be moved out
14637 of your inbox. (This might affect performance if you keep lots of
14638 unread articles in your inbox, since the splitting code would go over
14639 them every time you fetch new mail.)
14641 These rules are processed from the beginning of the alist toward the
14642 end. The first rule to make a match will "win", unless you have
14643 crossposting enabled. In that case, all matching rules will "win".
14645 This variable can also have a function as its value, the function will
14646 be called with the headers narrowed and should return a group where it
14647 thinks the article should be split to. See @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14649 The splitting code tries to create mailboxes if it need too.
14651 To allow for different split rules on different virtual servers, and
14652 even different split rules in different inboxes on the same server,
14653 the syntax of this variable have been extended along the lines of:
14656 (setq nnimap-split-rule
14657 '(("my1server" (".*" (("ding" "ding@@gnus.org")
14658 ("junk" "From:.*Simon")))
14659 ("my2server" ("INBOX" nnimap-split-fancy))
14660 ("my[34]server" (".*" (("private" "To:.*Simon")
14661 ("junk" my-junk-func)))))
14664 The virtual server name is in fact a regexp, so that the same rules
14665 may apply to several servers. In the example, the servers
14666 @code{my3server} and @code{my4server} both use the same rules.
14667 Similarly, the inbox string is also a regexp. The actual splitting
14668 rules are as before, either a function, or a list with group/regexp or
14669 group/function elements.
14671 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
14673 @item nnimap-split-predicate
14675 @vindex nnimap-split-predicate
14677 Mail matching this predicate in @code{nnimap-split-inbox} will be
14678 split, it is a string and the default is @samp{UNSEEN UNDELETED}.
14680 This might be useful if you use another @sc{imap} client to read mail in
14681 your inbox but would like Gnus to split all articles in the inbox
14682 regardless of readedness. Then you might change this to
14685 @item nnimap-split-fancy
14686 @cindex splitting, fancy
14687 @findex nnimap-split-fancy
14688 @vindex nnimap-split-fancy
14690 It's possible to set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14691 @code{nnmail-split-fancy} if you want to use fancy
14692 splitting. @xref{Fancy Mail Splitting}.
14694 However, to be able to have different fancy split rules for nnmail and
14695 nnimap backends you can set @code{nnimap-split-rule} to
14696 @code{nnimap-split-fancy} and define the nnimap specific fancy split
14697 rule in @code{nnimap-split-fancy}.
14702 (setq nnimap-split-rule 'nnimap-split-fancy
14703 nnimap-split-fancy ...)
14706 Nnmail equivalent: @code{nnmail-split-fancy}.
14710 @node Editing IMAP ACLs
14711 @subsubsection Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14712 @cindex editing imap acls
14713 @cindex Access Control Lists
14714 @cindex Editing @sc{imap} ACLs
14716 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-edit-acl
14718 ACL stands for Access Control List. ACLs are used in @sc{imap} for
14719 limiting (or enabling) other users access to your mail boxes. Not all
14720 @sc{imap} servers support this, this function will give an error if it
14723 To edit a ACL for a mailbox, type @kbd{G l}
14724 (@code{gnus-group-edit-nnimap-acl}) and you'll be presented with a ACL
14725 editing window with detailed instructions.
14727 Some possible uses:
14731 Giving "anyone" the "lrs" rights (lookup, read, keep seen/unseen flags)
14732 on your mailing list mailboxes enables other users on the same server to
14733 follow the list without subscribing to it.
14735 At least with the Cyrus server, you are required to give the user
14736 "anyone" posting ("p") capabilities to have "plussing" work (that is,
14737 mail sent to user+mailbox@@domain ending up in the @sc{imap} mailbox
14741 @node Expunging mailboxes
14742 @subsubsection Expunging mailboxes
14746 @cindex Manual expunging
14748 @findex gnus-group-nnimap-expunge
14750 If you're using the @code{never} setting of @code{nnimap-expunge-on-close},
14751 you may want the option of expunging all deleted articles in a mailbox
14752 manually. This is exactly what @kbd{G x} does.
14754 Currently there is no way of showing deleted articles, you can just
14759 @node Combined Groups
14760 @section Combined Groups
14762 Gnus allows combining a mixture of all the other group types into bigger
14766 * Virtual Groups:: Combining articles from many groups.
14767 * Kibozed Groups:: Looking through parts of the newsfeed for articles.
14771 @node Virtual Groups
14772 @subsection Virtual Groups
14774 @cindex virtual groups
14775 @cindex merging groups
14777 An @dfn{nnvirtual group} is really nothing more than a collection of
14780 For instance, if you are tired of reading many small groups, you can
14781 put them all in one big group, and then grow tired of reading one
14782 big, unwieldy group. The joys of computing!
14784 You specify @code{nnvirtual} as the method. The address should be a
14785 regexp to match component groups.
14787 All marks in the virtual group will stick to the articles in the
14788 component groups. So if you tick an article in a virtual group, the
14789 article will also be ticked in the component group from whence it came.
14790 (And vice versa---marks from the component groups will also be shown in
14791 the virtual group.)
14793 Here's an example @code{nnvirtual} method that collects all Andrea Dworkin
14794 newsgroups into one, big, happy newsgroup:
14797 (nnvirtual "^alt\\.fan\\.andrea-dworkin$\\|^rec\\.dworkin.*")
14800 The component groups can be native or foreign; everything should work
14801 smoothly, but if your computer explodes, it was probably my fault.
14803 Collecting the same group from several servers might actually be a good
14804 idea if users have set the Distribution header to limit distribution.
14805 If you would like to read @samp{soc.motss} both from a server in Japan
14806 and a server in Norway, you could use the following as the group regexp:
14809 "^nntp\\+server\\.jp:soc\\.motss$\\|^nntp\\+server\\.no:soc\\.motss$"
14812 (Remember, though, that if you're creating the group with @kbd{G m}, you
14813 shouldn't double the backslashes, and you should leave off the quote
14814 characters at the beginning and the end of the string.)
14816 This should work kinda smoothly---all articles from both groups should
14817 end up in this one, and there should be no duplicates. Threading (and
14818 the rest) will still work as usual, but there might be problems with the
14819 sequence of articles. Sorting on date might be an option here
14820 (@pxref{Selecting a Group}).
14822 One limitation, however---all groups included in a virtual
14823 group have to be alive (i.e., subscribed or unsubscribed). Killed or
14824 zombie groups can't be component groups for @code{nnvirtual} groups.
14826 @vindex nnvirtual-always-rescan
14827 If the @code{nnvirtual-always-rescan} is non-@code{nil},
14828 @code{nnvirtual} will always scan groups for unread articles when
14829 entering a virtual group. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
14830 default) and you read articles in a component group after the virtual
14831 group has been activated, the read articles from the component group
14832 will show up when you enter the virtual group. You'll also see this
14833 effect if you have two virtual groups that have a component group in
14834 common. If that's the case, you should set this variable to @code{t}.
14835 Or you can just tap @code{M-g} on the virtual group every time before
14836 you enter it---it'll have much the same effect.
14838 @code{nnvirtual} can have both mail and news groups as component groups.
14839 When responding to articles in @code{nnvirtual} groups, @code{nnvirtual}
14840 has to ask the backend of the component group the article comes from
14841 whether it is a news or mail backend. However, when you do a @kbd{^},
14842 there is typically no sure way for the component backend to know this,
14843 and in that case @code{nnvirtual} tells Gnus that the article came from a
14844 not-news backend. (Just to be on the safe side.)
14846 @kbd{C-c C-t} in the message buffer will insert the @code{Newsgroups}
14847 line from the article you respond to in these cases.
14851 @node Kibozed Groups
14852 @subsection Kibozed Groups
14856 @dfn{Kibozing} is defined by @sc{oed} as ``grepping through (parts of)
14857 the news feed''. @code{nnkiboze} is a backend that will do this for
14858 you. Oh joy! Now you can grind any @sc{nntp} server down to a halt
14859 with useless requests! Oh happiness!
14861 @kindex G k (Group)
14862 To create a kibozed group, use the @kbd{G k} command in the group
14865 The address field of the @code{nnkiboze} method is, as with
14866 @code{nnvirtual}, a regexp to match groups to be ``included'' in the
14867 @code{nnkiboze} group. That's where most similarities between @code{nnkiboze}
14868 and @code{nnvirtual} end.
14870 In addition to this regexp detailing component groups, an @code{nnkiboze} group
14871 must have a score file to say what articles are to be included in
14872 the group (@pxref{Scoring}).
14874 @kindex M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups
14875 @findex nnkiboze-generate-groups
14876 You must run @kbd{M-x nnkiboze-generate-groups} after creating the
14877 @code{nnkiboze} groups you want to have. This command will take time. Lots of
14878 time. Oodles and oodles of time. Gnus has to fetch the headers from
14879 all the articles in all the component groups and run them through the
14880 scoring process to determine if there are any articles in the groups
14881 that are to be part of the @code{nnkiboze} groups.
14883 Please limit the number of component groups by using restrictive
14884 regexps. Otherwise your sysadmin may become annoyed with you, and the
14885 @sc{nntp} site may throw you off and never let you back in again.
14886 Stranger things have happened.
14888 @code{nnkiboze} component groups do not have to be alive---they can be dead,
14889 and they can be foreign. No restrictions.
14891 @vindex nnkiboze-directory
14892 The generation of an @code{nnkiboze} group means writing two files in
14893 @code{nnkiboze-directory}, which is @file{~/News/} by default. One
14894 contains the @sc{nov} header lines for all the articles in the group,
14895 and the other is an additional @file{.newsrc} file to store information
14896 on what groups have been searched through to find component articles.
14898 Articles marked as read in the @code{nnkiboze} group will have
14899 their @sc{nov} lines removed from the @sc{nov} file.
14902 @node Gnus Unplugged
14903 @section Gnus Unplugged
14908 @cindex Gnus Unplugged
14910 In olden times (ca. February '88), people used to run their newsreaders
14911 on big machines with permanent connections to the net. News transport
14912 was dealt with by news servers, and all the newsreaders had to do was to
14913 read news. Believe it or not.
14915 Nowadays most people read news and mail at home, and use some sort of
14916 modem to connect to the net. To avoid running up huge phone bills, it
14917 would be nice to have a way to slurp down all the news and mail, hang up
14918 the phone, read for several hours, and then upload any responses you
14919 have to make. And then you repeat the procedure.
14921 Of course, you can use news servers for doing this as well. I've used
14922 @code{inn} together with @code{slurp}, @code{pop} and @code{sendmail}
14923 for some years, but doing that's a bore. Moving the news server
14924 functionality up to the newsreader makes sense if you're the only person
14925 reading news on a machine.
14927 Using Gnus as an ``offline'' newsreader is quite simple.
14931 First, set up Gnus as you would do if you were running it on a machine
14932 that has full connection to the net. Go ahead. I'll still be waiting
14936 Then, put the following magical incantation at the end of your
14937 @file{.gnus.el} file:
14944 That's it. Gnus is now an ``offline'' newsreader.
14946 Of course, to use it as such, you have to learn a few new commands.
14949 * Agent Basics:: How it all is supposed to work.
14950 * Agent Categories:: How to tell the Gnus Agent what to download.
14951 * Agent Commands:: New commands for all the buffers.
14952 * Agent Expiry:: How to make old articles go away.
14953 * Agent and IMAP:: How to use the Agent with IMAP.
14954 * Outgoing Messages:: What happens when you post/mail something?
14955 * Agent Variables:: Customizing is fun.
14956 * Example Setup:: An example @file{.gnus.el} file for offline people.
14957 * Batching Agents:: How to fetch news from a @code{cron} job.
14958 * Agent Caveats:: What you think it'll do and what it does.
14963 @subsection Agent Basics
14965 First, let's get some terminology out of the way.
14967 The Gnus Agent is said to be @dfn{unplugged} when you have severed the
14968 connection to the net (and notified the Agent that this is the case).
14969 When the connection to the net is up again (and Gnus knows this), the
14970 Agent is @dfn{plugged}.
14972 The @dfn{local} machine is the one you're running on, and which isn't
14973 connected to the net continuously.
14975 @dfn{Downloading} means fetching things from the net to your local
14976 machine. @dfn{Uploading} is doing the opposite.
14978 Let's take a typical Gnus session using the Agent.
14983 You start Gnus with @code{gnus-unplugged}. This brings up the Gnus
14984 Agent in a disconnected state. You can read all the news that you have
14985 already fetched while in this mode.
14988 You then decide to see whether any new news has arrived. You connect
14989 your machine to the net (using PPP or whatever), and then hit @kbd{J j}
14990 to make Gnus become @dfn{plugged} and use @kbd{g} to check for new mail
14991 as usual. To check for new mail in unplugged mode, see (@pxref{Mail
14992 Source Specifiers}).
14995 You can then read the new news immediately, or you can download the news
14996 onto your local machine. If you want to do the latter, you press @kbd{g}
14997 to check if there are any new news and then @kbd{J
14998 s} to fetch all the eligible articles in all the groups. (To let Gnus
14999 know which articles you want to download, @pxref{Agent Categories}.)
15002 After fetching the articles, you press @kbd{J j} to make Gnus become
15003 unplugged again, and you shut down the PPP thing (or whatever). And
15004 then you read the news offline.
15007 And then you go to step 2.
15010 Here are some things you should do the first time (or so) that you use
15016 Decide which servers should be covered by the Agent. If you have a mail
15017 backend, it would probably be nonsensical to have it covered by the
15018 Agent. Go to the server buffer (@kbd{^} in the group buffer) and press
15019 @kbd{J a} the server (or servers) that you wish to have covered by the
15020 Agent (@pxref{Server Agent Commands}). This will typically be only the
15021 primary select method, which is listed on the bottom in the buffer.
15024 Decide on download policy. @xref{Agent Categories}.
15031 @node Agent Categories
15032 @subsection Agent Categories
15034 One of the main reasons to integrate the news transport layer into the
15035 newsreader is to allow greater control over what articles to download.
15036 There's not much point in downloading huge amounts of articles, just to
15037 find out that you're not interested in reading any of them. It's better
15038 to be somewhat more conservative in choosing what to download, and then
15039 mark the articles for downloading manually if it should turn out that
15040 you're interested in the articles anyway.
15042 The main way to control what is to be downloaded is to create a
15043 @dfn{category} and then assign some (or all) groups to this category.
15044 Groups that do not belong in any other category belong to the
15045 @code{default} category. Gnus has its own buffer for creating and
15046 managing categories.
15049 * Category Syntax:: What a category looks like.
15050 * Category Buffer:: A buffer for maintaining categories.
15051 * Category Variables:: Customize'r'Us.
15055 @node Category Syntax
15056 @subsubsection Category Syntax
15058 A category consists of two things.
15062 A predicate which (generally) gives a rough outline of which articles
15063 are eligible for downloading; and
15066 a score rule which (generally) gives you a finer granularity when
15067 deciding what articles to download. (Note that this @dfn{download
15068 score} is not necessarily related to normal scores.)
15071 A predicate in its simplest form can be a single predicate such as
15072 @code{true} or @code{false}. These two will download every available
15073 article or nothing respectively. In the case of these two special
15074 predicates an additional score rule is superfluous.
15076 Predicates of @code{high} or @code{low} download articles in respect of
15077 their scores in relationship to @code{gnus-agent-high-score} and
15078 @code{gnus-agent-low-score} as described below.
15080 To gain even finer control of what is to be regarded eligible for
15081 download a predicate can consist of a number of predicates with logical
15082 operators sprinkled in between.
15084 Perhaps some examples are in order.
15086 Here's a simple predicate. (It's the default predicate, in fact, used
15087 for all groups that don't belong to any other category.)
15093 Quite simple, eh? This predicate is true if and only if the article is
15094 short (for some value of ``short'').
15096 Here's a more complex predicate:
15105 This means that an article should be downloaded if it has a high score,
15106 or if the score is not low and the article is not long. You get the
15109 The available logical operators are @code{or}, @code{and} and
15110 @code{not}. (If you prefer, you can use the more ``C''-ish operators
15111 @samp{|}, @code{&} and @code{!} instead.)
15113 The following predicates are pre-defined, but if none of these fit what
15114 you want to do, you can write your own.
15118 True iff the article is shorter than @code{gnus-agent-short-article}
15119 lines; default 100.
15122 True iff the article is longer than @code{gnus-agent-long-article}
15123 lines; default 200.
15126 True iff the article has a download score less than
15127 @code{gnus-agent-low-score}; default 0.
15130 True iff the article has a download score greater than
15131 @code{gnus-agent-high-score}; default 0.
15134 True iff the Gnus Agent guesses that the article is spam. The
15135 heuristics may change over time, but at present it just computes a
15136 checksum and sees whether articles match.
15145 If you want to create your own predicate function, here's what you have
15146 to know: The functions are called with no parameters, but the
15147 @code{gnus-headers} and @code{gnus-score} dynamic variables are bound to
15150 For example, you could decide that you don't want to download articles
15151 that were posted more than a certain number of days ago (e.g. posted
15152 more than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} ago) you might write a function
15153 something along the lines of the following:
15156 (defun my-article-old-p ()
15157 "Say whether an article is old."
15158 (< (time-to-days (date-to-time (mail-header-date gnus-headers)))
15159 (- (time-to-days (current-time)) gnus-agent-expire-days)))
15162 with the predicate then defined as:
15165 (not my-article-old-p)
15168 or you could append your predicate to the predefined
15169 @code{gnus-category-predicate-alist} in your @file{~/.gnus.el} or
15170 wherever. (Note: this would have to be at a point *after*
15171 @code{gnus-agent} has been loaded via @code{(gnus-agentize)})
15174 (setq gnus-category-predicate-alist
15175 (append gnus-category-predicate-alist
15176 '((old . my-article-old-p))))
15179 and simply specify your predicate as:
15185 If/when using something like the above, be aware that there are many
15186 misconfigured systems/mailers out there and so an article's date is not
15187 always a reliable indication of when it was posted. Hell, some people
15188 just don't give a damn.
15190 The above predicates apply to *all* the groups which belong to the
15191 category. However, if you wish to have a specific predicate for an
15192 individual group within a category, or you're just too lazy to set up a
15193 new category, you can enter a group's individual predicate in it's group
15194 parameters like so:
15197 (agent-predicate . short)
15200 This is the group parameter equivalent of the agent category default.
15201 Note that when specifying a single word predicate like this, the
15202 @code{agent-predicate} specification must be in dotted pair notation.
15204 The equivalent of the longer example from above would be:
15207 (agent-predicate or high (and (not low) (not long)))
15210 The outer parenthesis required in the category specification are not
15211 entered here as, not being in dotted pair notation, the value of the
15212 predicate is assumed to be a list.
15215 Now, the syntax of the download score is the same as the syntax of
15216 normal score files, except that all elements that require actually
15217 seeing the article itself are verboten. This means that only the
15218 following headers can be scored on: @code{Subject}, @code{From},
15219 @code{Date}, @code{Message-ID}, @code{References}, @code{Chars},
15220 @code{Lines}, and @code{Xref}.
15222 As with predicates, the specification of the @code{download score rule}
15223 to use in respect of a group can be in either the category definition if
15224 it's to be applicable to all groups in therein, or a group's parameters
15225 if it's to be specific to that group.
15227 In both of these places the @code{download score rule} can take one of
15234 This has the same syntax as a normal gnus score file except only a
15235 subset of scoring keywords are available as mentioned above.
15241 Category specification
15245 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
15251 Group Parameter specification
15254 (agent-score ("from"
15255 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" 1000000 nil s))
15260 Again, note the omission of the outermost parenthesis here.
15266 These score files must *only* contain the permitted scoring keywords
15273 Category specification
15276 ("~/News/agent.SCORE")
15282 ("~/News/agent.SCORE" "~/News/agent.group.SCORE")
15286 Group Parameter specification
15289 (agent-score "~/News/agent.SCORE")
15292 Additional score files can be specified as above. Need I say anything
15297 Use @code{normal} score files
15299 If you don't want to maintain two sets of scoring rules for a group, and
15300 your desired @code{downloading} criteria for a group are the same as your
15301 @code{reading} criteria then you can tell the agent to refer to your
15302 @code{normal} score files when deciding what to download.
15304 These directives in either the category definition or a group's
15305 parameters will cause the agent to read in all the applicable score
15306 files for a group, *filtering out* those sections that do not
15307 relate to one of the permitted subset of scoring keywords.
15311 Category Specification
15318 Group Parameter specification
15321 (agent-score . file)
15326 @node Category Buffer
15327 @subsubsection Category Buffer
15329 You'd normally do all category maintenance from the category buffer.
15330 When you enter it for the first time (with the @kbd{J c} command from
15331 the group buffer), you'll only see the @code{default} category.
15333 The following commands are available in this buffer:
15337 @kindex q (Category)
15338 @findex gnus-category-exit
15339 Return to the group buffer (@code{gnus-category-exit}).
15342 @kindex k (Category)
15343 @findex gnus-category-kill
15344 Kill the current category (@code{gnus-category-kill}).
15347 @kindex c (Category)
15348 @findex gnus-category-copy
15349 Copy the current category (@code{gnus-category-copy}).
15352 @kindex a (Category)
15353 @findex gnus-category-add
15354 Add a new category (@code{gnus-category-add}).
15357 @kindex p (Category)
15358 @findex gnus-category-edit-predicate
15359 Edit the predicate of the current category
15360 (@code{gnus-category-edit-predicate}).
15363 @kindex g (Category)
15364 @findex gnus-category-edit-groups
15365 Edit the list of groups belonging to the current category
15366 (@code{gnus-category-edit-groups}).
15369 @kindex s (Category)
15370 @findex gnus-category-edit-score
15371 Edit the download score rule of the current category
15372 (@code{gnus-category-edit-score}).
15375 @kindex l (Category)
15376 @findex gnus-category-list
15377 List all the categories (@code{gnus-category-list}).
15381 @node Category Variables
15382 @subsubsection Category Variables
15385 @item gnus-category-mode-hook
15386 @vindex gnus-category-mode-hook
15387 Hook run in category buffers.
15389 @item gnus-category-line-format
15390 @vindex gnus-category-line-format
15391 Format of the lines in the category buffer (@pxref{Formatting
15392 Variables}). Valid elements are:
15396 The name of the category.
15399 The number of groups in the category.
15402 @item gnus-category-mode-line-format
15403 @vindex gnus-category-mode-line-format
15404 Format of the category mode line (@pxref{Mode Line Formatting}).
15406 @item gnus-agent-short-article
15407 @vindex gnus-agent-short-article
15408 Articles that have fewer lines than this are short. Default 100.
15410 @item gnus-agent-long-article
15411 @vindex gnus-agent-long-article
15412 Articles that have more lines than this are long. Default 200.
15414 @item gnus-agent-low-score
15415 @vindex gnus-agent-low-score
15416 Articles that have a score lower than this have a low score. Default
15419 @item gnus-agent-high-score
15420 @vindex gnus-agent-high-score
15421 Articles that have a score higher than this have a high score. Default
15427 @node Agent Commands
15428 @subsection Agent Commands
15430 All the Gnus Agent commands are on the @kbd{J} submap. The @kbd{J j}
15431 (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-plugged} command works in all modes, and
15432 toggles the plugged/unplugged state of the Gnus Agent.
15436 * Group Agent Commands::
15437 * Summary Agent Commands::
15438 * Server Agent Commands::
15441 You can run a complete batch fetch from the command line with the
15442 following incantation:
15444 @cindex gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15446 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-agent-batch-fetch
15451 @node Group Agent Commands
15452 @subsubsection Group Agent Commands
15456 @kindex J u (Agent Group)
15457 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-groups
15458 Fetch all eligible articles in the current group
15459 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-groups}).
15462 @kindex J c (Agent Group)
15463 @findex gnus-enter-category-buffer
15464 Enter the Agent category buffer (@code{gnus-enter-category-buffer}).
15467 @kindex J s (Agent Group)
15468 @findex gnus-agent-fetch-session
15469 Fetch all eligible articles in all groups
15470 (@code{gnus-agent-fetch-session}).
15473 @kindex J S (Agent Group)
15474 @findex gnus-group-send-drafts
15475 Send all sendable messages in the draft group
15476 (@code{gnus-group-send-drafts}). @xref{Drafts}.
15479 @kindex J a (Agent Group)
15480 @findex gnus-agent-add-group
15481 Add the current group to an Agent category
15482 (@code{gnus-agent-add-group}). This command understands the
15483 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15486 @kindex J r (Agent Group)
15487 @findex gnus-agent-remove-group
15488 Remove the current group from its category, if any
15489 (@code{gnus-agent-remove-group}). This command understands the
15490 process/prefix convention (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
15493 @kindex J Y (Agent Group)
15494 @findex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15495 Synchronize flags changed while unplugged with remote server, if any.
15501 @node Summary Agent Commands
15502 @subsubsection Summary Agent Commands
15506 @kindex J # (Agent Summary)
15507 @findex gnus-agent-mark-article
15508 Mark the article for downloading (@code{gnus-agent-mark-article}).
15511 @kindex J M-# (Agent Summary)
15512 @findex gnus-agent-unmark-article
15513 Remove the downloading mark from the article
15514 (@code{gnus-agent-unmark-article}).
15517 @kindex @@ (Agent Summary)
15518 @findex gnus-agent-toggle-mark
15519 Toggle whether to download the article (@code{gnus-agent-toggle-mark}).
15522 @kindex J c (Agent Summary)
15523 @findex gnus-agent-catchup
15524 Mark all undownloaded articles as read (@code{gnus-agent-catchup}).
15527 @kindex J u (Agent Summary)
15528 @findex gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group
15529 Download all downloadable articles in the current group
15530 (@code{gnus-agent-summary-fetch-group}).
15535 @node Server Agent Commands
15536 @subsubsection Server Agent Commands
15540 @kindex J a (Agent Server)
15541 @findex gnus-agent-add-server
15542 Add the current server to the list of servers covered by the Gnus Agent
15543 (@code{gnus-agent-add-server}).
15546 @kindex J r (Agent Server)
15547 @findex gnus-agent-remove-server
15548 Remove the current server from the list of servers covered by the Gnus
15549 Agent (@code{gnus-agent-remove-server}).
15555 @subsection Agent Expiry
15557 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-days
15558 @findex gnus-agent-expire
15559 @kindex M-x gnus-agent-expire
15560 @cindex Agent expiry
15561 @cindex Gnus Agent expiry
15564 @code{nnagent} doesn't handle expiry. Instead, there's a special
15565 @code{gnus-agent-expire} command that will expire all read articles that
15566 are older than @code{gnus-agent-expire-days} days. It can be run
15567 whenever you feel that you're running out of space. It's not
15568 particularly fast or efficient, and it's not a particularly good idea to
15569 interrupt it (with @kbd{C-g} or anything else) once you've started it.
15571 @vindex gnus-agent-expire-all
15572 if @code{gnus-agent-expire-all} is non-@code{nil}, this command will
15573 expire all articles---unread, read, ticked and dormant. If @code{nil}
15574 (which is the default), only read articles are eligible for expiry, and
15575 unread, ticked and dormant articles will be kept indefinitely.
15578 @node Agent and IMAP
15579 @subsection Agent and IMAP
15581 The Agent work with any Gnus backend, including nnimap. However,
15582 since there are some conceptual differences between @sc{nntp} and
15583 @sc{imap}, this section (should) provide you with some information to
15584 make Gnus Agent work smoother as a @sc{imap} Disconnected Mode client.
15586 The first thing to keep in mind is that all flags (read, ticked, etc)
15587 are kept on the @sc{imap} server, rather than in @code{.newsrc} as is the
15588 case for nntp. Thus Gnus need to remember flag changes when
15589 disconnected, and synchronize these flags when you plug back in.
15591 Gnus keep track of flag changes when reading nnimap groups under the
15592 Agent by default. When you plug back in, by default Gnus will check if
15593 you have any changed any flags and ask if you wish to synchronize these
15594 with the server. This behavior is customizable with
15595 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags}.
15597 @vindex gnus-agent-synchronize-flags
15598 If @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} is @code{nil}, the Agent will
15599 never automatically synchronize flags. If it is @code{ask}, the
15600 default, the Agent will check if you made any changes and if so ask if
15601 you wish to synchronize these when you re-connect. If it has any other
15602 value, all flags will be synchronized automatically.
15604 If you do not wish to automatically synchronize flags when you
15605 re-connect, this can be done manually with the
15606 @code{gnus-agent-synchronize-flags} command that is bound to @kbd{J Y}
15607 in the group buffer by default.
15609 Some things are currently not implemented in the Agent that you'd might
15610 expect from a disconnected @sc{imap} client, including:
15615 Copying/moving articles into nnimap groups when unplugged.
15618 Creating/deleting nnimap groups when unplugged.
15622 Technical note: the synchronization algorithm does not work by "pushing"
15623 all local flags to the server, but rather incrementally update the
15624 server view of flags by changing only those flags that were changed by
15625 the user. Thus, if you set one flag on a article, quit the group and
15626 re-select the group and remove the flag; the flag will be set and
15627 removed from the server when you "synchronize". The queued flag
15628 operations can be found in the per-server @code{flags} file in the Agent
15629 directory. It's emptied when you synchronize flags.
15632 @node Outgoing Messages
15633 @subsection Outgoing Messages
15635 When Gnus is unplugged, all outgoing messages (both mail and news) are
15636 stored in the draft groups (@pxref{Drafts}). You can view them there
15637 after posting, and edit them at will.
15639 When Gnus is plugged again, you can send the messages either from the
15640 draft group with the special commands available there, or you can use
15641 the @kbd{J S} command in the group buffer to send all the sendable
15642 messages in the draft group.
15646 @node Agent Variables
15647 @subsection Agent Variables
15650 @item gnus-agent-directory
15651 @vindex gnus-agent-directory
15652 Where the Gnus Agent will store its files. The default is
15653 @file{~/News/agent/}.
15655 @item gnus-agent-handle-level
15656 @vindex gnus-agent-handle-level
15657 Groups on levels (@pxref{Group Levels}) higher than this variable will
15658 be ignored by the Agent. The default is @code{gnus-level-subscribed},
15659 which means that only subscribed group will be considered by the Agent
15662 @item gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15663 @vindex gnus-agent-plugged-hook
15664 Hook run when connecting to the network.
15666 @item gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15667 @vindex gnus-agent-unplugged-hook
15668 Hook run when disconnecting from the network.
15673 @node Example Setup
15674 @subsection Example Setup
15676 If you don't want to read this manual, and you have a fairly standard
15677 setup, you may be able to use something like the following as your
15678 @file{.gnus.el} file to get started.
15681 ;;; Define how Gnus is to fetch news. We do this over @sc{nntp}
15682 ;;; from your ISP's server.
15683 (setq gnus-select-method '(nntp "news.your-isp.com"))
15685 ;;; Define how Gnus is to read your mail. We read mail from
15686 ;;; your ISP's POP server.
15687 (setq mail-sources '((pop :server "pop.your-isp.com")))
15689 ;;; Say how Gnus is to store the mail. We use nnml groups.
15690 (setq gnus-secondary-select-methods '((nnml "")))
15692 ;;; Make Gnus into an offline newsreader.
15696 That should be it, basically. Put that in your @file{~/.gnus.el} file,
15697 edit to suit your needs, start up PPP (or whatever), and type @kbd{M-x
15700 If this is the first time you've run Gnus, you will be subscribed
15701 automatically to a few default newsgroups. You'll probably want to
15702 subscribe to more groups, and to do that, you have to query the
15703 @sc{nntp} server for a complete list of groups with the @kbd{A A}
15704 command. This usually takes quite a while, but you only have to do it
15707 After reading and parsing a while, you'll be presented with a list of
15708 groups. Subscribe to the ones you want to read with the @kbd{u}
15709 command. @kbd{l} to make all the killed groups disappear after you've
15710 subscribe to all the groups you want to read. (@kbd{A k} will bring
15711 back all the killed groups.)
15713 You can now read the groups at once, or you can download the articles
15714 with the @kbd{J s} command. And then read the rest of this manual to
15715 find out which of the other gazillion things you want to customize.
15718 @node Batching Agents
15719 @subsection Batching Agents
15721 Having the Gnus Agent fetch articles (and post whatever messages you've
15722 written) is quite easy once you've gotten things set up properly. The
15723 following shell script will do everything that is necessary:
15727 emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -f gnus-agent-batch >/dev/null
15731 @node Agent Caveats
15732 @subsection Agent Caveats
15734 The Gnus Agent doesn't seem to work like most other offline
15735 newsreaders. Here are some common questions that some imaginary people
15739 @item If I read an article while plugged, do they get entered into the
15744 @item If I read an article while plugged, and the article already exists
15745 in the Agent, will it get downloaded once more?
15751 In short, when Gnus is unplugged, it only looks into the locally stored
15752 articles; when it's plugged, it only talks to your ISP.
15759 Other people use @dfn{kill files}, but we here at Gnus Towers like
15760 scoring better than killing, so we'd rather switch than fight. They do
15761 something completely different as well, so sit up straight and pay
15764 @vindex gnus-summary-mark-below
15765 All articles have a default score (@code{gnus-summary-default-score}),
15766 which is 0 by default. This score may be raised or lowered either
15767 interactively or by score files. Articles that have a score lower than
15768 @code{gnus-summary-mark-below} are marked as read.
15770 Gnus will read any @dfn{score files} that apply to the current group
15771 before generating the summary buffer.
15773 There are several commands in the summary buffer that insert score
15774 entries based on the current article. You can, for instance, ask Gnus to
15775 lower or increase the score of all articles with a certain subject.
15777 There are two sorts of scoring entries: Permanent and temporary.
15778 Temporary score entries are self-expiring entries. Any entries that are
15779 temporary and have not been used for, say, a week, will be removed
15780 silently to help keep the sizes of the score files down.
15783 * Summary Score Commands:: Adding score entries for the current group.
15784 * Group Score Commands:: General score commands.
15785 * Score Variables:: Customize your scoring. (My, what terminology).
15786 * Score File Format:: What a score file may contain.
15787 * Score File Editing:: You can edit score files by hand as well.
15788 * Adaptive Scoring:: Big Sister Gnus knows what you read.
15789 * Home Score File:: How to say where new score entries are to go.
15790 * Followups To Yourself:: Having Gnus notice when people answer you.
15791 * Scoring On Other Headers:: Scoring on non-standard headers.
15792 * Scoring Tips:: How to score effectively.
15793 * Reverse Scoring:: That problem child of old is not problem.
15794 * Global Score Files:: Earth-spanning, ear-splitting score files.
15795 * Kill Files:: They are still here, but they can be ignored.
15796 * Converting Kill Files:: Translating kill files to score files.
15797 * GroupLens:: Getting predictions on what you like to read.
15798 * Advanced Scoring:: Using logical expressions to build score rules.
15799 * Score Decays:: It can be useful to let scores wither away.
15803 @node Summary Score Commands
15804 @section Summary Score Commands
15805 @cindex score commands
15807 The score commands that alter score entries do not actually modify real
15808 score files. That would be too inefficient. Gnus maintains a cache of
15809 previously loaded score files, one of which is considered the
15810 @dfn{current score file alist}. The score commands simply insert
15811 entries into this list, and upon group exit, this list is saved.
15813 The current score file is by default the group's local score file, even
15814 if no such score file actually exists. To insert score commands into
15815 some other score file (e.g. @file{all.SCORE}), you must first make this
15816 score file the current one.
15818 General score commands that don't actually change the score file:
15823 @kindex V s (Summary)
15824 @findex gnus-summary-set-score
15825 Set the score of the current article (@code{gnus-summary-set-score}).
15828 @kindex V S (Summary)
15829 @findex gnus-summary-current-score
15830 Display the score of the current article
15831 (@code{gnus-summary-current-score}).
15834 @kindex V t (Summary)
15835 @findex gnus-score-find-trace
15836 Display all score rules that have been used on the current article
15837 (@code{gnus-score-find-trace}).
15840 @kindex V R (Summary)
15841 @findex gnus-summary-rescore
15842 Run the current summary through the scoring process
15843 (@code{gnus-summary-rescore}). This might be useful if you're playing
15844 around with your score files behind Gnus' back and want to see the
15845 effect you're having.
15848 @kindex V c (Summary)
15849 @findex gnus-score-change-score-file
15850 Make a different score file the current
15851 (@code{gnus-score-change-score-file}).
15854 @kindex V e (Summary)
15855 @findex gnus-score-edit-current-scores
15856 Edit the current score file (@code{gnus-score-edit-current-scores}).
15857 You will be popped into a @code{gnus-score-mode} buffer (@pxref{Score
15861 @kindex V f (Summary)
15862 @findex gnus-score-edit-file
15863 Edit a score file and make this score file the current one
15864 (@code{gnus-score-edit-file}).
15867 @kindex V F (Summary)
15868 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
15869 Flush the score cache (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}). This is useful
15870 after editing score files.
15873 @kindex V C (Summary)
15874 @findex gnus-score-customize
15875 Customize a score file in a visually pleasing manner
15876 (@code{gnus-score-customize}).
15880 The rest of these commands modify the local score file.
15885 @kindex V m (Summary)
15886 @findex gnus-score-set-mark-below
15887 Prompt for a score, and mark all articles with a score below this as
15888 read (@code{gnus-score-set-mark-below}).
15891 @kindex V x (Summary)
15892 @findex gnus-score-set-expunge-below
15893 Prompt for a score, and add a score rule to the current score file to
15894 expunge all articles below this score
15895 (@code{gnus-score-set-expunge-below}).
15898 The keystrokes for actually making score entries follow a very regular
15899 pattern, so there's no need to list all the commands. (Hundreds of
15902 @findex gnus-summary-increase-score
15903 @findex gnus-summary-lower-score
15907 The first key is either @kbd{I} (upper case i) for increasing the score
15908 or @kbd{L} for lowering the score.
15910 The second key says what header you want to score on. The following
15911 keys are available:
15915 Score on the author name.
15918 Score on the subject line.
15921 Score on the @code{Xref} line---i.e., the cross-posting line.
15924 Score on the @code{References} line.
15930 Score on the number of lines.
15933 Score on the @code{Message-ID} header.
15936 Score on followups---this matches the author name, and adds scores to
15937 the followups to this author. (Using this key leads to the creation of
15938 @file{ADAPT} files.)
15947 Score on thread. (Using this key leads to the creation of @file{ADAPT}
15953 The third key is the match type. Which match types are valid depends on
15954 what headers you are scoring on.
15966 Substring matching.
15969 Fuzzy matching (@pxref{Fuzzy Matching}).
15998 Greater than number.
16003 The fourth and final key says whether this is a temporary (i.e., expiring)
16004 score entry, or a permanent (i.e., non-expiring) score entry, or whether
16005 it is to be done immediately, without adding to the score file.
16009 Temporary score entry.
16012 Permanent score entry.
16015 Immediately scoring.
16020 So, let's say you want to increase the score on the current author with
16021 exact matching permanently: @kbd{I a e p}. If you want to lower the
16022 score based on the subject line, using substring matching, and make a
16023 temporary score entry: @kbd{L s s t}. Pretty easy.
16025 To make things a bit more complicated, there are shortcuts. If you use
16026 a capital letter on either the second or third keys, Gnus will use
16027 defaults for the remaining one or two keystrokes. The defaults are
16028 ``substring'' and ``temporary''. So @kbd{I A} is the same as @kbd{I a s
16029 t}, and @kbd{I a R} is the same as @kbd{I a r t}.
16031 These functions take both the numerical prefix and the symbolic prefix
16032 (@pxref{Symbolic Prefixes}). A numerical prefix says how much to lower
16033 (or increase) the score of the article. A symbolic prefix of @code{a}
16034 says to use the @file{all.SCORE} file for the command instead of the
16035 current score file.
16037 @vindex gnus-score-mimic-keymap
16038 The @code{gnus-score-mimic-keymap} says whether these commands will
16039 pretend they are keymaps or not.
16042 @node Group Score Commands
16043 @section Group Score Commands
16044 @cindex group score commands
16046 There aren't many of these as yet, I'm afraid.
16051 @kindex W f (Group)
16052 @findex gnus-score-flush-cache
16053 Gnus maintains a cache of score alists to avoid having to reload them
16054 all the time. This command will flush the cache
16055 (@code{gnus-score-flush-cache}).
16059 You can do scoring from the command line by saying something like:
16061 @findex gnus-batch-score
16062 @cindex batch scoring
16064 $ emacs -batch -l ~/.emacs -l ~/.gnus.el -f gnus-batch-score
16068 @node Score Variables
16069 @section Score Variables
16070 @cindex score variables
16074 @item gnus-use-scoring
16075 @vindex gnus-use-scoring
16076 If @code{nil}, Gnus will not check for score files, and will not, in
16077 general, do any score-related work. This is @code{t} by default.
16079 @item gnus-kill-killed
16080 @vindex gnus-kill-killed
16081 If this variable is @code{nil}, Gnus will never apply score files to
16082 articles that have already been through the kill process. While this
16083 may save you lots of time, it also means that if you apply a kill file
16084 to a group, and then change the kill file and want to run it over you
16085 group again to kill more articles, it won't work. You have to set this
16086 variable to @code{t} to do that. (It is @code{t} by default.)
16088 @item gnus-kill-files-directory
16089 @vindex gnus-kill-files-directory
16090 All kill and score files will be stored in this directory, which is
16091 initialized from the @code{SAVEDIR} environment variable by default.
16092 This is @file{~/News/} by default.
16094 @item gnus-score-file-suffix
16095 @vindex gnus-score-file-suffix
16096 Suffix to add to the group name to arrive at the score file name
16097 (@samp{SCORE} by default.)
16099 @item gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16100 @vindex gnus-score-uncacheable-files
16101 @cindex score cache
16102 All score files are normally cached to avoid excessive re-loading of
16103 score files. However, if this might make your Emacs grow big and
16104 bloated, so this regexp can be used to weed out score files unlikely to be needed again. It would be a bad idea to deny caching of
16105 @file{all.SCORE}, while it might be a good idea to not cache
16106 @file{comp.infosystems.www.authoring.misc.ADAPT}. In fact, this
16107 variable is @samp{ADAPT$} by default, so no adaptive score files will
16110 @item gnus-save-score
16111 @vindex gnus-save-score
16112 If you have really complicated score files, and do lots of batch
16113 scoring, then you might set this variable to @code{t}. This will make
16114 Gnus save the scores into the @file{.newsrc.eld} file.
16116 If you do not set this to @code{t}, then manual scores (like those set
16117 with @kbd{V s} (@code{gnus-summary-set-score})) will not be preserved
16118 across group visits.
16120 @item gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16121 @vindex gnus-score-interactive-default-score
16122 Score used by all the interactive raise/lower commands to raise/lower
16123 score with. Default is 1000, which may seem excessive, but this is to
16124 ensure that the adaptive scoring scheme gets enough room to play with.
16125 We don't want the small changes from the adaptive scoring to overwrite
16126 manually entered data.
16128 @item gnus-summary-default-score
16129 @vindex gnus-summary-default-score
16130 Default score of an article, which is 0 by default.
16132 @item gnus-summary-expunge-below
16133 @vindex gnus-summary-expunge-below
16134 Don't display the summary lines of articles that have scores lower than
16135 this variable. This is @code{nil} by default, which means that no
16136 articles will be hidden. This variable is local to the summary buffers,
16137 and has to be set from @code{gnus-summary-mode-hook}.
16139 @item gnus-score-over-mark
16140 @vindex gnus-score-over-mark
16141 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score over the
16142 default. Default is @samp{+}.
16144 @item gnus-score-below-mark
16145 @vindex gnus-score-below-mark
16146 Mark (in the third column) used for articles with a score below the
16147 default. Default is @samp{-}.
16149 @item gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16150 @vindex gnus-score-find-score-files-function
16151 Function used to find score files for the current group. This function
16152 is called with the name of the group as the argument.
16154 Predefined functions available are:
16157 @item gnus-score-find-single
16158 @findex gnus-score-find-single
16159 Only apply the group's own score file.
16161 @item gnus-score-find-bnews
16162 @findex gnus-score-find-bnews
16163 Apply all score files that match, using bnews syntax. This is the
16164 default. If the current group is @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}, for instance,
16165 @file{all.emacs.all.SCORE}, @file{not.alt.all.SCORE} and
16166 @file{gnu.all.SCORE} would all apply. In short, the instances of
16167 @samp{all} in the score file names are translated into @samp{.*}, and
16168 then a regexp match is done.
16170 This means that if you have some score entries that you want to apply to
16171 all groups, then you put those entries in the @file{all.SCORE} file.
16173 The score files are applied in a semi-random order, although Gnus will
16174 try to apply the more general score files before the more specific score
16175 files. It does this by looking at the number of elements in the score
16176 file names---discarding the @samp{all} elements.
16178 @item gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16179 @findex gnus-score-find-hierarchical
16180 Apply all score files from all the parent groups. This means that you
16181 can't have score files like @file{all.SCORE}, but you can have
16182 @file{SCORE}, @file{comp.SCORE} and @file{comp.emacs.SCORE} for each
16186 This variable can also be a list of functions. In that case, all these
16187 functions will be called with the group name as argument, and all the
16188 returned lists of score files will be applied. These functions can also
16189 return lists of score alists directly. In that case, the functions that
16190 return these non-file score alists should probably be placed before the
16191 ``real'' score file functions, to ensure that the last score file
16192 returned is the local score file. Phu.
16194 For example, to do hierarchical scoring but use a non-server-specific
16195 overall score file, you could use the value
16197 (list (lambda (group) ("all.SCORE"))
16198 'gnus-score-find-hierarchical)
16201 @item gnus-score-expiry-days
16202 @vindex gnus-score-expiry-days
16203 This variable says how many days should pass before an unused score file
16204 entry is expired. If this variable is @code{nil}, no score file entries
16205 are expired. It's 7 by default.
16207 @item gnus-update-score-entry-dates
16208 @vindex gnus-update-score-entry-dates
16209 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, matching score entries will have
16210 their dates updated. (This is how Gnus controls expiry---all
16211 non-matching entries will become too old while matching entries will
16212 stay fresh and young.) However, if you set this variable to @code{nil},
16213 even matching entries will grow old and will have to face that oh-so
16216 @item gnus-score-after-write-file-function
16217 @vindex gnus-score-after-write-file-function
16218 Function called with the name of the score file just written.
16220 @item gnus-score-thread-simplify
16221 @vindex gnus-score-thread-simplify
16222 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, article subjects will be simplified
16223 for subject scoring purposes in the same manner as with
16224 threading---according to the current value of
16225 gnus-simplify-subject-functions. If the scoring entry uses
16226 @code{substring} or @code{exact} matching, the match will also be
16227 simplified in this manner.
16232 @node Score File Format
16233 @section Score File Format
16234 @cindex score file format
16236 A score file is an @code{emacs-lisp} file that normally contains just a
16237 single form. Casual users are not expected to edit these files;
16238 everything can be changed from the summary buffer.
16240 Anyway, if you'd like to dig into it yourself, here's an example:
16244 ("Lars Ingebrigtsen" -10000)
16246 ("larsi\\|lmi" -50000 nil R))
16248 ("Ding is Badd" nil 728373))
16250 ("alt.politics" -1000 728372 s))
16255 (mark-and-expunge -10)
16259 (files "/hom/larsi/News/gnu.SCORE")
16260 (exclude-files "all.SCORE")
16261 (local (gnus-newsgroup-auto-expire t)
16262 (gnus-summary-make-false-root empty))
16266 This example demonstrates most score file elements. For a different
16267 approach, see @pxref{Advanced Scoring}.
16269 Even though this looks much like lisp code, nothing here is actually
16270 @code{eval}ed. The lisp reader is used to read this form, though, so it
16271 has to be valid syntactically, if not semantically.
16273 Six keys are supported by this alist:
16278 If the key is a string, it is the name of the header to perform the
16279 match on. Scoring can only be performed on these eight headers:
16280 @code{From}, @code{Subject}, @code{References}, @code{Message-ID},
16281 @code{Xref}, @code{Lines}, @code{Chars} and @code{Date}. In addition to
16282 these headers, there are three strings to tell Gnus to fetch the entire
16283 article and do the match on larger parts of the article: @code{Body}
16284 will perform the match on the body of the article, @code{Head} will
16285 perform the match on the head of the article, and @code{All} will
16286 perform the match on the entire article. Note that using any of these
16287 last three keys will slow down group entry @emph{considerably}. The
16288 final ``header'' you can score on is @code{Followup}. These score
16289 entries will result in new score entries being added for all follow-ups
16290 to articles that matches these score entries.
16292 Following this key is a arbitrary number of score entries, where each
16293 score entry has one to four elements.
16297 The first element is the @dfn{match element}. On most headers this will
16298 be a string, but on the Lines and Chars headers, this must be an
16302 If the second element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{score
16303 element}. This number should be an integer in the neginf to posinf
16304 interval. This number is added to the score of the article if the match
16305 is successful. If this element is not present, the
16306 @code{gnus-score-interactive-default-score} number will be used
16307 instead. This is 1000 by default.
16310 If the third element is present, it should be a number---the @dfn{date
16311 element}. This date says when the last time this score entry matched,
16312 which provides a mechanism for expiring the score entries. It this
16313 element is not present, the score entry is permanent. The date is
16314 represented by the number of days since December 31, 1 BCE.
16317 If the fourth element is present, it should be a symbol---the @dfn{type
16318 element}. This element specifies what function should be used to see
16319 whether this score entry matches the article. What match types that can
16320 be used depends on what header you wish to perform the match on.
16323 @item From, Subject, References, Xref, Message-ID
16324 For most header types, there are the @code{r} and @code{R} (regexp), as
16325 well as @code{s} and @code{S} (substring) types, and @code{e} and
16326 @code{E} (exact match), and @code{w} (word match) types. If this
16327 element is not present, Gnus will assume that substring matching should
16328 be used. @code{R}, @code{S}, and @code{E} differ from the others in
16329 that the matches will be done in a case-sensitive manner. All these
16330 one-letter types are really just abbreviations for the @code{regexp},
16331 @code{string}, @code{exact}, and @code{word} types, which you can use
16332 instead, if you feel like.
16335 These two headers use different match types: @code{<}, @code{>},
16336 @code{=}, @code{>=} and @code{<=}.
16338 These predicates are true if
16341 (PREDICATE HEADER MATCH)
16344 evaluates to non-@code{nil}. For instance, the advanced match
16345 @code{("lines" 4 <)} (@pxref{Advanced Scoring}) will result in the
16352 Or to put it another way: When using @code{<} on @code{Lines} with 4 as
16353 the match, we get the score added if the article has less than 4 lines.
16354 (It's easy to get confused and think it's the other way around. But
16355 it's not. I think.)
16357 When matching on @code{Lines}, be careful because some backends (like
16358 @code{nndir}) do not generate @code{Lines} header, so every article ends
16359 up being marked as having 0 lines. This can lead to strange results if
16360 you happen to lower score of the articles with few lines.
16363 For the Date header we have three kinda silly match types:
16364 @code{before}, @code{at} and @code{after}. I can't really imagine this
16365 ever being useful, but, like, it would feel kinda silly not to provide
16366 this function. Just in case. You never know. Better safe than sorry.
16367 Once burnt, twice shy. Don't judge a book by its cover. Never not have
16368 sex on a first date. (I have been told that at least one person, and I
16369 quote, ``found this function indispensable'', however.)
16373 A more useful match type is @code{regexp}. With it, you can match the
16374 date string using a regular expression. The date is normalized to
16375 ISO8601 compact format first---@var{YYYYMMDD}@code{T}@var{HHMMSS}. If
16376 you want to match all articles that have been posted on April 1st in
16377 every year, you could use @samp{....0401.........} as a match string,
16378 for instance. (Note that the date is kept in its original time zone, so
16379 this will match articles that were posted when it was April 1st where
16380 the article was posted from. Time zones are such wholesome fun for the
16383 @item Head, Body, All
16384 These three match keys use the same match types as the @code{From} (etc)
16388 This match key is somewhat special, in that it will match the
16389 @code{From} header, and affect the score of not only the matching
16390 articles, but also all followups to the matching articles. This allows
16391 you e.g. increase the score of followups to your own articles, or
16392 decrease the score of followups to the articles of some known
16393 trouble-maker. Uses the same match types as the @code{From} header
16394 uses. (Using this match key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT}
16398 This match key works along the same lines as the @code{Followup} match
16399 key. If you say that you want to score on a (sub-)thread started by an
16400 article with a @code{Message-ID} @var{x}, then you add a @samp{thread}
16401 match. This will add a new @samp{thread} match for each article that
16402 has @var{x} in its @code{References} header. (These new @samp{thread}
16403 matches will use the @code{Message-ID}s of these matching articles.)
16404 This will ensure that you can raise/lower the score of an entire thread,
16405 even though some articles in the thread may not have complete
16406 @code{References} headers. Note that using this may lead to
16407 undeterministic scores of the articles in the thread. (Using this match
16408 key will lead to creation of @file{ADAPT} files.)
16412 @cindex Score File Atoms
16414 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16415 lower than this number will be marked as read.
16418 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16419 lower than this number will be removed from the summary buffer.
16421 @item mark-and-expunge
16422 The value of this entry should be a number. Any articles with a score
16423 lower than this number will be marked as read and removed from the
16426 @item thread-mark-and-expunge
16427 The value of this entry should be a number. All articles that belong to
16428 a thread that has a total score below this number will be marked as read
16429 and removed from the summary buffer. @code{gnus-thread-score-function}
16430 says how to compute the total score for a thread.
16433 The value of this entry should be any number of file names. These files
16434 are assumed to be score files as well, and will be loaded the same way
16437 @item exclude-files
16438 The clue of this entry should be any number of files. These files will
16439 not be loaded, even though they would normally be so, for some reason or
16443 The value of this entry will be @code{eval}el. This element will be
16444 ignored when handling global score files.
16447 Read-only score files will not be updated or saved. Global score files
16448 should feature this atom (@pxref{Global Score Files}). (Note:
16449 @dfn{Global} here really means @dfn{global}; not your personal
16450 apply-to-all-groups score files.)
16453 The value of this entry should be a number. Articles that do not have
16454 parents will get this number added to their scores. Imagine you follow
16455 some high-volume newsgroup, like @samp{comp.lang.c}. Most likely you
16456 will only follow a few of the threads, also want to see any new threads.
16458 You can do this with the following two score file entries:
16462 (mark-and-expunge -100)
16465 When you enter the group the first time, you will only see the new
16466 threads. You then raise the score of the threads that you find
16467 interesting (with @kbd{I T} or @kbd{I S}), and ignore (@kbd{C y}) the
16468 rest. Next time you enter the group, you will see new articles in the
16469 interesting threads, plus any new threads.
16471 I.e.---the orphan score atom is for high-volume groups where a few
16472 interesting threads which can't be found automatically by ordinary
16473 scoring rules exist.
16476 This entry controls the adaptive scoring. If it is @code{t}, the
16477 default adaptive scoring rules will be used. If it is @code{ignore}, no
16478 adaptive scoring will be performed on this group. If it is a list, this
16479 list will be used as the adaptive scoring rules. If it isn't present,
16480 or is something other than @code{t} or @code{ignore}, the default
16481 adaptive scoring rules will be used. If you want to use adaptive
16482 scoring on most groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16483 @code{t}, and insert an @code{(adapt ignore)} in the groups where you do
16484 not want adaptive scoring. If you only want adaptive scoring in a few
16485 groups, you'd set @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to @code{nil}, and
16486 insert @code{(adapt t)} in the score files of the groups where you want
16490 All adaptive score entries will go to the file named by this entry. It
16491 will also be applied when entering the group. This atom might be handy
16492 if you want to adapt on several groups at once, using the same adaptive
16493 file for a number of groups.
16496 @cindex local variables
16497 The value of this entry should be a list of @code{(VAR VALUE)} pairs.
16498 Each @var{var} will be made buffer-local to the current summary buffer,
16499 and set to the value specified. This is a convenient, if somewhat
16500 strange, way of setting variables in some groups if you don't like hooks
16501 much. Note that the @var{value} won't be evaluated.
16505 @node Score File Editing
16506 @section Score File Editing
16508 You normally enter all scoring commands from the summary buffer, but you
16509 might feel the urge to edit them by hand as well, so we've supplied you
16510 with a mode for that.
16512 It's simply a slightly customized @code{emacs-lisp} mode, with these
16513 additional commands:
16518 @kindex C-c C-c (Score)
16519 @findex gnus-score-edit-done
16520 Save the changes you have made and return to the summary buffer
16521 (@code{gnus-score-edit-done}).
16524 @kindex C-c C-d (Score)
16525 @findex gnus-score-edit-insert-date
16526 Insert the current date in numerical format
16527 (@code{gnus-score-edit-insert-date}). This is really the day number, if
16528 you were wondering.
16531 @kindex C-c C-p (Score)
16532 @findex gnus-score-pretty-print
16533 The adaptive score files are saved in an unformatted fashion. If you
16534 intend to read one of these files, you want to @dfn{pretty print} it
16535 first. This command (@code{gnus-score-pretty-print}) does that for
16540 Type @kbd{M-x gnus-score-mode} to use this mode.
16542 @vindex gnus-score-mode-hook
16543 @code{gnus-score-menu-hook} is run in score mode buffers.
16545 In the summary buffer you can use commands like @kbd{V f} and @kbd{V
16546 e} to begin editing score files.
16549 @node Adaptive Scoring
16550 @section Adaptive Scoring
16551 @cindex adaptive scoring
16553 If all this scoring is getting you down, Gnus has a way of making it all
16554 happen automatically---as if by magic. Or rather, as if by artificial
16555 stupidity, to be precise.
16557 @vindex gnus-use-adaptive-scoring
16558 When you read an article, or mark an article as read, or kill an
16559 article, you leave marks behind. On exit from the group, Gnus can sniff
16560 these marks and add score elements depending on what marks it finds.
16561 You turn on this ability by setting @code{gnus-use-adaptive-scoring} to
16562 @code{t} or @code{(line)}. If you want score adaptively on separate
16563 words appearing in the subjects, you should set this variable to
16564 @code{(word)}. If you want to use both adaptive methods, set this
16565 variable to @code{(word line)}.
16567 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16568 To give you complete control over the scoring process, you can customize
16569 the @code{gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist} variable. For instance, it
16570 might look something like this:
16573 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-score-alist
16574 '((gnus-unread-mark)
16575 (gnus-ticked-mark (from 4))
16576 (gnus-dormant-mark (from 5))
16577 (gnus-del-mark (from -4) (subject -1))
16578 (gnus-read-mark (from 4) (subject 2))
16579 (gnus-expirable-mark (from -1) (subject -1))
16580 (gnus-killed-mark (from -1) (subject -3))
16581 (gnus-kill-file-mark)
16582 (gnus-ancient-mark)
16583 (gnus-low-score-mark)
16584 (gnus-catchup-mark (from -1) (subject -1))))
16587 As you see, each element in this alist has a mark as a key (either a
16588 variable name or a ``real'' mark---a character). Following this key is
16589 a arbitrary number of header/score pairs. If there are no header/score
16590 pairs following the key, no adaptive scoring will be done on articles
16591 that have that key as the article mark. For instance, articles with
16592 @code{gnus-unread-mark} in the example above will not get adaptive score
16595 Each article can have only one mark, so just a single of these rules
16596 will be applied to each article.
16598 To take @code{gnus-del-mark} as an example---this alist says that all
16599 articles that have that mark (i.e., are marked with @samp{D}) will have a
16600 score entry added to lower based on the @code{From} header by -4, and
16601 lowered by @code{Subject} by -1. Change this to fit your prejudices.
16603 If you have marked 10 articles with the same subject with
16604 @code{gnus-del-mark}, the rule for that mark will be applied ten times.
16605 That means that that subject will get a score of ten times -1, which
16606 should be, unless I'm much mistaken, -10.
16608 If you have auto-expirable (mail) groups (@pxref{Expiring Mail}), all
16609 the read articles will be marked with the @samp{E} mark. This'll
16610 probably make adaptive scoring slightly impossible, so auto-expiring and
16611 adaptive scoring doesn't really mix very well.
16613 The headers you can score on are @code{from}, @code{subject},
16614 @code{message-id}, @code{references}, @code{xref}, @code{lines},
16615 @code{chars} and @code{date}. In addition, you can score on
16616 @code{followup}, which will create an adaptive score entry that matches
16617 on the @code{References} header using the @code{Message-ID} of the
16618 current article, thereby matching the following thread.
16620 You can also score on @code{thread}, which will try to score all
16621 articles that appear in a thread. @code{thread} matches uses a
16622 @code{Message-ID} to match on the @code{References} header of the
16623 article. If the match is made, the @code{Message-ID} of the article is
16624 added to the @code{thread} rule. (Think about it. I'd recommend two
16625 aspirins afterwards.)
16627 If you use this scheme, you should set the score file atom @code{mark}
16628 to something small---like -300, perhaps, to avoid having small random
16629 changes result in articles getting marked as read.
16631 After using adaptive scoring for a week or so, Gnus should start to
16632 become properly trained and enhance the authors you like best, and kill
16633 the authors you like least, without you having to say so explicitly.
16635 You can control what groups the adaptive scoring is to be performed on
16636 by using the score files (@pxref{Score File Format}). This will also
16637 let you use different rules in different groups.
16639 @vindex gnus-adaptive-file-suffix
16640 The adaptive score entries will be put into a file where the name is the
16641 group name with @code{gnus-adaptive-file-suffix} appended. The default
16644 @vindex gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit
16645 When doing adaptive scoring, substring or fuzzy matching would probably
16646 give you the best results in most cases. However, if the header one
16647 matches is short, the possibility for false positives is great, so if
16648 the length of the match is less than
16649 @code{gnus-score-exact-adapt-limit}, exact matching will be used. If
16650 this variable is @code{nil}, exact matching will always be used to avoid
16653 @vindex gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16654 As mentioned above, you can adapt either on individual words or entire
16655 headers. If you adapt on words, the
16656 @code{gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist} variable says what score
16657 each instance of a word should add given a mark.
16660 (setq gnus-default-adaptive-word-score-alist
16661 `((,gnus-read-mark . 30)
16662 (,gnus-catchup-mark . -10)
16663 (,gnus-killed-mark . -20)
16664 (,gnus-del-mark . -15)))
16667 This is the default value. If you have adaption on words enabled, every
16668 word that appears in subjects of articles marked with
16669 @code{gnus-read-mark} will result in a score rule that increase the
16670 score with 30 points.
16672 @vindex gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words
16673 @vindex gnus-ignored-adaptive-words
16674 Words that appear in the @code{gnus-default-ignored-adaptive-words} list
16675 will be ignored. If you wish to add more words to be ignored, use the
16676 @code{gnus-ignored-adaptive-words} list instead.
16678 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit
16679 Some may feel that short words shouldn't count when doing adaptive
16680 scoring. If so, you may set @code{gnus-adaptive-word-length-limit} to
16681 an integer. Words shorter than this number will be ignored. This
16682 variable defaults til @code{nil}.
16684 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table
16685 When the scoring is done, @code{gnus-adaptive-word-syntax-table} is the
16686 syntax table in effect. It is similar to the standard syntax table, but
16687 it considers numbers to be non-word-constituent characters.
16689 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-minimum
16690 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} is set to a number, the adaptive
16691 word scoring process will never bring down the score of an article to
16692 below this number. The default is @code{nil}.
16694 @vindex gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words
16695 If @code{gnus-adaptive-word-no-group-words} is set to @code{t}, gnus
16696 won't adaptively word score any of the words in the group name. Useful
16697 for groups like @samp{comp.editors.emacs}, where most of the subject
16698 lines contain the word @samp{emacs}.
16700 After using this scheme for a while, it might be nice to write a
16701 @code{gnus-psychoanalyze-user} command to go through the rules and see
16702 what words you like and what words you don't like. Or perhaps not.
16704 Note that the adaptive word scoring thing is highly experimental and is
16705 likely to change in the future. Initial impressions seem to indicate
16706 that it's totally useless as it stands. Some more work (involving more
16707 rigorous statistical methods) will have to be done to make this useful.
16710 @node Home Score File
16711 @section Home Score File
16713 The score file where new score file entries will go is called the
16714 @dfn{home score file}. This is normally (and by default) the score file
16715 for the group itself. For instance, the home score file for
16716 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} is @file{gnu.emacs.gnus.SCORE}.
16718 However, this may not be what you want. It is often convenient to share
16719 a common home score file among many groups---all @samp{emacs} groups
16720 could perhaps use the same home score file.
16722 @vindex gnus-home-score-file
16723 The variable that controls this is @code{gnus-home-score-file}. It can
16728 A string. Then this file will be used as the home score file for all
16732 A function. The result of this function will be used as the home score
16733 file. The function will be called with the name of the group as the
16737 A list. The elements in this list can be:
16741 @code{(@var{regexp} @var{file-name})}. If the @var{regexp} matches the
16742 group name, the @var{file-name} will be used as the home score file.
16745 A function. If the function returns non-nil, the result will be used as
16746 the home score file.
16749 A string. Use the string as the home score file.
16752 The list will be traversed from the beginning towards the end looking
16757 So, if you want to use just a single score file, you could say:
16760 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16761 "my-total-score-file.SCORE")
16764 If you want to use @file{gnu.SCORE} for all @samp{gnu} groups and
16765 @file{rec.SCORE} for all @samp{rec} groups (and so on), you can say:
16767 @findex gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file
16769 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16770 'gnus-hierarchial-home-score-file)
16773 This is a ready-made function provided for your convenience.
16774 Other functions include
16777 @item gnus-current-home-score-file
16778 @findex gnus-current-home-score-file
16779 Return the ``current'' regular score file. This will make scoring
16780 commands add entry to the ``innermost'' matching score file.
16784 If you want to have one score file for the @samp{emacs} groups and
16785 another for the @samp{comp} groups, while letting all other groups use
16786 their own home score files:
16789 (setq gnus-home-score-file
16790 ;; All groups that match the regexp "\\.emacs"
16791 '(("\\.emacs" "emacs.SCORE")
16792 ;; All the comp groups in one score file
16793 ("^comp" "comp.SCORE")))
16796 @vindex gnus-home-adapt-file
16797 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file} works exactly the same way as
16798 @code{gnus-home-score-file}, but says what the home adaptive score file
16799 is instead. All new adaptive file entries will go into the file
16800 specified by this variable, and the same syntax is allowed.
16802 In addition to using @code{gnus-home-score-file} and
16803 @code{gnus-home-adapt-file}, you can also use group parameters
16804 (@pxref{Group Parameters}) and topic parameters (@pxref{Topic
16805 Parameters}) to achieve much the same. Group and topic parameters take
16806 precedence over this variable.
16809 @node Followups To Yourself
16810 @section Followups To Yourself
16812 Gnus offers two commands for picking out the @code{Message-ID} header in
16813 the current buffer. Gnus will then add a score rule that scores using
16814 this @code{Message-ID} on the @code{References} header of other
16815 articles. This will, in effect, increase the score of all articles that
16816 respond to the article in the current buffer. Quite useful if you want
16817 to easily note when people answer what you've said.
16821 @item gnus-score-followup-article
16822 @findex gnus-score-followup-article
16823 This will add a score to articles that directly follow up your own
16826 @item gnus-score-followup-thread
16827 @findex gnus-score-followup-thread
16828 This will add a score to all articles that appear in a thread ``below''
16832 @vindex message-sent-hook
16833 These two functions are both primarily meant to be used in hooks like
16834 @code{message-sent-hook}, like this:
16836 (add-hook 'message-sent-hook 'gnus-score-followup-thread)
16840 If you look closely at your own @code{Message-ID}, you'll notice that
16841 the first two or three characters are always the same. Here's two of
16845 <x6u3u47icf.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16846 <x6sp9o7ibw.fsf@@eyesore.no>
16849 So ``my'' ident on this machine is @samp{x6}. This can be
16850 exploited---the following rule will raise the score on all followups to
16855 ("<x6[0-9a-z]+\\.fsf\\(_-_\\)?@@.*eyesore\\.no>"
16859 Whether it's the first two or first three characters that are ``yours''
16860 is system-dependent.
16863 @node Scoring On Other Headers
16864 @section Scoring On Other Headers
16865 @cindex scoring on other headers
16867 Gnus is quite fast when scoring the ``traditional''
16868 headers---@samp{From}, @samp{Subject} and so on. However, scoring
16869 other headers requires writing a @code{head} scoring rule, which means
16870 that Gnus has to request every single article from the backend to find
16871 matches. This takes a long time in big groups.
16873 Now, there's not much you can do about this for news groups, but for
16874 mail groups, you have greater control. In the @pxref{To From
16875 Newsgroups} section of the manual, it's explained in greater detail what
16876 this mechanism does, but here's a cookbook example for @code{nnml} on
16877 how to allow scoring on the @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} headers.
16879 Put the following in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
16882 (setq gnus-extra-headers '(To Cc Newsgroups Keywords)
16883 nnmail-extra-headers gnus-extra-headers)
16886 Restart Gnus and rebuild your @code{nnml} overview files with the
16887 @kbd{M-x nnml-generate-nov-databases} command. This will take a long
16888 time if you have much mail.
16890 Now you can score on @samp{To} and @samp{Cc} as ``extra headers'' like
16891 so: @kbd{I e s p To RET <your name> RET}.
16897 @section Scoring Tips
16898 @cindex scoring tips
16904 @cindex scoring crossposts
16905 If you want to lower the score of crossposts, the line to match on is
16906 the @code{Xref} header.
16908 ("xref" (" talk.politics.misc:" -1000))
16911 @item Multiple crossposts
16912 If you want to lower the score of articles that have been crossposted to
16913 more than, say, 3 groups:
16916 ("[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+ +[^:\n]+:[0-9]+"
16920 @item Matching on the body
16921 This is generally not a very good idea---it takes a very long time.
16922 Gnus actually has to fetch each individual article from the server. But
16923 you might want to anyway, I guess. Even though there are three match
16924 keys (@code{Head}, @code{Body} and @code{All}), you should choose one
16925 and stick with it in each score file. If you use any two, each article
16926 will be fetched @emph{twice}. If you want to match a bit on the
16927 @code{Head} and a bit on the @code{Body}, just use @code{All} for all
16930 @item Marking as read
16931 You will probably want to mark articles that have scores below a certain
16932 number as read. This is most easily achieved by putting the following
16933 in your @file{all.SCORE} file:
16937 You may also consider doing something similar with @code{expunge}.
16939 @item Negated character classes
16940 If you say stuff like @code{[^abcd]*}, you may get unexpected results.
16941 That will match newlines, which might lead to, well, The Unknown. Say
16942 @code{[^abcd\n]*} instead.
16946 @node Reverse Scoring
16947 @section Reverse Scoring
16948 @cindex reverse scoring
16950 If you want to keep just articles that have @samp{Sex with Emacs} in the
16951 subject header, and expunge all other articles, you could put something
16952 like this in your score file:
16956 ("Sex with Emacs" 2))
16961 So, you raise all articles that match @samp{Sex with Emacs} and mark the
16962 rest as read, and expunge them to boot.
16965 @node Global Score Files
16966 @section Global Score Files
16967 @cindex global score files
16969 Sure, other newsreaders have ``global kill files''. These are usually
16970 nothing more than a single kill file that applies to all groups, stored
16971 in the user's home directory. Bah! Puny, weak newsreaders!
16973 What I'm talking about here are Global Score Files. Score files from
16974 all over the world, from users everywhere, uniting all nations in one
16975 big, happy score file union! Ange-score! New and untested!
16977 @vindex gnus-global-score-files
16978 All you have to do to use other people's score files is to set the
16979 @code{gnus-global-score-files} variable. One entry for each score file,
16980 or each score file directory. Gnus will decide by itself what score
16981 files are applicable to which group.
16983 To use the score file
16984 @file{/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE} and
16985 all score files in the @file{/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score} directory,
16989 (setq gnus-global-score-files
16990 '("/ftp@@ftp.gnus.org:/pub/larsi/ding/score/soc.motss.SCORE"
16991 "/ftp@@ftp.some-where:/pub/score/"))
16994 @findex gnus-score-search-global-directories
16996 Simple, eh? Directory names must end with a @samp{/}. These
16997 directories are typically scanned only once during each Gnus session.
16998 If you feel the need to manually re-scan the remote directories, you can
16999 use the @code{gnus-score-search-global-directories} command.
17001 Note that, at present, using this option will slow down group entry
17002 somewhat. (That is---a lot.)
17004 If you want to start maintaining score files for other people to use,
17005 just put your score file up for anonymous ftp and announce it to the
17006 world. Become a retro-moderator! Participate in the retro-moderator
17007 wars sure to ensue, where retro-moderators battle it out for the
17008 sympathy of the people, luring them to use their score files on false
17009 premises! Yay! The net is saved!
17011 Here are some tips for the would-be retro-moderator, off the top of my
17017 Articles heavily crossposted are probably junk.
17019 To lower a single inappropriate article, lower by @code{Message-ID}.
17021 Particularly brilliant authors can be raised on a permanent basis.
17023 Authors that repeatedly post off-charter for the group can safely be
17024 lowered out of existence.
17026 Set the @code{mark} and @code{expunge} atoms to obliterate the nastiest
17027 articles completely.
17030 Use expiring score entries to keep the size of the file down. You
17031 should probably have a long expiry period, though, as some sites keep
17032 old articles for a long time.
17035 ... I wonder whether other newsreaders will support global score files
17036 in the future. @emph{Snicker}. Yup, any day now, newsreaders like Blue
17037 Wave, xrn and 1stReader are bound to implement scoring. Should we start
17038 holding our breath yet?
17042 @section Kill Files
17045 Gnus still supports those pesky old kill files. In fact, the kill file
17046 entries can now be expiring, which is something I wrote before Daniel
17047 Quinlan thought of doing score files, so I've left the code in there.
17049 In short, kill processing is a lot slower (and I do mean @emph{a lot})
17050 than score processing, so it might be a good idea to rewrite your kill
17051 files into score files.
17053 Anyway, a kill file is a normal @code{emacs-lisp} file. You can put any
17054 forms into this file, which means that you can use kill files as some
17055 sort of primitive hook function to be run on group entry, even though
17056 that isn't a very good idea.
17058 Normal kill files look like this:
17061 (gnus-kill "From" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17062 (gnus-kill "Subject" "ding")
17066 This will mark every article written by me as read, and remove the
17067 marked articles from the summary buffer. Very useful, you'll agree.
17069 Other programs use a totally different kill file syntax. If Gnus
17070 encounters what looks like a @code{rn} kill file, it will take a stab at
17073 Two summary functions for editing a GNUS kill file:
17078 @kindex M-k (Summary)
17079 @findex gnus-summary-edit-local-kill
17080 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-local-kill}).
17083 @kindex M-K (Summary)
17084 @findex gnus-summary-edit-global-kill
17085 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-summary-edit-global-kill}).
17088 Two group mode functions for editing the kill files:
17093 @kindex M-k (Group)
17094 @findex gnus-group-edit-local-kill
17095 Edit this group's kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-local-kill}).
17098 @kindex M-K (Group)
17099 @findex gnus-group-edit-global-kill
17100 Edit the general kill file (@code{gnus-group-edit-global-kill}).
17103 Kill file variables:
17106 @item gnus-kill-file-name
17107 @vindex gnus-kill-file-name
17108 A kill file for the group @samp{soc.motss} is normally called
17109 @file{soc.motss.KILL}. The suffix appended to the group name to get
17110 this file name is detailed by the @code{gnus-kill-file-name} variable.
17111 The ``global'' kill file (not in the score file sense of ``global'', of
17112 course) is just called @file{KILL}.
17114 @vindex gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17115 @item gnus-kill-save-kill-file
17116 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, Gnus will save the
17117 kill file after processing, which is necessary if you use expiring
17120 @item gnus-apply-kill-hook
17121 @vindex gnus-apply-kill-hook
17122 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored
17123 @findex gnus-apply-kill-file
17124 A hook called to apply kill files to a group. It is
17125 @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file)} by default. If you want to ignore the
17126 kill file if you have a score file for the same group, you can set this
17127 hook to @code{(gnus-apply-kill-file-unless-scored)}. If you don't want
17128 kill files to be processed, you should set this variable to @code{nil}.
17130 @item gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17131 @vindex gnus-kill-file-mode-hook
17132 A hook called in kill-file mode buffers.
17137 @node Converting Kill Files
17138 @section Converting Kill Files
17140 @cindex converting kill files
17142 If you have loads of old kill files, you may want to convert them into
17143 score files. If they are ``regular'', you can use
17144 the @file{gnus-kill-to-score.el} package; if not, you'll have to do it
17147 The kill to score conversion package isn't included in Gnus by default.
17148 You can fetch it from
17149 @uref{http://www.stud.ifi.uio.no/~larsi/ding-various/gnus-kill-to-score.el}.
17151 If your old kill files are very complex---if they contain more
17152 non-@code{gnus-kill} forms than not, you'll have to convert them by
17153 hand. Or just let them be as they are. Gnus will still use them as
17161 GroupLens is a collaborative filtering system that helps you work
17162 together with other people to find the quality news articles out of the
17163 huge volume of news articles generated every day.
17165 To accomplish this the GroupLens system combines your opinions about
17166 articles you have already read with the opinions of others who have done
17167 likewise and gives you a personalized prediction for each unread news
17168 article. Think of GroupLens as a matchmaker. GroupLens watches how you
17169 rate articles, and finds other people that rate articles the same way.
17170 Once it has found some people you agree with it tells you, in the form
17171 of a prediction, what they thought of the article. You can use this
17172 prediction to help you decide whether or not you want to read the
17176 * Using GroupLens:: How to make Gnus use GroupLens.
17177 * Rating Articles:: Letting GroupLens know how you rate articles.
17178 * Displaying Predictions:: Displaying predictions given by GroupLens.
17179 * GroupLens Variables:: Customizing GroupLens.
17183 @node Using GroupLens
17184 @subsection Using GroupLens
17186 To use GroupLens you must register a pseudonym with your local Better
17188 @uref{http://www.cs.umn.edu/Research/GroupLens/bbb.html} is the only
17189 better bit in town at the moment.
17191 Once you have registered you'll need to set a couple of variables.
17195 @item gnus-use-grouplens
17196 @vindex gnus-use-grouplens
17197 Setting this variable to a non-@code{nil} value will make Gnus hook into
17198 all the relevant GroupLens functions.
17200 @item grouplens-pseudonym
17201 @vindex grouplens-pseudonym
17202 This variable should be set to the pseudonym you got when registering
17203 with the Better Bit Bureau.
17205 @item grouplens-newsgroups
17206 @vindex grouplens-newsgroups
17207 A list of groups that you want to get GroupLens predictions for.
17211 That's the minimum of what you need to get up and running with GroupLens.
17212 Once you've registered, GroupLens will start giving you scores for
17213 articles based on the average of what other people think. But, to get
17214 the real benefit of GroupLens you need to start rating articles
17215 yourself. Then the scores GroupLens gives you will be personalized for
17216 you, based on how the people you usually agree with have already rated.
17219 @node Rating Articles
17220 @subsection Rating Articles
17222 In GroupLens, an article is rated on a scale from 1 to 5, inclusive.
17223 Where 1 means something like this article is a waste of bandwidth and 5
17224 means that the article was really good. The basic question to ask
17225 yourself is, "on a scale from 1 to 5 would I like to see more articles
17228 There are four ways to enter a rating for an article in GroupLens.
17233 @kindex r (GroupLens)
17234 @findex bbb-summary-rate-article
17235 This function will prompt you for a rating on a scale of one to five.
17238 @kindex k (GroupLens)
17239 @findex grouplens-score-thread
17240 This function will prompt you for a rating, and rate all the articles in
17241 the thread. This is really useful for some of those long running giant
17242 threads in rec.humor.
17246 The next two commands, @kbd{n} and @kbd{,} take a numerical prefix to be
17247 the score of the article you're reading.
17252 @kindex n (GroupLens)
17253 @findex grouplens-next-unread-article
17254 Rate the article and go to the next unread article.
17257 @kindex , (GroupLens)
17258 @findex grouplens-best-unread-article
17259 Rate the article and go to the next unread article with the highest score.
17263 If you want to give the current article a score of 4 and then go to the
17264 next article, just type @kbd{4 n}.
17267 @node Displaying Predictions
17268 @subsection Displaying Predictions
17270 GroupLens makes a prediction for you about how much you will like a
17271 news article. The predictions from GroupLens are on a scale from 1 to
17272 5, where 1 is the worst and 5 is the best. You can use the predictions
17273 from GroupLens in one of three ways controlled by the variable
17274 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring}.
17276 @vindex gnus-grouplens-override-scoring
17277 There are three ways to display predictions in grouplens. You may
17278 choose to have the GroupLens scores contribute to, or override the
17279 regular gnus scoring mechanism. override is the default; however, some
17280 people prefer to see the Gnus scores plus the grouplens scores. To get
17281 the separate scoring behavior you need to set
17282 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'separate}. To have the
17283 GroupLens predictions combined with the grouplens scores set it to
17284 @code{'override} and to combine the scores set
17285 @code{gnus-grouplens-override-scoring} to @code{'combine}. When you use
17286 the combine option you will also want to set the values for
17287 @code{grouplens-prediction-offset} and
17288 @code{grouplens-score-scale-factor}.
17290 @vindex grouplens-prediction-display
17291 In either case, GroupLens gives you a few choices for how you would like
17292 to see your predictions displayed. The display of predictions is
17293 controlled by the @code{grouplens-prediction-display} variable.
17295 The following are valid values for that variable.
17298 @item prediction-spot
17299 The higher the prediction, the further to the right an @samp{*} is
17302 @item confidence-interval
17303 A numeric confidence interval.
17305 @item prediction-bar
17306 The higher the prediction, the longer the bar.
17308 @item confidence-bar
17309 Numerical confidence.
17311 @item confidence-spot
17312 The spot gets bigger with more confidence.
17314 @item prediction-num
17315 Plain-old numeric value.
17317 @item confidence-plus-minus
17318 Prediction +/- confidence.
17323 @node GroupLens Variables
17324 @subsection GroupLens Variables
17328 @item gnus-summary-grouplens-line-format
17329 The summary line format used in GroupLens-enhanced summary buffers. It
17330 accepts the same specs as the normal summary line format (@pxref{Summary
17331 Buffer Lines}). The default is @samp{%U%R%z%l%I%(%[%4L: %-23,23n%]%)
17334 @item grouplens-bbb-host
17335 Host running the bbbd server. @samp{grouplens.cs.umn.edu} is the
17338 @item grouplens-bbb-port
17339 Port of the host running the bbbd server. The default is 9000.
17341 @item grouplens-score-offset
17342 Offset the prediction by this value. In other words, subtract the
17343 prediction value by this number to arrive at the effective score. The
17346 @item grouplens-score-scale-factor
17347 This variable allows the user to magnify the effect of GroupLens scores.
17348 The scale factor is applied after the offset. The default is 1.
17353 @node Advanced Scoring
17354 @section Advanced Scoring
17356 Scoring on Subjects and From headers is nice enough, but what if you're
17357 really interested in what a person has to say only when she's talking
17358 about a particular subject? Or what if you really don't want to
17359 read what person A has to say when she's following up to person B, but
17360 want to read what she says when she's following up to person C?
17362 By using advanced scoring rules you may create arbitrarily complex
17366 * Advanced Scoring Syntax:: A definition.
17367 * Advanced Scoring Examples:: What they look like.
17368 * Advanced Scoring Tips:: Getting the most out of it.
17372 @node Advanced Scoring Syntax
17373 @subsection Advanced Scoring Syntax
17375 Ordinary scoring rules have a string as the first element in the rule.
17376 Advanced scoring rules have a list as the first element. The second
17377 element is the score to be applied if the first element evaluated to a
17378 non-@code{nil} value.
17380 These lists may consist of three logical operators, one redirection
17381 operator, and various match operators.
17388 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
17389 one that evaluates to @code{false}, and then it'll stop. If all arguments
17390 evaluate to @code{true} values, then this operator will return
17395 This logical operator will evaluate each of its arguments until it finds
17396 one that evaluates to @code{true}. If no arguments are @code{true},
17397 then this operator will return @code{false}.
17402 This logical operator only takes a single argument. It returns the
17403 logical negation of the value of its argument.
17407 There is an @dfn{indirection operator} that will make its arguments
17408 apply to the ancestors of the current article being scored. For
17409 instance, @code{1-} will make score rules apply to the parent of the
17410 current article. @code{2-} will make score rules apply to the
17411 grandparent of the current article. Alternatively, you can write
17412 @code{^^}, where the number of @code{^}s (carets) says how far back into
17413 the ancestry you want to go.
17415 Finally, we have the match operators. These are the ones that do the
17416 real work. Match operators are header name strings followed by a match
17417 and a match type. A typical match operator looks like @samp{("from"
17418 "Lars Ingebrigtsen" s)}. The header names are the same as when using
17419 simple scoring, and the match types are also the same.
17422 @node Advanced Scoring Examples
17423 @subsection Advanced Scoring Examples
17425 Let's say you want to increase the score of articles written by Lars
17426 when he's talking about Gnus:
17430 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17431 ("subject" "Gnus"))
17437 When he writes long articles, he sometimes has something nice to say:
17441 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17448 However, when he responds to things written by Reig Eigil Logge, you
17449 really don't want to read what he's written:
17453 ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen")
17454 (1- ("from" "Reig Eigir Logge")))
17458 Everybody that follows up Redmondo when he writes about disappearing
17459 socks should have their scores raised, but only when they talk about
17460 white socks. However, when Lars talks about socks, it's usually not
17467 ("from" "redmondo@@.*no" r)
17468 ("body" "disappearing.*socks" t)))
17469 (! ("from" "Lars Ingebrigtsen"))
17470 ("body" "white.*socks"))
17474 The possibilities are endless.
17477 @node Advanced Scoring Tips
17478 @subsection Advanced Scoring Tips
17480 The @code{&} and @code{|} logical operators do short-circuit logic.
17481 That is, they stop processing their arguments when it's clear what the
17482 result of the operation will be. For instance, if one of the arguments
17483 of an @code{&} evaluates to @code{false}, there's no point in evaluating
17484 the rest of the arguments. This means that you should put slow matches
17485 (@samp{body}, @samp{header}) last and quick matches (@samp{from},
17486 @samp{subject}) first.
17488 The indirection arguments (@code{1-} and so on) will make their
17489 arguments work on previous generations of the thread. If you say
17500 Then that means "score on the from header of the grandparent of the
17501 current article". An indirection is quite fast, but it's better to say:
17507 ("subject" "Gnus")))
17514 (1- ("from" "Lars"))
17515 (1- ("subject" "Gnus")))
17520 @section Score Decays
17521 @cindex score decays
17524 You may find that your scores have a tendency to grow without
17525 bounds, especially if you're using adaptive scoring. If scores get too
17526 big, they lose all meaning---they simply max out and it's difficult to
17527 use them in any sensible way.
17529 @vindex gnus-decay-scores
17530 @findex gnus-decay-score
17531 @vindex gnus-decay-score-function
17532 Gnus provides a mechanism for decaying scores to help with this problem.
17533 When score files are loaded and @code{gnus-decay-scores} is
17534 non-@code{nil}, Gnus will run the score files through the decaying
17535 mechanism thereby lowering the scores of all non-permanent score rules.
17536 The decay itself if performed by the @code{gnus-decay-score-function}
17537 function, which is @code{gnus-decay-score} by default. Here's the
17538 definition of that function:
17541 (defun gnus-decay-score (score)
17543 This is done according to `gnus-score-decay-constant'
17544 and `gnus-score-decay-scale'."
17547 (* (if (< score 0) 1 -1)
17549 (max gnus-score-decay-constant
17551 gnus-score-decay-scale)))))))
17554 @vindex gnus-score-decay-scale
17555 @vindex gnus-score-decay-constant
17556 @code{gnus-score-decay-constant} is 3 by default and
17557 @code{gnus-score-decay-scale} is 0.05. This should cause the following:
17561 Scores between -3 and 3 will be set to 0 when this function is called.
17564 Scores with magnitudes between 3 and 60 will be shrunk by 3.
17567 Scores with magnitudes greater than 60 will be shrunk by 5% of the
17571 If you don't like this decay function, write your own. It is called
17572 with the score to be decayed as its only parameter, and it should return
17573 the new score, which should be an integer.
17575 Gnus will try to decay scores once a day. If you haven't run Gnus for
17576 four days, Gnus will decay the scores four times, for instance.
17583 * Process/Prefix:: A convention used by many treatment commands.
17584 * Interactive:: Making Gnus ask you many questions.
17585 * Symbolic Prefixes:: How to supply some Gnus functions with options.
17586 * Formatting Variables:: You can specify what buffers should look like.
17587 * Window Layout:: Configuring the Gnus buffer windows.
17588 * Faces and Fonts:: How to change how faces look.
17589 * Compilation:: How to speed Gnus up.
17590 * Mode Lines:: Displaying information in the mode lines.
17591 * Highlighting and Menus:: Making buffers look all nice and cozy.
17592 * Buttons:: Get tendinitis in ten easy steps!
17593 * Daemons:: Gnus can do things behind your back.
17594 * NoCeM:: How to avoid spam and other fatty foods.
17595 * Undo:: Some actions can be undone.
17596 * Moderation:: What to do if you're a moderator.
17597 * XEmacs Enhancements:: There are more pictures and stuff under XEmacs.
17598 * Fuzzy Matching:: What's the big fuzz?
17599 * Thwarting Email Spam:: A how-to on avoiding unsolicited commercial email.
17600 * Various Various:: Things that are really various.
17604 @node Process/Prefix
17605 @section Process/Prefix
17606 @cindex process/prefix convention
17608 Many functions, among them functions for moving, decoding and saving
17609 articles, use what is known as the @dfn{Process/Prefix convention}.
17611 This is a method for figuring out what articles the user wants the
17612 command to be performed on.
17616 If the numeric prefix is N, perform the operation on the next N
17617 articles, starting with the current one. If the numeric prefix is
17618 negative, perform the operation on the previous N articles, starting
17619 with the current one.
17621 @vindex transient-mark-mode
17622 If @code{transient-mark-mode} in non-@code{nil} and the region is
17623 active, all articles in the region will be worked upon.
17625 If there is no numeric prefix, but some articles are marked with the
17626 process mark, perform the operation on the articles marked with
17629 If there is neither a numeric prefix nor any articles marked with the
17630 process mark, just perform the operation on the current article.
17632 Quite simple, really, but it needs to be made clear so that surprises
17635 Commands that react to the process mark will push the current list of
17636 process marked articles onto a stack and will then clear all process
17637 marked articles. You can restore the previous configuration with the
17638 @kbd{M P y} command (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
17640 @vindex gnus-summary-goto-unread
17641 One thing that seems to shock & horrify lots of people is that, for
17642 instance, @kbd{3 d} does exactly the same as @kbd{d} @kbd{d} @kbd{d}.
17643 Since each @kbd{d} (which marks the current article as read) by default
17644 goes to the next unread article after marking, this means that @kbd{3 d}
17645 will mark the next three unread articles as read, no matter what the
17646 summary buffer looks like. Set @code{gnus-summary-goto-unread} to
17647 @code{nil} for a more straightforward action.
17649 Many commands do not use the process/prefix convention. All commands
17650 that do explicitly say so in this manual. To apply the process/prefix
17651 convention to commands that do not use it, you can use the @kbd{M-&}
17652 command. For instance, to mark all the articles in the group as
17653 expirable, you could say `M P b M-& E'.
17657 @section Interactive
17658 @cindex interaction
17662 @item gnus-novice-user
17663 @vindex gnus-novice-user
17664 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you are either a newcomer to the
17665 World of Usenet, or you are very cautious, which is a nice thing to be,
17666 really. You will be given questions of the type ``Are you sure you want
17667 to do this?'' before doing anything dangerous. This is @code{t} by
17670 @item gnus-expert-user
17671 @vindex gnus-expert-user
17672 If this variable is non-@code{nil}, you will seldom be asked any
17673 questions by Gnus. It will simply assume you know what you're doing, no
17674 matter how strange.
17676 @item gnus-interactive-catchup
17677 @vindex gnus-interactive-catchup
17678 Require confirmation before catching up a group if non-@code{nil}. It
17679 is @code{t} by default.
17681 @item gnus-interactive-exit
17682 @vindex gnus-interactive-exit
17683 Require confirmation before exiting Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
17688 @node Symbolic Prefixes
17689 @section Symbolic Prefixes
17690 @cindex symbolic prefixes
17692 Quite a lot of Emacs commands react to the (numeric) prefix. For
17693 instance, @kbd{C-u 4 C-f} moves point four characters forward, and
17694 @kbd{C-u 9 0 0 I s s p} adds a permanent @code{Subject} substring score
17695 rule of 900 to the current article.
17697 This is all nice and well, but what if you want to give a command some
17698 additional information? Well, what most commands do is interpret the
17699 ``raw'' prefix in some special way. @kbd{C-u 0 C-x C-s} means that one
17700 doesn't want a backup file to be created when saving the current buffer,
17701 for instance. But what if you want to save without making a backup
17702 file, and you want Emacs to flash lights and play a nice tune at the
17703 same time? You can't, and you're probably perfectly happy that way.
17705 @kindex M-i (Summary)
17706 @findex gnus-symbolic-argument
17707 I'm not, so I've added a second prefix---the @dfn{symbolic prefix}. The
17708 prefix key is @kbd{M-i} (@code{gnus-symbolic-argument}), and the next
17709 character typed in is the value. You can stack as many @kbd{M-i}
17710 prefixes as you want. @kbd{M-i a M-C-u} means ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u}
17711 command the symbolic prefix @code{a}''. @kbd{M-i a M-i b M-C-u} means
17712 ``feed the @kbd{M-C-u} command the symbolic prefixes @code{a} and
17713 @code{b}''. You get the drift.
17715 Typing in symbolic prefixes to commands that don't accept them doesn't
17716 hurt, but it doesn't do any good either. Currently not many Gnus
17717 functions make use of the symbolic prefix.
17719 If you're interested in how Gnus implements this, @pxref{Extended
17723 @node Formatting Variables
17724 @section Formatting Variables
17725 @cindex formatting variables
17727 Throughout this manual you've probably noticed lots of variables called
17728 things like @code{gnus-group-line-format} and
17729 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}. These control how Gnus is to
17730 output lines in the various buffers. There's quite a lot of them.
17731 Fortunately, they all use the same syntax, so there's not that much to
17734 Here's an example format spec (from the group buffer): @samp{%M%S%5y:
17735 %(%g%)\n}. We see that it is indeed extremely ugly, and that there are
17736 lots of percentages everywhere.
17739 * Formatting Basics:: A formatting variable is basically a format string.
17740 * Mode Line Formatting:: Some rules about mode line formatting variables.
17741 * Advanced Formatting:: Modifying output in various ways.
17742 * User-Defined Specs:: Having Gnus call your own functions.
17743 * Formatting Fonts:: Making the formatting look colorful and nice.
17744 * Wide Characters:: Dealing with wide characters.
17747 Currently Gnus uses the following formatting variables:
17748 @code{gnus-group-line-format}, @code{gnus-summary-line-format},
17749 @code{gnus-server-line-format}, @code{gnus-topic-line-format},
17750 @code{gnus-group-mode-line-format},
17751 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format},
17752 @code{gnus-article-mode-line-format},
17753 @code{gnus-server-mode-line-format}, and
17754 @code{gnus-summary-pick-line-format}.
17756 All these format variables can also be arbitrary elisp forms. In that
17757 case, they will be @code{eval}ed to insert the required lines.
17759 @kindex M-x gnus-update-format
17760 @findex gnus-update-format
17761 Gnus includes a command to help you while creating your own format
17762 specs. @kbd{M-x gnus-update-format} will @code{eval} the current form,
17763 update the spec in question and pop you to a buffer where you can
17764 examine the resulting lisp code to be run to generate the line.
17768 @node Formatting Basics
17769 @subsection Formatting Basics
17771 Each @samp{%} element will be replaced by some string or other when the
17772 buffer in question is generated. @samp{%5y} means ``insert the @samp{y}
17773 spec, and pad with spaces to get a 5-character field''.
17775 As with normal C and Emacs Lisp formatting strings, the numerical
17776 modifier between the @samp{%} and the formatting type character will
17777 @dfn{pad} the output so that it is always at least that long.
17778 @samp{%5y} will make the field always (at least) five characters wide by
17779 padding with spaces to the left. If you say @samp{%-5y}, it will pad to
17782 You may also wish to limit the length of the field to protect against
17783 particularly wide values. For that you can say @samp{%4,6y}, which
17784 means that the field will never be more than 6 characters wide and never
17785 less than 4 characters wide.
17788 @node Mode Line Formatting
17789 @subsection Mode Line Formatting
17791 Mode line formatting variables (e.g.,
17792 @code{gnus-summary-mode-line-format}) follow the same rules as other,
17793 buffer line oriented formatting variables (@pxref{Formatting Basics})
17794 with the following two differences:
17799 There must be no newline (@samp{\n}) at the end.
17802 The special @samp{%%b} spec can be used to display the buffer name.
17803 Well, it's no spec at all, really---@samp{%%} is just a way to quote
17804 @samp{%} to allow it to pass through the formatting machinery unmangled,
17805 so that Emacs receives @samp{%b}, which is something the Emacs mode line
17806 display interprets to mean ``show the buffer name''. For a full list of
17807 mode line specs Emacs understands, see the documentation of the
17808 @code{mode-line-format} variable.
17813 @node Advanced Formatting
17814 @subsection Advanced Formatting
17816 It is frequently useful to post-process the fields in some way.
17817 Padding, limiting, cutting off parts and suppressing certain values can
17818 be achieved by using @dfn{tilde modifiers}. A typical tilde spec might
17819 look like @samp{%~(cut 3)~(ignore "0")y}.
17821 These are the valid modifiers:
17826 Pad the field to the left with spaces until it reaches the required
17830 Pad the field to the right with spaces until it reaches the required
17835 Cut off characters from the left until it reaches the specified length.
17838 Cut off characters from the right until it reaches the specified
17843 Cut off the specified number of characters from the left.
17846 Cut off the specified number of characters from the right.
17849 Return an empty string if the field is equal to the specified value.
17852 Use the specified form as the field value when the @samp{@@} spec is
17856 Let's take an example. The @samp{%o} spec in the summary mode lines
17857 will return a date in compact ISO8601 format---@samp{19960809T230410}.
17858 This is quite a mouthful, so we want to shave off the century number and
17859 the time, leaving us with a six-character date. That would be
17860 @samp{%~(cut-left 2)~(max-right 6)~(pad 6)o}. (Cutting is done before
17861 maxing, and we need the padding to ensure that the date is never less
17862 than 6 characters to make it look nice in columns.)
17864 Ignoring is done first; then cutting; then maxing; and then as the very
17865 last operation, padding.
17867 If you use lots of these advanced thingies, you'll find that Gnus gets
17868 quite slow. This can be helped enormously by running @kbd{M-x
17869 gnus-compile} when you are satisfied with the look of your lines.
17870 @xref{Compilation}.
17873 @node User-Defined Specs
17874 @subsection User-Defined Specs
17876 All the specs allow for inserting user defined specifiers---@samp{u}.
17877 The next character in the format string should be a letter. Gnus
17878 will call the function @code{gnus-user-format-function-}@samp{X}, where
17879 @samp{X} is the letter following @samp{%u}. The function will be passed
17880 a single parameter---what the parameter means depends on what buffer
17881 it's being called from. The function should return a string, which will
17882 be inserted into the buffer just like information from any other
17883 specifier. This function may also be called with dummy values, so it
17884 should protect against that.
17886 You can also use tilde modifiers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting} to achieve
17887 much the same without defining new functions. Here's an example:
17888 @samp{%~(form (count-lines (point-min) (point)))@@}. The form
17889 given here will be evaluated to yield the current line number, and then
17893 @node Formatting Fonts
17894 @subsection Formatting Fonts
17896 There are specs for highlighting, and these are shared by all the format
17897 variables. Text inside the @samp{%(} and @samp{%)} specifiers will get
17898 the special @code{mouse-face} property set, which means that it will be
17899 highlighted (with @code{gnus-mouse-face}) when you put the mouse pointer
17902 Text inside the @samp{%@{} and @samp{%@}} specifiers will have their
17903 normal faces set using @code{gnus-face-0}, which is @code{bold} by
17904 default. If you say @samp{%1@{}, you'll get @code{gnus-face-1} instead,
17905 and so on. Create as many faces as you wish. The same goes for the
17906 @code{mouse-face} specs---you can say @samp{%3(hello%)} to have
17907 @samp{hello} mouse-highlighted with @code{gnus-mouse-face-3}.
17909 Text inside the @samp{%<} and @samp{%>} specifiers will get the special
17910 @code{balloon-help} property set to @code{gnus-balloon-face-0}. If you
17911 say @samp{%1<}, you'll get @code{gnus-balloon-face-1} and so on. The
17912 @code{gnus-balloon-face-*} variables should be either strings or symbols
17913 naming functions that return a string. Under @code{balloon-help-mode},
17914 when the mouse passes over text with this property set, a balloon window
17915 will appear and display the string. Please refer to the doc string of
17916 @code{balloon-help-mode} for more information on this.
17918 Here's an alternative recipe for the group buffer:
17921 ;; Create three face types.
17922 (setq gnus-face-1 'bold)
17923 (setq gnus-face-3 'italic)
17925 ;; We want the article count to be in
17926 ;; a bold and green face. So we create
17927 ;; a new face called `my-green-bold'.
17928 (copy-face 'bold 'my-green-bold)
17930 (set-face-foreground 'my-green-bold "ForestGreen")
17931 (setq gnus-face-2 'my-green-bold)
17933 ;; Set the new & fancy format.
17934 (setq gnus-group-line-format
17935 "%M%S%3@{%5y%@}%2[:%] %(%1@{%g%@}%)\n")
17938 I'm sure you'll be able to use this scheme to create totally unreadable
17939 and extremely vulgar displays. Have fun!
17941 Note that the @samp{%(} specs (and friends) do not make any sense on the
17942 mode-line variables.
17945 @node Wide Characters
17946 @subsection Wide Characters
17948 Proportional fonts in most countries have characters of the same width.
17949 Some countries, however, use Latin characters mixed with wider
17950 characters---most notable East Asian countries.
17952 The problem is that when formatting, Gnus assumes that if a string is 10
17953 characters wide, it'll be 10 Latin characters wide on the screen. In
17954 these coutries, that's not true.
17956 @vindex gnus-use-correct-string-widths
17957 To help fix this, you can set @code{gnus-use-correct-string-widths} to
17958 @code{t}. This makes buffer generation slower, but the results will be
17959 prettieer. The default value is @code{nil}.
17963 @node Window Layout
17964 @section Window Layout
17965 @cindex window layout
17967 No, there's nothing here about X, so be quiet.
17969 @vindex gnus-use-full-window
17970 If @code{gnus-use-full-window} non-@code{nil}, Gnus will delete all
17971 other windows and occupy the entire Emacs screen by itself. It is
17972 @code{t} by default.
17974 Setting this variable to @code{nil} kinda works, but there are
17975 glitches. Use at your own peril.
17977 @vindex gnus-buffer-configuration
17978 @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} describes how much space each Gnus
17979 buffer should be given. Here's an excerpt of this variable:
17982 ((group (vertical 1.0 (group 1.0 point)
17983 (if gnus-carpal (group-carpal 4))))
17984 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
17988 This is an alist. The @dfn{key} is a symbol that names some action or
17989 other. For instance, when displaying the group buffer, the window
17990 configuration function will use @code{group} as the key. A full list of
17991 possible names is listed below.
17993 The @dfn{value} (i.e., the @dfn{split}) says how much space each buffer
17994 should occupy. To take the @code{article} split as an example -
17997 (article (vertical 1.0 (summary 0.25 point)
18001 This @dfn{split} says that the summary buffer should occupy 25% of upper
18002 half of the screen, and that it is placed over the article buffer. As
18003 you may have noticed, 100% + 25% is actually 125% (yup, I saw y'all
18004 reaching for that calculator there). However, the special number
18005 @code{1.0} is used to signal that this buffer should soak up all the
18006 rest of the space available after the rest of the buffers have taken
18007 whatever they need. There should be only one buffer with the @code{1.0}
18008 size spec per split.
18010 Point will be put in the buffer that has the optional third element
18011 @code{point}. In a @code{frame} split, the last subsplit having a leaf
18012 split where the tag @code{frame-focus} is a member (i.e. is the third or
18013 fourth element in the list, depending on whether the @code{point} tag is
18014 present) gets focus.
18016 Here's a more complicated example:
18019 (article (vertical 1.0 (group 4)
18020 (summary 0.25 point)
18021 (if gnus-carpal (summary-carpal 4))
18025 If the size spec is an integer instead of a floating point number,
18026 then that number will be used to say how many lines a buffer should
18027 occupy, not a percentage.
18029 If the @dfn{split} looks like something that can be @code{eval}ed (to be
18030 precise---if the @code{car} of the split is a function or a subr), this
18031 split will be @code{eval}ed. If the result is non-@code{nil}, it will
18032 be used as a split. This means that there will be three buffers if
18033 @code{gnus-carpal} is @code{nil}, and four buffers if @code{gnus-carpal}
18036 Not complicated enough for you? Well, try this on for size:
18039 (article (horizontal 1.0
18044 (summary 0.25 point)
18049 Whoops. Two buffers with the mystery 100% tag. And what's that
18050 @code{horizontal} thingie?
18052 If the first element in one of the split is @code{horizontal}, Gnus will
18053 split the window horizontally, giving you two windows side-by-side.
18054 Inside each of these strips you may carry on all you like in the normal
18055 fashion. The number following @code{horizontal} says what percentage of
18056 the screen is to be given to this strip.
18058 For each split, there @emph{must} be one element that has the 100% tag.
18059 The splitting is never accurate, and this buffer will eat any leftover
18060 lines from the splits.
18062 To be slightly more formal, here's a definition of what a valid split
18066 split = frame | horizontal | vertical | buffer | form
18067 frame = "(frame " size *split ")"
18068 horizontal = "(horizontal " size *split ")"
18069 vertical = "(vertical " size *split ")"
18070 buffer = "(" buf-name " " size *[ "point" ] *[ "frame-focus"] ")"
18071 size = number | frame-params
18072 buf-name = group | article | summary ...
18075 The limitations are that the @code{frame} split can only appear as the
18076 top-level split. @var{form} should be an Emacs Lisp form that should
18077 return a valid split. We see that each split is fully recursive, and
18078 may contain any number of @code{vertical} and @code{horizontal} splits.
18080 @vindex gnus-window-min-width
18081 @vindex gnus-window-min-height
18082 @cindex window height
18083 @cindex window width
18084 Finding the right sizes can be a bit complicated. No window may be less
18085 than @code{gnus-window-min-height} (default 1) characters high, and all
18086 windows must be at least @code{gnus-window-min-width} (default 1)
18087 characters wide. Gnus will try to enforce this before applying the
18088 splits. If you want to use the normal Emacs window width/height limit,
18089 you can just set these two variables to @code{nil}.
18091 If you're not familiar with Emacs terminology, @code{horizontal} and
18092 @code{vertical} splits may work the opposite way of what you'd expect.
18093 Windows inside a @code{horizontal} split are shown side-by-side, and
18094 windows within a @code{vertical} split are shown above each other.
18096 @findex gnus-configure-frame
18097 If you want to experiment with window placement, a good tip is to call
18098 @code{gnus-configure-frame} directly with a split. This is the function
18099 that does all the real work when splitting buffers. Below is a pretty
18100 nonsensical configuration with 5 windows; two for the group buffer and
18101 three for the article buffer. (I said it was nonsensical.) If you
18102 @code{eval} the statement below, you can get an idea of how that would
18103 look straight away, without going through the normal Gnus channels.
18104 Play with it until you're satisfied, and then use
18105 @code{gnus-add-configuration} to add your new creation to the buffer
18106 configuration list.
18109 (gnus-configure-frame
18113 (article 0.3 point))
18121 You might want to have several frames as well. No prob---just use the
18122 @code{frame} split:
18125 (gnus-configure-frame
18128 (summary 0.25 point frame-focus)
18130 (vertical ((height . 5) (width . 15)
18131 (user-position . t)
18132 (left . -1) (top . 1))
18137 This split will result in the familiar summary/article window
18138 configuration in the first (or ``main'') frame, while a small additional
18139 frame will be created where picons will be shown. As you can see,
18140 instead of the normal @code{1.0} top-level spec, each additional split
18141 should have a frame parameter alist as the size spec.
18142 @xref{Frame Parameters, , Frame Parameters, elisp, The GNU Emacs Lisp
18143 Reference Manual}. Under XEmacs, a frame property list will be
18144 accepted, too---for instance, @code{(height 5 width 15 left -1 top 1)}
18146 The list of all possible keys for @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} can
18147 be found in its default value.
18149 Note that the @code{message} key is used for both
18150 @code{gnus-group-mail} and @code{gnus-summary-mail-other-window}. If
18151 it is desirable to distinguish between the two, something like this
18155 (message (horizontal 1.0
18156 (vertical 1.0 (message 1.0 point))
18158 (if (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer)
18163 One common desire for a multiple frame split is to have a separate frame
18164 for composing mail and news while leaving the original frame intact. To
18165 accomplish that, something like the following can be done:
18170 (if (not (buffer-live-p gnus-summary-buffer))
18171 (car (cdr (assoc 'group gnus-buffer-configuration)))
18172 (car (cdr (assoc 'summary gnus-buffer-configuration))))
18173 (vertical ((user-position . t) (top . 1) (left . 1)
18174 (name . "Message"))
18175 (message 1.0 point))))
18178 @findex gnus-add-configuration
18179 Since the @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} variable is so long and
18180 complicated, there's a function you can use to ease changing the config
18181 of a single setting: @code{gnus-add-configuration}. If, for instance,
18182 you want to change the @code{article} setting, you could say:
18185 (gnus-add-configuration
18186 '(article (vertical 1.0
18188 (summary .25 point)
18192 You'd typically stick these @code{gnus-add-configuration} calls in your
18193 @file{.gnus.el} file or in some startup hook---they should be run after
18194 Gnus has been loaded.
18196 @vindex gnus-always-force-window-configuration
18197 If all windows mentioned in the configuration are already visible, Gnus
18198 won't change the window configuration. If you always want to force the
18199 ``right'' window configuration, you can set
18200 @code{gnus-always-force-window-configuration} to non-@code{nil}.
18202 If you're using tree displays (@pxref{Tree Display}), and the tree
18203 window is displayed vertically next to another window, you may also want
18204 to fiddle with @code{gnus-tree-minimize-window} to avoid having the
18207 @subsection Example Window Configurations
18211 Narrow left hand side occupied by group buffer. Right hand side split
18212 between summary buffer (top one-sixth) and article buffer (bottom).
18227 (gnus-add-configuration
18230 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
18232 (summary 0.16 point)
18235 (gnus-add-configuration
18238 (vertical 25 (group 1.0))
18239 (vertical 1.0 (summary 1.0 point)))))
18245 @node Faces and Fonts
18246 @section Faces and Fonts
18251 Fiddling with fonts and faces used to be very difficult, but these days
18252 it is very simple. You simply say @kbd{M-x customize-face}, pick out
18253 the face you want to alter, and alter it via the standard Customize
18258 @section Compilation
18259 @cindex compilation
18260 @cindex byte-compilation
18262 @findex gnus-compile
18264 Remember all those line format specification variables?
18265 @code{gnus-summary-line-format}, @code{gnus-group-line-format}, and so
18266 on. Now, Gnus will of course heed whatever these variables are, but,
18267 unfortunately, changing them will mean a quite significant slow-down.
18268 (The default values of these variables have byte-compiled functions
18269 associated with them, while the user-generated versions do not, of
18272 To help with this, you can run @kbd{M-x gnus-compile} after you've
18273 fiddled around with the variables and feel that you're (kind of)
18274 satisfied. This will result in the new specs being byte-compiled, and
18275 you'll get top speed again. Gnus will save these compiled specs in the
18276 @file{.newsrc.eld} file. (User-defined functions aren't compiled by
18277 this function, though---you should compile them yourself by sticking
18278 them into the @code{.gnus.el} file and byte-compiling that file.)
18282 @section Mode Lines
18285 @vindex gnus-updated-mode-lines
18286 @code{gnus-updated-mode-lines} says what buffers should keep their mode
18287 lines updated. It is a list of symbols. Supported symbols include
18288 @code{group}, @code{article}, @code{summary}, @code{server},
18289 @code{browse}, and @code{tree}. If the corresponding symbol is present,
18290 Gnus will keep that mode line updated with information that may be
18291 pertinent. If this variable is @code{nil}, screen refresh may be
18294 @cindex display-time
18296 @vindex gnus-mode-non-string-length
18297 By default, Gnus displays information on the current article in the mode
18298 lines of the summary and article buffers. The information Gnus wishes
18299 to display (e.g. the subject of the article) is often longer than the
18300 mode lines, and therefore have to be cut off at some point. The
18301 @code{gnus-mode-non-string-length} variable says how long the other
18302 elements on the line is (i.e., the non-info part). If you put
18303 additional elements on the mode line (e.g. a clock), you should modify
18306 @c Hook written by Francesco Potorti` <pot@cnuce.cnr.it>
18308 (add-hook 'display-time-hook
18309 (lambda () (setq gnus-mode-non-string-length
18311 (if line-number-mode 5 0)
18312 (if column-number-mode 4 0)
18313 (length display-time-string)))))
18316 If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the default), the mode line
18317 strings won't be chopped off, and they won't be padded either. Note
18318 that the default is unlikely to be desirable, as even the percentage
18319 complete in the buffer may be crowded off the mode line; the user should
18320 configure this variable appropriately for her configuration.
18323 @node Highlighting and Menus
18324 @section Highlighting and Menus
18326 @cindex highlighting
18329 @vindex gnus-visual
18330 The @code{gnus-visual} variable controls most of the Gnus-prettifying
18331 aspects. If @code{nil}, Gnus won't attempt to create menus or use fancy
18332 colors or fonts. This will also inhibit loading the @file{gnus-vis.el}
18335 This variable can be a list of visual properties that are enabled. The
18336 following elements are valid, and are all included by default:
18339 @item group-highlight
18340 Do highlights in the group buffer.
18341 @item summary-highlight
18342 Do highlights in the summary buffer.
18343 @item article-highlight
18344 Do highlights in the article buffer.
18346 Turn on highlighting in all buffers.
18348 Create menus in the group buffer.
18350 Create menus in the summary buffers.
18352 Create menus in the article buffer.
18354 Create menus in the browse buffer.
18356 Create menus in the server buffer.
18358 Create menus in the score buffers.
18360 Create menus in all buffers.
18363 So if you only want highlighting in the article buffer and menus in all
18364 buffers, you could say something like:
18367 (setq gnus-visual '(article-highlight menu))
18370 If you want highlighting only and no menus whatsoever, you'd say:
18373 (setq gnus-visual '(highlight))
18376 If @code{gnus-visual} is @code{t}, highlighting and menus will be used
18377 in all Gnus buffers.
18379 Other general variables that influence the look of all buffers include:
18382 @item gnus-mouse-face
18383 @vindex gnus-mouse-face
18384 This is the face (i.e., font) used for mouse highlighting in Gnus. No
18385 mouse highlights will be done if @code{gnus-visual} is @code{nil}.
18389 There are hooks associated with the creation of all the different menus:
18393 @item gnus-article-menu-hook
18394 @vindex gnus-article-menu-hook
18395 Hook called after creating the article mode menu.
18397 @item gnus-group-menu-hook
18398 @vindex gnus-group-menu-hook
18399 Hook called after creating the group mode menu.
18401 @item gnus-summary-menu-hook
18402 @vindex gnus-summary-menu-hook
18403 Hook called after creating the summary mode menu.
18405 @item gnus-server-menu-hook
18406 @vindex gnus-server-menu-hook
18407 Hook called after creating the server mode menu.
18409 @item gnus-browse-menu-hook
18410 @vindex gnus-browse-menu-hook
18411 Hook called after creating the browse mode menu.
18413 @item gnus-score-menu-hook
18414 @vindex gnus-score-menu-hook
18415 Hook called after creating the score mode menu.
18426 Those new-fangled @dfn{mouse} contraptions is very popular with the
18427 young, hep kids who don't want to learn the proper way to do things
18428 these days. Why, I remember way back in the summer of '89, when I was
18429 using Emacs on a Tops 20 system. Three hundred users on one single
18430 machine, and every user was running Simula compilers. Bah!
18434 @vindex gnus-carpal
18435 Well, you can make Gnus display bufferfuls of buttons you can click to
18436 do anything by setting @code{gnus-carpal} to @code{t}. Pretty simple,
18437 really. Tell the chiropractor I sent you.
18442 @item gnus-carpal-mode-hook
18443 @vindex gnus-carpal-mode-hook
18444 Hook run in all carpal mode buffers.
18446 @item gnus-carpal-button-face
18447 @vindex gnus-carpal-button-face
18448 Face used on buttons.
18450 @item gnus-carpal-header-face
18451 @vindex gnus-carpal-header-face
18452 Face used on carpal buffer headers.
18454 @item gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
18455 @vindex gnus-carpal-group-buffer-buttons
18456 Buttons in the group buffer.
18458 @item gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18459 @vindex gnus-carpal-summary-buffer-buttons
18460 Buttons in the summary buffer.
18462 @item gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18463 @vindex gnus-carpal-server-buffer-buttons
18464 Buttons in the server buffer.
18466 @item gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18467 @vindex gnus-carpal-browse-buffer-buttons
18468 Buttons in the browse buffer.
18471 All the @code{buttons} variables are lists. The elements in these list
18472 are either cons cells where the @code{car} contains a text to be displayed and
18473 the @code{cdr} contains a function symbol, or a simple string.
18481 Gnus, being larger than any program ever written (allegedly), does lots
18482 of strange stuff that you may wish to have done while you're not
18483 present. For instance, you may want it to check for new mail once in a
18484 while. Or you may want it to close down all connections to all servers
18485 when you leave Emacs idle. And stuff like that.
18487 Gnus will let you do stuff like that by defining various
18488 @dfn{handlers}. Each handler consists of three elements: A
18489 @var{function}, a @var{time}, and an @var{idle} parameter.
18491 Here's an example of a handler that closes connections when Emacs has
18492 been idle for thirty minutes:
18495 (gnus-demon-close-connections nil 30)
18498 Here's a handler that scans for PGP headers every hour when Emacs is
18502 (gnus-demon-scan-pgp 60 t)
18505 This @var{time} parameter and than @var{idle} parameter work together
18506 in a strange, but wonderful fashion. Basically, if @var{idle} is
18507 @code{nil}, then the function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18509 If @var{idle} is @code{t}, then the function will be called after
18510 @var{time} minutes only if Emacs is idle. So if Emacs is never idle,
18511 the function will never be called. But once Emacs goes idle, the
18512 function will be called every @var{time} minutes.
18514 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is a number, the function will
18515 be called every @var{time} minutes only when Emacs has been idle for
18516 @var{idle} minutes.
18518 If @var{idle} is a number and @var{time} is @code{nil}, the function
18519 will be called once every time Emacs has been idle for @var{idle}
18522 And if @var{time} is a string, it should look like @samp{07:31}, and
18523 the function will then be called once every day somewhere near that
18524 time. Modified by the @var{idle} parameter, of course.
18526 @vindex gnus-demon-timestep
18527 (When I say ``minute'' here, I really mean @code{gnus-demon-timestep}
18528 seconds. This is 60 by default. If you change that variable,
18529 all the timings in the handlers will be affected.)
18531 So, if you want to add a handler, you could put something like this in
18532 your @file{.gnus} file:
18534 @findex gnus-demon-add-handler
18536 (gnus-demon-add-handler 'gnus-demon-close-connections 30 t)
18539 @findex gnus-demon-add-nocem
18540 @findex gnus-demon-add-scanmail
18541 @findex gnus-demon-add-rescan
18542 @findex gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps
18543 @findex gnus-demon-add-disconnection
18544 Some ready-made functions to do this have been created:
18545 @code{gnus-demon-add-nocem}, @code{gnus-demon-add-disconnection},
18546 @code{gnus-demon-add-nntp-close-connection},
18547 @code{gnus-demon-add-scan-timestamps}, @code{gnus-demon-add-rescan}, and
18548 @code{gnus-demon-add-scanmail}. Just put those functions in your
18549 @file{.gnus} if you want those abilities.
18551 @findex gnus-demon-init
18552 @findex gnus-demon-cancel
18553 @vindex gnus-demon-handlers
18554 If you add handlers to @code{gnus-demon-handlers} directly, you should
18555 run @code{gnus-demon-init} to make the changes take hold. To cancel all
18556 daemons, you can use the @code{gnus-demon-cancel} function.
18558 Note that adding daemons can be pretty naughty if you over do it. Adding
18559 functions that scan all news and mail from all servers every two seconds
18560 is a sure-fire way of getting booted off any respectable system. So
18569 @dfn{Spamming} is posting the same article lots and lots of times.
18570 Spamming is bad. Spamming is evil.
18572 Spamming is usually canceled within a day or so by various anti-spamming
18573 agencies. These agencies usually also send out @dfn{NoCeM} messages.
18574 NoCeM is pronounced ``no see-'em'', and means what the name
18575 implies---these are messages that make the offending articles, like, go
18578 What use are these NoCeM messages if the articles are canceled anyway?
18579 Some sites do not honor cancel messages and some sites just honor cancels
18580 from a select few people. Then you may wish to make use of the NoCeM
18581 messages, which are distributed in the @samp{alt.nocem.misc} newsgroup.
18583 Gnus can read and parse the messages in this group automatically, and
18584 this will make spam disappear.
18586 There are some variables to customize, of course:
18589 @item gnus-use-nocem
18590 @vindex gnus-use-nocem
18591 Set this variable to @code{t} to set the ball rolling. It is @code{nil}
18594 @item gnus-nocem-groups
18595 @vindex gnus-nocem-groups
18596 Gnus will look for NoCeM messages in the groups in this list. The
18597 default is @code{("news.lists.filters" "news.admin.net-abuse.bulletins"
18598 "alt.nocem.misc" "news.admin.net-abuse.announce")}.
18600 @item gnus-nocem-issuers
18601 @vindex gnus-nocem-issuers
18602 There are many people issuing NoCeM messages. This list says what
18603 people you want to listen to. The default is @code{("Automoose-1"
18604 "clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" "cosmo.roadkill" "SpamHippo"
18605 "hweede@@snafu.de")}; fine, upstanding citizens all of them.
18607 Known despammers that you can put in this list are listed at
18608 @uref{http://www.xs4all.nl/~rosalind/nocemreg/nocemreg.html}.
18610 You do not have to heed NoCeM messages from all these people---just the
18611 ones you want to listen to. You also don't have to accept all NoCeM
18612 messages from the people you like. Each NoCeM message has a @dfn{type}
18613 header that gives the message a (more or less, usually less) rigorous
18614 definition. Common types are @samp{spam}, @samp{spew}, @samp{mmf},
18615 @samp{binary}, and @samp{troll}. To specify this, you have to use
18616 @code{(@var{issuer} @var{conditions} @dots{})} elements in the list.
18617 Each condition is either a string (which is a regexp that matches types
18618 you want to use) or a list on the form @code{(not @var{string})}, where
18619 @var{string} is a regexp that matches types you don't want to use.
18621 For instance, if you want all NoCeM messages from Chris Lewis except his
18622 @samp{troll} messages, you'd say:
18625 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" ".*" (not "troll"))
18628 On the other hand, if you just want nothing but his @samp{spam} and
18629 @samp{spew} messages, you'd say:
18632 ("clewis@@ferret.ocunix.on.ca" (not ".*") "spew" "spam")
18635 The specs are applied left-to-right.
18638 @item gnus-nocem-verifyer
18639 @vindex gnus-nocem-verifyer
18641 This should be a function for verifying that the NoCeM issuer is who she
18642 says she is. The default is @code{mc-verify}, which is a Mailcrypt
18643 function. If this is too slow and you don't care for verification
18644 (which may be dangerous), you can set this variable to @code{nil}.
18646 If you want signed NoCeM messages to be verified and unsigned messages
18647 not to be verified (but used anyway), you could do something like:
18650 (setq gnus-nocem-verifyer 'my-gnus-mc-verify)
18652 (defun my-gnus-mc-verify ()
18660 This might be dangerous, though.
18662 @item gnus-nocem-directory
18663 @vindex gnus-nocem-directory
18664 This is where Gnus will store its NoCeM cache files. The default is
18665 @file{~/News/NoCeM/}.
18667 @item gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18668 @vindex gnus-nocem-expiry-wait
18669 The number of days before removing old NoCeM entries from the cache.
18670 The default is 15. If you make it shorter Gnus will be faster, but you
18671 might then see old spam.
18673 @item gnus-nocem-check-from
18674 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-from
18675 Non-@code{nil} means check for valid issuers in message bodies.
18676 Otherwise don't bother fetching articles unless their author matches a
18677 valid issuer; that is much faster if you are selective about the
18680 @item gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18681 @vindex gnus-nocem-check-article-limit
18682 If non-@code{nil}, the maximum number of articles to check in any NoCeM
18683 group. NoCeM groups can be huge and very slow to process.
18687 Using NoCeM could potentially be a memory hog. If you have many living
18688 (i. e., subscribed or unsubscribed groups), your Emacs process will grow
18689 big. If this is a problem, you should kill off all (or most) of your
18690 unsubscribed groups (@pxref{Subscription Commands}).
18697 It is very useful to be able to undo actions one has done. In normal
18698 Emacs buffers, it's easy enough---you just push the @code{undo} button.
18699 In Gnus buffers, however, it isn't that simple.
18701 The things Gnus displays in its buffer is of no value whatsoever to
18702 Gnus---it's all just data designed to look nice to the user.
18703 Killing a group in the group buffer with @kbd{C-k} makes the line
18704 disappear, but that's just a side-effect of the real action---the
18705 removal of the group in question from the internal Gnus structures.
18706 Undoing something like that can't be done by the normal Emacs
18707 @code{undo} function.
18709 Gnus tries to remedy this somewhat by keeping track of what the user
18710 does and coming up with actions that would reverse the actions the user
18711 takes. When the user then presses the @code{undo} key, Gnus will run
18712 the code to reverse the previous action, or the previous actions.
18713 However, not all actions are easily reversible, so Gnus currently offers
18714 a few key functions to be undoable. These include killing groups,
18715 yanking groups, and changing the list of read articles of groups.
18716 That's it, really. More functions may be added in the future, but each
18717 added function means an increase in data to be stored, so Gnus will
18718 never be totally undoable.
18720 @findex gnus-undo-mode
18721 @vindex gnus-use-undo
18723 The undoability is provided by the @code{gnus-undo-mode} minor mode. It
18724 is used if @code{gnus-use-undo} is non-@code{nil}, which is the
18725 default. The @kbd{M-C-_} key performs the @code{gnus-undo}
18726 command, which should feel kinda like the normal Emacs @code{undo}
18731 @section Moderation
18734 If you are a moderator, you can use the @file{gnus-mdrtn.el} package.
18735 It is not included in the standard Gnus package. Write a mail to
18736 @samp{larsi@@gnus.org} and state what group you moderate, and you'll
18739 The moderation package is implemented as a minor mode for summary
18743 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-moderate)
18746 in your @file{.gnus.el} file.
18748 If you are the moderator of @samp{rec.zoofle}, this is how it's
18753 You split your incoming mail by matching on
18754 @samp{Newsgroups:.*rec.zoofle}, which will put all the to-be-posted
18755 articles in some mail group---for instance, @samp{nnml:rec.zoofle}.
18758 You enter that group once in a while and post articles using the @kbd{e}
18759 (edit-and-post) or @kbd{s} (just send unedited) commands.
18762 If, while reading the @samp{rec.zoofle} newsgroup, you happen upon some
18763 articles that weren't approved by you, you can cancel them with the
18767 To use moderation mode in these two groups, say:
18770 (setq gnus-moderated-list
18771 "^nnml:rec.zoofle$\\|^rec.zoofle$")
18775 @node XEmacs Enhancements
18776 @section XEmacs Enhancements
18779 XEmacs is able to display pictures and stuff, so Gnus has taken
18783 * Picons:: How to display pictures of what your reading.
18784 * Smileys:: Show all those happy faces the way they were meant to be shown.
18785 * Toolbar:: Click'n'drool.
18786 * XVarious:: Other XEmacsy Gnusey variables.
18799 So@dots{} You want to slow down your news reader even more! This is a
18800 good way to do so. Its also a great way to impress people staring
18801 over your shoulder as you read news.
18804 * Picon Basics:: What are picons and How do I get them.
18805 * Picon Requirements:: Don't go further if you aren't using XEmacs.
18806 * Easy Picons:: Displaying Picons---the easy way.
18807 * Hard Picons:: The way you should do it. You'll learn something.
18808 * Picon Useless Configuration:: Other variables you can trash/tweak/munge/play with.
18813 @subsubsection Picon Basics
18815 What are Picons? To quote directly from the Picons Web site:
18824 @dfn{Picons} is short for ``personal icons''. They're small,
18825 constrained images used to represent users and domains on the net,
18826 organized into databases so that the appropriate image for a given
18827 e-mail address can be found. Besides users and domains, there are picon
18828 databases for Usenet newsgroups and weather forecasts. The picons are
18829 in either monochrome @code{XBM} format or color @code{XPM} and
18830 @code{GIF} formats.
18833 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18834 If you have a permanent connection to the Internet you can use Steve
18835 Kinzler's Picons Search engine by setting
18836 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} to the string @*
18837 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/search.html}.
18839 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18840 Otherwise you need a local copy of his database. For instructions on
18841 obtaining and installing the picons databases, point your Web browser at @*
18842 @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu/picons/ftp/index.html}. Gnus expects
18843 picons to be installed into a location pointed to by
18844 @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18847 @node Picon Requirements
18848 @subsubsection Picon Requirements
18850 To have Gnus display Picons for you, you must be running XEmacs
18851 19.13 or greater since all other versions of Emacs aren't yet able to
18854 Additionally, you must have @code{x} support compiled into XEmacs. To
18855 display color picons which are much nicer than the black & white one,
18856 you also need one of @code{xpm} or @code{gif} compiled into XEmacs.
18858 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18859 If you want to display faces from @code{X-Face} headers, you should have
18860 the @code{xface} support compiled into XEmacs. Otherwise you must have
18861 the @code{netpbm} utilities installed, or munge the
18862 @code{gnus-picons-convert-x-face} variable to use something else.
18866 @subsubsection Easy Picons
18868 To enable displaying picons, simply put the following line in your
18869 @file{~/.gnus} file and start Gnus.
18872 (setq gnus-use-picons t)
18873 (setq gnus-treat-display-picons t)
18876 and make sure @code{gnus-picons-database} points to the directory
18877 containing the Picons databases.
18879 Alternatively if you want to use the web piconsearch engine add this:
18882 (setq gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18883 "http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch")
18888 @subsubsection Hard Picons
18896 Gnus can display picons for you as you enter and leave groups and
18897 articles. It knows how to interact with three sections of the picons
18898 database. Namely, it can display the picons newsgroup pictures,
18899 author's face picture(s), and the authors domain. To enable this
18900 feature, you need to select where to get the picons from, and where to
18905 @item gnus-picons-database
18906 @vindex gnus-picons-database
18907 The location of the picons database. Should point to a directory
18908 containing the @file{news}, @file{domains}, @file{users} (and so on)
18909 subdirectories. This is only useful if
18910 @code{gnus-picons-piconsearch-url} is @code{nil}. Defaults to
18911 @file{/usr/local/faces/}.
18913 @item gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18914 @vindex gnus-picons-piconsearch-url
18915 The URL for the web picons search engine. The only currently known
18916 engine is @uref{http://www.cs.indiana.edu:800/piconsearch}. To
18917 workaround network delays, icons will be fetched in the background. If
18918 this is @code{nil} 'the default), then picons are fetched from local
18919 database indicated by @code{gnus-picons-database}.
18921 @item gnus-picons-display-where
18922 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18923 Where the picon images should be displayed. It is @code{picons} by
18924 default (which by default maps to the buffer @samp{*Picons*}). Other
18925 valid places could be @code{article}, @code{summary}, or
18926 @samp{*scratch*} for all I care. Just make sure that you've made the
18927 buffer visible using the standard Gnus window configuration
18928 routines---@pxref{Window Layout}.
18930 @item gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18931 @vindex gnus-picons-group-excluded-groups
18932 Groups that are matched by this regexp won't have their group icons
18937 Note: If you set @code{gnus-use-picons} to @code{t}, it will set up your
18938 window configuration for you to include the @code{picons} buffer.
18940 Now that you've made those decision, you need to add the following
18941 functions to the appropriate hooks so these pictures will get displayed
18944 @vindex gnus-picons-display-where
18946 @item gnus-article-display-picons
18947 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18948 Looks up and displays the picons for the author and the author's domain
18949 in the @code{gnus-picons-display-where} buffer.
18951 @item gnus-picons-article-display-x-face
18952 @findex gnus-article-display-picons
18953 Decodes and displays the X-Face header if present.
18959 @node Picon Useless Configuration
18960 @subsubsection Picon Useless Configuration
18968 The following variables offer further control over how things are
18969 done, where things are located, and other useless stuff you really
18970 don't need to worry about.
18974 @item gnus-picons-news-directories
18975 @vindex gnus-picons-news-directories
18976 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18977 newsgroups faces. @code{("news")} is the default.
18979 @item gnus-picons-user-directories
18980 @vindex gnus-picons-user-directories
18981 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for user
18982 faces. @code{("local" "users" "usenix" "misc")} is the default.
18984 @item gnus-picons-domain-directories
18985 @vindex gnus-picons-domain-directories
18986 List of subdirectories to search in @code{gnus-picons-database} for
18987 domain name faces. Defaults to @code{("domains")}. Some people may
18988 want to add @samp{"unknown"} to this list.
18990 @item gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18991 @vindex gnus-picons-convert-x-face
18992 If you don't have @code{xface} support builtin XEmacs, this is the
18993 command to use to convert the @code{X-Face} header to an X bitmap
18994 (@code{xbm}). Defaults to @code{(format "@{ echo '/* Width=48,
18995 Height=48 */'; uncompface; @} | icontopbm | pbmtoxbm > %s"
18996 gnus-picons-x-face-file-name)}
18998 @item gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
18999 @vindex gnus-picons-x-face-file-name
19000 Names a temporary file to store the @code{X-Face} bitmap in. Defaults
19001 to @code{(format "/tmp/picon-xface.%s.xbm" (user-login-name))}.
19003 @item gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19004 @vindex gnus-picons-has-modeline-p
19005 If you have set @code{gnus-picons-display-where} to @code{picons}, your
19006 XEmacs frame will become really cluttered. To alleviate this a bit you
19007 can set @code{gnus-picons-has-modeline-p} to @code{nil}; this will
19008 remove the mode line from the Picons buffer. This is only useful if
19009 @code{gnus-picons-display-where} is @code{picons}.
19011 @item gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19012 @vindex gnus-picons-refresh-before-display
19013 If non-nil, display the article buffer before computing the picons.
19014 Defaults to @code{nil}.
19016 @item gnus-picons-display-as-address
19017 @vindex gnus-picons-display-as-address
19018 If @code{t} display textual email addresses along with pictures.
19019 Defaults to @code{t}.
19021 @item gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19022 @vindex gnus-picons-file-suffixes
19023 Ordered list of suffixes on picon file names to try. Defaults to
19024 @code{("xpm" "gif" "xbm")} minus those not builtin your XEmacs.
19026 @item gnus-picons-setup-hook
19027 @vindex gnus-picons-setup-hook
19028 Hook run in the picon buffer, if that is displayed.
19030 @item gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19031 @vindex gnus-picons-display-article-move-p
19032 Whether to move point to first empty line when displaying picons. This
19033 has only an effect if `gnus-picons-display-where' has value `article'.
19035 If @code{nil}, display the picons in the @code{From} and
19036 @code{Newsgroups} lines. This is the default.
19038 @item gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19039 @vindex gnus-picons-clear-cache-on-shutdown
19040 Whether to clear the picons cache when exiting gnus. Gnus caches every
19041 picons it finds while it is running. This saves some time in the search
19042 process but eats some memory. If this variable is set to @code{nil},
19043 Gnus will never clear the cache itself; you will have to manually call
19044 @code{gnus-picons-clear-cache} to clear it. Otherwise the cache will be
19045 cleared every time you exit Gnus. Defaults to @code{t}.
19056 @subsection Smileys
19061 \gnusfig{-3cm}{0.5cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/BigFace.ps,height=20cm}}
19066 @dfn{Smiley} is a package separate from Gnus, but since Gnus is
19067 currently the only package that uses Smiley, it is documented here.
19069 In short---to use Smiley in Gnus, put the following in your
19070 @file{.gnus.el} file:
19073 (setq gnus-treat-display-smileys t)
19076 Smiley maps text smiley faces---@samp{:-)}, @samp{:-=}, @samp{:-(} and
19077 the like---to pictures and displays those instead of the text smiley
19078 faces. The conversion is controlled by a list of regexps that matches
19079 text and maps that to file names.
19081 @vindex smiley-nosey-regexp-alist
19082 @vindex smiley-deformed-regexp-alist
19083 Smiley supplies two example conversion alists by default:
19084 @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist} (which matches @samp{:)}, @samp{:(}
19085 and so on), and @code{smiley-nosey-regexp-alist} (which matches
19086 @samp{:-)}, @samp{:-(} and so on).
19088 The alist used is specified by the @code{smiley-regexp-alist} variable,
19089 which defaults to the value of @code{smiley-deformed-regexp-alist}.
19091 The first item in each element is the regexp to be matched; the second
19092 element is the regexp match group that is to be replaced by the picture;
19093 and the third element is the name of the file to be displayed.
19095 The following variables customize where Smiley will look for these
19096 files, as well as the color to be used and stuff:
19100 @item smiley-data-directory
19101 @vindex smiley-data-directory
19102 Where Smiley will look for smiley faces files.
19104 @item smiley-flesh-color
19105 @vindex smiley-flesh-color
19106 Skin color. The default is @samp{yellow}, which is really racist.
19108 @item smiley-features-color
19109 @vindex smiley-features-color
19110 Color of the features of the face. The default is @samp{black}.
19112 @item smiley-tongue-color
19113 @vindex smiley-tongue-color
19114 Color of the tongue. The default is @samp{red}.
19116 @item smiley-circle-color
19117 @vindex smiley-circle-color
19118 Color of the circle around the face. The default is @samp{black}.
19120 @item smiley-mouse-face
19121 @vindex smiley-mouse-face
19122 Face used for mouse highlighting over the smiley face.
19128 @subsection Toolbar
19138 @item gnus-use-toolbar
19139 @vindex gnus-use-toolbar
19140 If @code{nil}, don't display toolbars. If non-@code{nil}, it should be
19141 one of @code{default-toolbar}, @code{top-toolbar}, @code{bottom-toolbar},
19142 @code{right-toolbar}, or @code{left-toolbar}.
19144 @item gnus-group-toolbar
19145 @vindex gnus-group-toolbar
19146 The toolbar in the group buffer.
19148 @item gnus-summary-toolbar
19149 @vindex gnus-summary-toolbar
19150 The toolbar in the summary buffer.
19152 @item gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
19153 @vindex gnus-summary-mail-toolbar
19154 The toolbar in the summary buffer of mail groups.
19160 @subsection Various XEmacs Variables
19163 @item gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
19164 @vindex gnus-xmas-glyph-directory
19165 This is where Gnus will look for pictures. Gnus will normally
19166 auto-detect this directory, but you may set it manually if you have an
19167 unusual directory structure.
19169 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
19170 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-alist
19171 This is an alist where the key is a type symbol and the values are the
19172 foreground and background color of the splash page glyph.
19174 @item gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
19175 @vindex gnus-xmas-logo-color-style
19176 This is the key used to look up the color in the alist described above.
19177 Valid values include @code{flame}, @code{pine}, @code{moss},
19178 @code{irish}, @code{sky}, @code{tin}, @code{velvet}, @code{grape},
19179 @code{labia}, @code{berry}, @code{neutral}, and @code{september}.
19181 @item gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
19182 @vindex gnus-xmas-modeline-glyph
19183 A glyph displayed in all Gnus mode lines. It is a tiny gnu head by
19197 @node Fuzzy Matching
19198 @section Fuzzy Matching
19199 @cindex fuzzy matching
19201 Gnus provides @dfn{fuzzy matching} of @code{Subject} lines when doing
19202 things like scoring, thread gathering and thread comparison.
19204 As opposed to regular expression matching, fuzzy matching is very fuzzy.
19205 It's so fuzzy that there's not even a definition of what @dfn{fuzziness}
19206 means, and the implementation has changed over time.
19208 Basically, it tries to remove all noise from lines before comparing.
19209 @samp{Re: }, parenthetical remarks, white space, and so on, are filtered
19210 out of the strings before comparing the results. This often leads to
19211 adequate results---even when faced with strings generated by text
19212 manglers masquerading as newsreaders.
19215 @node Thwarting Email Spam
19216 @section Thwarting Email Spam
19220 @cindex unsolicited commercial email
19222 In these last days of the Usenet, commercial vultures are hanging about
19223 and grepping through news like crazy to find email addresses they can
19224 foist off their scams and products to. As a reaction to this, many
19225 people have started putting nonsense addresses into their @code{From}
19226 lines. I think this is counterproductive---it makes it difficult for
19227 people to send you legitimate mail in response to things you write, as
19228 well as making it difficult to see who wrote what. This rewriting may
19229 perhaps be a bigger menace than the unsolicited commercial email itself
19232 The biggest problem I have with email spam is that it comes in under
19233 false pretenses. I press @kbd{g} and Gnus merrily informs me that I
19234 have 10 new emails. I say ``Golly gee! Happy is me!'' and select the
19235 mail group, only to find two pyramid schemes, seven advertisements
19236 (``New! Miracle tonic for growing full, lustrous hair on your toes!'')
19237 and one mail asking me to repent and find some god.
19241 The way to deal with this is having Gnus split out all spam into a
19242 @samp{spam} mail group (@pxref{Splitting Mail}).
19244 First, pick one (1) valid mail address that you can be reached at, and
19245 put it in your @code{From} header of all your news articles. (I've
19246 chosen @samp{larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no}, but for many addresses on the form
19247 @samp{larsi+usenet@@ifi.uio.no} will be a better choice. Ask your
19248 sysadmin whether your sendmail installation accepts keywords in the local
19249 part of the mail address.)
19252 (setq message-default-news-headers
19253 "From: Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen <larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no>\n")
19256 Then put the following split rule in @code{nnmail-split-fancy}
19257 (@pxref{Fancy Mail Splitting}):
19262 (to "larsi@@trym.ifi.uio.no"
19263 (| ("subject" "re:.*" "misc")
19264 ("references" ".*@@.*" "misc")
19270 This says that all mail to this address is suspect, but if it has a
19271 @code{Subject} that starts with a @samp{Re:} or has a @code{References}
19272 header, it's probably ok. All the rest goes to the @samp{spam} group.
19273 (This idea probably comes from Tim Pierce.)
19275 In addition, many mail spammers talk directly to your @code{smtp} server
19276 and do not include your email address explicitly in the @code{To}
19277 header. Why they do this is unknown---perhaps it's to thwart this
19278 thwarting scheme? In any case, this is trivial to deal with---you just
19279 put anything not addressed to you in the @samp{spam} group by ending
19280 your fancy split rule in this way:
19285 (to "larsi" "misc")
19289 In my experience, this will sort virtually everything into the right
19290 group. You still have to check the @samp{spam} group from time to time to
19291 check for legitimate mail, though. If you feel like being a good net
19292 citizen, you can even send off complaints to the proper authorities on
19293 each unsolicited commercial email---at your leisure.
19295 If you are also a lazy net citizen, you will probably prefer complaining
19296 automatically with the @file{gnus-junk.el} package, available FOR FREE
19297 at @* @uref{http://stud2.tuwien.ac.at/~e9426626/gnus-junk.html}.
19298 Since most e-mail spam is sent automatically, this may reconcile the
19299 cosmic balance somewhat.
19301 This works for me. It allows people an easy way to contact me (they can
19302 just press @kbd{r} in the usual way), and I'm not bothered at all with
19303 spam. It's a win-win situation. Forging @code{From} headers to point
19304 to non-existent domains is yucky, in my opinion.
19307 @node Various Various
19308 @section Various Various
19314 @item gnus-home-directory
19315 All Gnus path variables will be initialized from this variable, which
19316 defaults to @file{~/}.
19318 @item gnus-directory
19319 @vindex gnus-directory
19320 Most Gnus storage path variables will be initialized from this variable,
19321 which defaults to the @samp{SAVEDIR} environment variable, or
19322 @file{~/News/} if that variable isn't set.
19324 Note that Gnus is mostly loaded when the @file{.gnus.el} file is read.
19325 This means that other directory variables that are initialized from this
19326 variable won't be set properly if you set this variable in
19327 @file{.gnus.el}. Set this variable in @file{.emacs} instead.
19329 @item gnus-default-directory
19330 @vindex gnus-default-directory
19331 Not related to the above variable at all---this variable says what the
19332 default directory of all Gnus buffers should be. If you issue commands
19333 like @kbd{C-x C-f}, the prompt you'll get starts in the current buffer's
19334 default directory. If this variable is @code{nil} (which is the
19335 default), the default directory will be the default directory of the
19336 buffer you were in when you started Gnus.
19339 @vindex gnus-verbose
19340 This variable is an integer between zero and ten. The higher the value,
19341 the more messages will be displayed. If this variable is zero, Gnus
19342 will never flash any messages, if it is seven (which is the default),
19343 most important messages will be shown, and if it is ten, Gnus won't ever
19344 shut up, but will flash so many messages it will make your head swim.
19346 @item gnus-verbose-backends
19347 @vindex gnus-verbose-backends
19348 This variable works the same way as @code{gnus-verbose}, but it applies
19349 to the Gnus backends instead of Gnus proper.
19351 @item nnheader-max-head-length
19352 @vindex nnheader-max-head-length
19353 When the backends read straight heads of articles, they all try to read
19354 as little as possible. This variable (default 4096) specifies
19355 the absolute max length the backends will try to read before giving up
19356 on finding a separator line between the head and the body. If this
19357 variable is @code{nil}, there is no upper read bound. If it is
19358 @code{t}, the backends won't try to read the articles piece by piece,
19359 but read the entire articles. This makes sense with some versions of
19360 @code{ange-ftp} or @code{efs}.
19362 @item nnheader-head-chop-length
19363 @vindex nnheader-head-chop-length
19364 This variable (default 2048) says how big a piece of each article to
19365 read when doing the operation described above.
19367 @item nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19368 @vindex nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19370 @cindex invalid characters in file names
19371 @cindex characters in file names
19372 This is an alist that says how to translate characters in file names.
19373 For instance, if @samp{:} is invalid as a file character in file names
19374 on your system (you OS/2 user you), you could say something like:
19377 (setq nnheader-file-name-translation-alist
19381 In fact, this is the default value for this variable on OS/2 and MS
19382 Windows (phooey) systems.
19384 @item gnus-hidden-properties
19385 @vindex gnus-hidden-properties
19386 This is a list of properties to use to hide ``invisible'' text. It is
19387 @code{(invisible t intangible t)} by default on most systems, which
19388 makes invisible text invisible and intangible.
19390 @item gnus-parse-headers-hook
19391 @vindex gnus-parse-headers-hook
19392 A hook called before parsing headers. It can be used, for instance, to
19393 gather statistics on the headers fetched, or perhaps you'd like to prune
19394 some headers. I don't see why you'd want that, though.
19396 @item gnus-shell-command-separator
19397 @vindex gnus-shell-command-separator
19398 String used to separate two shell commands. The default is @samp{;}.
19400 @item gnus-invalid-group-regexp
19401 @vindex gnus-invalid-group-regexp
19403 Regexp to match ``invalid'' group names when querying user for a group
19404 name. The default value catches some @strong{really} invalid group
19405 names who could possibly mess up Gnus internally (like allowing
19406 @samp{:} in a group name, which is normally used to delimit method and
19409 @sc{imap} users might want to allow @samp{/} in group names though.
19418 Well, that's the manual---you can get on with your life now. Keep in
19419 touch. Say hello to your cats from me.
19421 My @strong{ghod}---I just can't stand goodbyes. Sniffle.
19423 Ol' Charles Reznikoff said it pretty well, so I leave the floor to him:
19429 Not because of victories @*
19432 but for the common sunshine,@*
19434 the largess of the spring.
19438 but for the day's work done@*
19439 as well as I was able;@*
19440 not for a seat upon the dais@*
19441 but at the common table.@*
19446 @chapter Appendices
19449 * History:: How Gnus got where it is today.
19450 * On Writing Manuals:: Why this is not a beginner's guide.
19451 * Terminology:: We use really difficult, like, words here.
19452 * Customization:: Tailoring Gnus to your needs.
19453 * Troubleshooting:: What you might try if things do not work.
19454 * Gnus Reference Guide:: Rilly, rilly technical stuff.
19455 * Emacs for Heathens:: A short introduction to Emacsian terms.
19456 * Frequently Asked Questions:: A question-and-answer session.
19464 @sc{gnus} was written by Masanobu @sc{Umeda}. When autumn crept up in
19465 '94, Lars Magne Ingebrigtsen grew bored and decided to rewrite Gnus.
19467 If you want to investigate the person responsible for this outrage,
19468 you can point your (feh!) web browser to
19469 @uref{http://quimby.gnus.org/}. This is also the primary
19470 distribution point for the new and spiffy versions of Gnus, and is
19471 known as The Site That Destroys Newsrcs And Drives People Mad.
19473 During the first extended alpha period of development, the new Gnus was
19474 called ``(ding) Gnus''. @dfn{(ding)} is, of course, short for
19475 @dfn{ding is not Gnus}, which is a total and utter lie, but who cares?
19476 (Besides, the ``Gnus'' in this abbreviation should probably be
19477 pronounced ``news'' as @sc{Umeda} intended, which makes it a more
19478 appropriate name, don't you think?)
19480 In any case, after spending all that energy on coming up with a new and
19481 spunky name, we decided that the name was @emph{too} spunky, so we
19482 renamed it back again to ``Gnus''. But in mixed case. ``Gnus'' vs.
19483 ``@sc{gnus}''. New vs. old.
19486 * Gnus Versions:: What Gnus versions have been released.
19487 * Other Gnus Versions:: Other Gnus versions that also have been released.
19488 * Why?:: What's the point of Gnus?
19489 * Compatibility:: Just how compatible is Gnus with @sc{gnus}?
19490 * Conformity:: Gnus tries to conform to all standards.
19491 * Emacsen:: Gnus can be run on a few modern Emacsen.
19492 * Gnus Development:: How Gnus is developed.
19493 * Contributors:: Oodles of people.
19494 * New Features:: Pointers to some of the new stuff in Gnus.
19498 @node Gnus Versions
19499 @subsection Gnus Versions
19500 @cindex Pterodactyl Gnus
19502 @cindex September Gnus
19503 @cindex Quassia Gnus
19505 The first ``proper'' release of Gnus 5 was done in November 1995 when it
19506 was included in the Emacs 19.30 distribution (132 (ding) Gnus releases
19507 plus 15 Gnus 5.0 releases).
19509 In May 1996 the next Gnus generation (aka. ``September Gnus'' (after 99
19510 releases)) was released under the name ``Gnus 5.2'' (40 releases).
19512 On July 28th 1996 work on Red Gnus was begun, and it was released on
19513 January 25th 1997 (after 84 releases) as ``Gnus 5.4'' (67 releases).
19515 On September 13th 1997, Quassia Gnus was started and lasted 37 releases.
19516 If was released as ``Gnus 5.6'' on March 8th 1998 (46 releases).
19518 Gnus 5.6 begat Pterodactyl Gnus on August 29th 1998 and was released as
19519 ``Gnus 5.8'' (after 99 releases and a CVS repository) on December 3rd
19522 On the 26th of October 2000, Oort Gnus was begun.
19524 If you happen upon a version of Gnus that has a prefixed name --
19525 ``(ding) Gnus'', ``September Gnus'', ``Red Gnus'', ``Quassia Gnus'',
19526 ``Pterodactyl Gnus'', ``Oort Gnus'' -- don't panic. Don't let it know
19527 that you're frightened. Back away. Slowly. Whatever you do, don't
19528 run. Walk away, calmly, until you're out of its reach. Find a proper
19529 released version of Gnus and snuggle up to that instead.
19532 @node Other Gnus Versions
19533 @subsection Other Gnus Versions
19536 In addition to the versions of Gnus which have had their releases
19537 coordinated by Lars, one major development has been Semi-gnus from
19538 Japan. It's based on a library called @sc{semi}, which provides
19539 @sc{mime} capabilities.
19541 These Gnusae are based mainly on Gnus 5.6 and Pterodactyl Gnus.
19542 Collectively, they are called ``Semi-gnus'', and different strains are
19543 called T-gnus, ET-gnus, Nana-gnus and Chaos. These provide powerful
19544 @sc{mime} and multilingualization things, especially important for
19551 What's the point of Gnus?
19553 I want to provide a ``rad'', ``happening'', ``way cool'' and ``hep''
19554 newsreader, that lets you do anything you can think of. That was my
19555 original motivation, but while working on Gnus, it has become clear to
19556 me that this generation of newsreaders really belong in the stone age.
19557 Newsreaders haven't developed much since the infancy of the net. If the
19558 volume continues to rise with the current rate of increase, all current
19559 newsreaders will be pretty much useless. How do you deal with
19560 newsgroups that have thousands of new articles each day? How do you
19561 keep track of millions of people who post?
19563 Gnus offers no real solutions to these questions, but I would very much
19564 like to see Gnus being used as a testing ground for new methods of
19565 reading and fetching news. Expanding on @sc{Umeda}-san's wise decision
19566 to separate the newsreader from the backends, Gnus now offers a simple
19567 interface for anybody who wants to write new backends for fetching mail
19568 and news from different sources. I have added hooks for customizations
19569 everywhere I could imagine it being useful. By doing so, I'm inviting
19570 every one of you to explore and invent.
19572 May Gnus never be complete. @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-emacs} and
19573 @kbd{C-u 100 M-x all-hail-xemacs}.
19576 @node Compatibility
19577 @subsection Compatibility
19579 @cindex compatibility
19580 Gnus was designed to be fully compatible with @sc{gnus}. Almost all key
19581 bindings have been kept. More key bindings have been added, of course,
19582 but only in one or two obscure cases have old bindings been changed.
19587 @center In a cloud bones of steel.
19591 All commands have kept their names. Some internal functions have changed
19594 The @code{gnus-uu} package has changed drastically. @xref{Decoding
19597 One major compatibility question is the presence of several summary
19598 buffers. All variables relevant while reading a group are
19599 buffer-local to the summary buffer they belong in. Although many
19600 important variables have their values copied into their global
19601 counterparts whenever a command is executed in the summary buffer, this
19602 change might lead to incorrect values being used unless you are careful.
19604 All code that relies on knowledge of @sc{gnus} internals will probably
19605 fail. To take two examples: Sorting @code{gnus-newsrc-alist} (or
19606 changing it in any way, as a matter of fact) is strictly verboten. Gnus
19607 maintains a hash table that points to the entries in this alist (which
19608 speeds up many functions), and changing the alist directly will lead to
19612 @cindex highlighting
19613 Old hilit19 code does not work at all. In fact, you should probably
19614 remove all hilit code from all Gnus hooks
19615 (@code{gnus-group-prepare-hook} and @code{gnus-summary-prepare-hook}).
19616 Gnus provides various integrated functions for highlighting. These are
19617 faster and more accurate. To make life easier for everybody, Gnus will
19618 by default remove all hilit calls from all hilit hooks. Uncleanliness!
19621 Packages like @code{expire-kill} will no longer work. As a matter of
19622 fact, you should probably remove all old @sc{gnus} packages (and other
19623 code) when you start using Gnus. More likely than not, Gnus already
19624 does what you have written code to make @sc{gnus} do. (Snicker.)
19626 Even though old methods of doing things are still supported, only the
19627 new methods are documented in this manual. If you detect a new method of
19628 doing something while reading this manual, that does not mean you have
19629 to stop doing it the old way.
19631 Gnus understands all @sc{gnus} startup files.
19633 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
19635 @cindex reporting bugs
19637 Overall, a casual user who hasn't written much code that depends on
19638 @sc{gnus} internals should suffer no problems. If problems occur,
19639 please let me know by issuing that magic command @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}.
19641 @vindex gnus-bug-create-help-buffer
19642 If you are in the habit of sending bug reports @emph{very} often, you
19643 may find the helpful help buffer annoying after a while. If so, set
19644 @code{gnus-bug-create-help-buffer} to @code{nil} to avoid having it pop
19649 @subsection Conformity
19651 No rebels without a clue here, ma'am. We conform to all standards known
19652 to (wo)man. Except for those standards and/or conventions we disagree
19659 There are no known breaches of this standard.
19663 There are no known breaches of this standard, either.
19665 @item Son-of-RFC 1036
19666 @cindex Son-of-RFC 1036
19667 We do have some breaches to this one.
19673 These are considered to be ``vanity headers'', while I consider them
19674 to be consumer information. After seeing so many badly formatted
19675 articles coming from @code{tin} and @code{Netscape} I know not to use
19676 either of those for posting articles. I would not have known that if
19677 it wasn't for the @code{X-Newsreader} header.
19682 USEFOR is an IETF working group writing a successor to RFC 1036, based
19683 on Son-of-RFC 1036. They have produced a number of drafts proposing
19684 various changes to the format of news articles. The Gnus towers will
19685 look into implementing the changes when the draft is accepted as an RFC.
19689 If you ever notice Gnus acting non-compliant with regards to the texts
19690 mentioned above, don't hesitate to drop a note to Gnus Towers and let us
19695 @subsection Emacsen
19701 Gnus should work on :
19709 XEmacs 20.4 and up.
19713 This Gnus version will absolutely not work on any Emacsen older than
19714 that. Not reliably, at least. Older versions of Gnus may work on older
19717 There are some vague differences between Gnus on the various
19718 platforms---XEmacs features more graphics (a logo and a toolbar)---but
19719 other than that, things should look pretty much the same under all
19723 @node Gnus Development
19724 @subsection Gnus Development
19726 Gnus is developed in a two-phased cycle. The first phase involves much
19727 discussion on the @samp{ding@@gnus.org} mailing list, where people
19728 propose changes and new features, post patches and new backends. This
19729 phase is called the @dfn{alpha} phase, since the Gnusae released in this
19730 phase are @dfn{alpha releases}, or (perhaps more commonly in other
19731 circles) @dfn{snapshots}. During this phase, Gnus is assumed to be
19732 unstable and should not be used by casual users. Gnus alpha releases
19733 have names like ``Red Gnus'' and ``Quassia Gnus''.
19735 After futzing around for 50-100 alpha releases, Gnus is declared
19736 @dfn{frozen}, and only bug fixes are applied. Gnus loses the prefix,
19737 and is called things like ``Gnus 5.6.32'' instead. Normal people are
19738 supposed to be able to use these, and these are mostly discussed on the
19739 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus} newsgroup.
19742 @vindex mail-source-delete-incoming
19743 Some variable defaults differ between alpha Gnusae and released Gnusae.
19744 In particular, @code{mail-source-delete-incoming} defaults to @code{nil} in
19745 alpha Gnusae and @code{t} in released Gnusae. This is to prevent
19746 lossage of mail if an alpha release hiccups while handling the mail.
19748 The division of discussion between the ding mailing list and the Gnus
19749 newsgroup is not purely based on publicity concerns. It's true that
19750 having people write about the horrible things that an alpha Gnus release
19751 can do (sometimes) in a public forum may scare people off, but more
19752 importantly, talking about new experimental features that have been
19753 introduced may confuse casual users. New features are frequently
19754 introduced, fiddled with, and judged to be found wanting, and then
19755 either discarded or totally rewritten. People reading the mailing list
19756 usually keep up with these rapid changes, while people on the newsgroup
19757 can't be assumed to do so.
19762 @subsection Contributors
19763 @cindex contributors
19765 The new Gnus version couldn't have been done without the help of all the
19766 people on the (ding) mailing list. Every day for over a year I have
19767 gotten billions of nice bug reports from them, filling me with joy,
19768 every single one of them. Smooches. The people on the list have been
19769 tried beyond endurance, what with my ``oh, that's a neat idea <type
19770 type>, yup, I'll release it right away <ship off> no wait, that doesn't
19771 work at all <type type>, yup, I'll ship that one off right away <ship
19772 off> no, wait, that absolutely does not work'' policy for releases.
19773 Micro$oft---bah. Amateurs. I'm @emph{much} worse. (Or is that
19774 ``worser''? ``much worser''? ``worsest''?)
19776 I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Academy for... oops,
19782 Masanobu @sc{Umeda}---the writer of the original @sc{gnus}.
19785 Shenghuo Zhu---uudecode.el, mm-uu.el, rfc1843.el, webmail.el,
19786 nnwarchive and many, many other things connected with @sc{mime} and
19787 other types of en/decoding, as well as general bug fixing, new
19788 functionality and stuff.
19791 Per Abrahamsen---custom, scoring, highlighting and @sc{soup} code (as
19792 well as numerous other things).
19795 Luis Fernandes---design and graphics.
19798 Justin Sheehy--the FAQ maintainer.
19801 Erik Naggum---help, ideas, support, code and stuff.
19804 Wes Hardaker---@file{gnus-picon.el} and the manual section on
19805 @dfn{picons} (@pxref{Picons}).
19808 Kim-Minh Kaplan---further work on the picon code.
19811 Brad Miller---@file{gnus-gl.el} and the GroupLens manual section
19812 (@pxref{GroupLens}).
19815 Sudish Joseph---innumerable bug fixes.
19818 Ilja Weis---@file{gnus-topic.el}.
19821 Steven L. Baur---lots and lots and lots of bugs detections and fixes.
19824 Vladimir Alexiev---the refcard and reference booklets.
19827 Felix Lee & Jamie Zawinski---I stole some pieces from the XGnus
19828 distribution by Felix Lee and JWZ.
19831 Scott Byer---@file{nnfolder.el} enhancements & rewrite.
19834 Peter Mutsaers---orphan article scoring code.
19837 Ken Raeburn---POP mail support.
19840 Hallvard B Furuseth---various bits and pieces, especially dealing with
19844 Brian Edmonds---@file{gnus-bbdb.el}.
19847 David Moore---rewrite of @file{nnvirtual.el} and many other things.
19850 Kevin Davidson---came up with the name @dfn{ding}, so blame him.
19853 François Pinard---many, many interesting and thorough bug reports, as
19854 well as autoconf support.
19858 This manual was proof-read by Adrian Aichner, with Ricardo Nassif, Mark
19859 Borges, and Jost Krieger proof-reading parts of the manual.
19861 The following people have contributed many patches and suggestions:
19870 Jason L. Tibbitts, III,
19874 Also thanks to the following for patches and stuff:
19884 Alexei V. Barantsev,
19899 Massimo Campostrini,
19904 Jae-you Chung, @c ?
19905 James H. Cloos, Jr.,
19909 Andrew J. Cosgriff,
19912 Geoffrey T. Dairiki,
19918 Michael Welsh Duggan,
19923 Enami Tsugutomo, @c Enami
19927 Nelson Jose dos Santos Ferreira,
19935 Arne Georg Gleditsch,
19937 Michelangelo Grigni,
19941 Kenichi Handa, @c Handa
19943 Yoshiki Hayashi, @c ?
19945 Hisashige Kenji, @c Hisashige
19952 François Felix Ingrand,
19953 Tatsuya Ichikawa, @c ?
19954 Ishikawa Ichiro, @c Ishikawa
19956 Iwamuro Motonori, @c Iwamuro
19967 Peter Skov Knudsen,
19968 Shuhei Kobayashi, @c Kobayashi
19970 Koseki Yoshinori, @c Koseki
19971 Thor Kristoffersen,
19974 Seokchan Lee, @c Lee
19992 Morioka Tomohiko, @c Morioka
19993 Erik Toubro Nielsen,
20000 Masaharu Onishi, @c Onishi
20005 Jens-Ulrik Holger Petersen,
20009 John McClary Prevost,
20015 Lars Balker Rasmussen,
20020 Christian von Roques,
20023 Wolfgang Rupprecht,
20030 Philippe Schnoebelen,
20032 Randal L. Schwartz,
20046 Kiyokazu Suto, @c Suto
20051 Tozawa Akihiko, @c Tozawa
20067 Katsumi Yamaoka @c Yamaoka
20072 For a full overview of what each person has done, the ChangeLogs
20073 included in the Gnus alpha distributions should give ample reading
20074 (550kB and counting).
20076 Apologies to everybody that I've forgotten, of which there are many, I'm
20079 Gee, that's quite a list of people. I guess that must mean that there
20080 actually are people who are using Gnus. Who'd'a thunk it!
20084 @subsection New Features
20085 @cindex new features
20088 * ding Gnus:: New things in Gnus 5.0/5.1, the first new Gnus.
20089 * September Gnus:: The Thing Formally Known As Gnus 5.2/5.3.
20090 * Red Gnus:: Third time best---Gnus 5.4/5.5.
20091 * Quassia Gnus:: Two times two is four, or Gnus 5.6/5.7.
20092 * Pterodactyl Gnus:: Pentad also starts with P, AKA Gnus 5.8/5.9.
20095 These lists are, of course, just @emph{short} overviews of the
20096 @emph{most} important new features. No, really. There are tons more.
20097 Yes, we have feeping creaturism in full effect.
20100 @subsubsection (ding) Gnus
20102 New features in Gnus 5.0/5.1:
20107 The look of all buffers can be changed by setting format-like variables
20108 (@pxref{Group Buffer Format} and @pxref{Summary Buffer Format}).
20111 Local spool and several @sc{nntp} servers can be used at once
20112 (@pxref{Select Methods}).
20115 You can combine groups into virtual groups (@pxref{Virtual Groups}).
20118 You can read a number of different mail formats (@pxref{Getting Mail}).
20119 All the mail backends implement a convenient mail expiry scheme
20120 (@pxref{Expiring Mail}).
20123 Gnus can use various strategies for gathering threads that have lost
20124 their roots (thereby gathering loose sub-threads into one thread) or it
20125 can go back and retrieve enough headers to build a complete thread
20126 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
20129 Killed groups can be displayed in the group buffer, and you can read
20130 them as well (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20133 Gnus can do partial group updates---you do not have to retrieve the
20134 entire active file just to check for new articles in a few groups
20135 (@pxref{The Active File}).
20138 Gnus implements a sliding scale of subscribedness to groups
20139 (@pxref{Group Levels}).
20142 You can score articles according to any number of criteria
20143 (@pxref{Scoring}). You can even get Gnus to find out how to score
20144 articles for you (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20147 Gnus maintains a dribble buffer that is auto-saved the normal Emacs
20148 manner, so it should be difficult to lose much data on what you have
20149 read if your machine should go down (@pxref{Auto Save}).
20152 Gnus now has its own startup file (@file{.gnus}) to avoid cluttering up
20153 the @file{.emacs} file.
20156 You can set the process mark on both groups and articles and perform
20157 operations on all the marked items (@pxref{Process/Prefix}).
20160 You can grep through a subset of groups and create a group from the
20161 results (@pxref{Kibozed Groups}).
20164 You can list subsets of groups according to, well, anything
20165 (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20168 You can browse foreign servers and subscribe to groups from those
20169 servers (@pxref{Browse Foreign Server}).
20172 Gnus can fetch articles, asynchronously, on a second connection to the
20173 server (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
20176 You can cache articles locally (@pxref{Article Caching}).
20179 The uudecode functions have been expanded and generalized
20180 (@pxref{Decoding Articles}).
20183 You can still post uuencoded articles, which was a little-known feature
20184 of @sc{gnus}' past (@pxref{Uuencoding and Posting}).
20187 Fetching parents (and other articles) now actually works without
20188 glitches (@pxref{Finding the Parent}).
20191 Gnus can fetch FAQs and group descriptions (@pxref{Group Information}).
20194 Digests (and other files) can be used as the basis for groups
20195 (@pxref{Document Groups}).
20198 Articles can be highlighted and customized (@pxref{Customizing
20202 URLs and other external references can be buttonized (@pxref{Article
20206 You can do lots of strange stuff with the Gnus window & frame
20207 configuration (@pxref{Window Layout}).
20210 You can click on buttons instead of using the keyboard
20216 @node September Gnus
20217 @subsubsection September Gnus
20221 \gnusfig{-28cm}{0cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/september.ps,height=20cm}}
20225 New features in Gnus 5.2/5.3:
20230 A new message composition mode is used. All old customization variables
20231 for @code{mail-mode}, @code{rnews-reply-mode} and @code{gnus-msg} are
20235 Gnus is now able to generate @dfn{sparse} threads---threads where
20236 missing articles are represented by empty nodes (@pxref{Customizing
20240 (setq gnus-build-sparse-threads 'some)
20244 Outgoing articles are stored on a special archive server
20245 (@pxref{Archived Messages}).
20248 Partial thread regeneration now happens when articles are
20252 Gnus can make use of GroupLens predictions (@pxref{GroupLens}).
20255 Picons (personal icons) can be displayed under XEmacs (@pxref{Picons}).
20258 A @code{trn}-like tree buffer can be displayed (@pxref{Tree Display}).
20261 (setq gnus-use-trees t)
20265 An @code{nn}-like pick-and-read minor mode is available for the summary
20266 buffers (@pxref{Pick and Read}).
20269 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-mode-hook 'gnus-pick-mode)
20273 In binary groups you can use a special binary minor mode (@pxref{Binary
20277 Groups can be grouped in a folding topic hierarchy (@pxref{Group
20281 (add-hook 'gnus-group-mode-hook 'gnus-topic-mode)
20285 Gnus can re-send and bounce mail (@pxref{Summary Mail Commands}).
20288 Groups can now have a score, and bubbling based on entry frequency
20289 is possible (@pxref{Group Score}).
20292 (add-hook 'gnus-summary-exit-hook 'gnus-summary-bubble-group)
20296 Groups can be process-marked, and commands can be performed on
20297 groups of groups (@pxref{Marking Groups}).
20300 Caching is possible in virtual groups.
20303 @code{nndoc} now understands all kinds of digests, mail boxes, rnews
20304 news batches, ClariNet briefs collections, and just about everything
20305 else (@pxref{Document Groups}).
20308 Gnus has a new backend (@code{nnsoup}) to create/read SOUP packets
20312 The Gnus cache is much faster.
20315 Groups can be sorted according to many criteria (@pxref{Sorting
20319 New group parameters have been introduced to set list-addresses and
20320 expiry times (@pxref{Group Parameters}).
20323 All formatting specs allow specifying faces to be used
20324 (@pxref{Formatting Fonts}).
20327 There are several more commands for setting/removing/acting on process
20328 marked articles on the @kbd{M P} submap (@pxref{Setting Process Marks}).
20331 The summary buffer can be limited to show parts of the available
20332 articles based on a wide range of criteria. These commands have been
20333 bound to keys on the @kbd{/} submap (@pxref{Limiting}).
20336 Articles can be made persistent with the @kbd{*} command
20337 (@pxref{Persistent Articles}).
20340 All functions for hiding article elements are now toggles.
20343 Article headers can be buttonized (@pxref{Article Washing}).
20346 All mail backends support fetching articles by @code{Message-ID}.
20349 Duplicate mail can now be treated properly (@pxref{Duplicates}).
20352 All summary mode commands are available directly from the article
20353 buffer (@pxref{Article Keymap}).
20356 Frames can be part of @code{gnus-buffer-configuration} (@pxref{Window
20360 Mail can be re-scanned by a daemonic process (@pxref{Daemons}).
20363 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fseptember.ps,height=5cm}}
20368 Gnus can make use of NoCeM files to weed out spam (@pxref{NoCeM}).
20371 (setq gnus-use-nocem t)
20375 Groups can be made permanently visible (@pxref{Listing Groups}).
20378 (setq gnus-permanently-visible-groups "^nnml:")
20382 Many new hooks have been introduced to make customizing easier.
20385 Gnus respects the @code{Mail-Copies-To} header.
20388 Threads can be gathered by looking at the @code{References} header
20389 (@pxref{Customizing Threading}).
20392 (setq gnus-summary-thread-gathering-function
20393 'gnus-gather-threads-by-references)
20397 Read articles can be stored in a special backlog buffer to avoid
20398 refetching (@pxref{Article Backlog}).
20401 (setq gnus-keep-backlog 50)
20405 A clean copy of the current article is always stored in a separate
20406 buffer to allow easier treatment.
20409 Gnus can suggest where to save articles (@pxref{Saving Articles}).
20412 Gnus doesn't have to do as much prompting when saving (@pxref{Saving
20416 (setq gnus-prompt-before-saving t)
20420 @code{gnus-uu} can view decoded files asynchronously while fetching
20421 articles (@pxref{Other Decode Variables}).
20424 (setq gnus-uu-grabbed-file-functions 'gnus-uu-grab-view)
20428 Filling in the article buffer now works properly on cited text
20429 (@pxref{Article Washing}).
20432 Hiding cited text adds buttons to toggle hiding, and how much
20433 cited text to hide is now customizable (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
20436 (setq gnus-cited-lines-visible 2)
20440 Boring headers can be hidden (@pxref{Article Hiding}).
20443 Default scoring values can now be set from the menu bar.
20446 Further syntax checking of outgoing articles have been added.
20452 @subsubsection Red Gnus
20454 New features in Gnus 5.4/5.5:
20458 \gnusfig{-5.5cm}{-4cm}{\epsfig{figure=tmp/red.ps,height=20cm}}
20465 @file{nntp.el} has been totally rewritten in an asynchronous fashion.
20468 Article prefetching functionality has been moved up into
20469 Gnus (@pxref{Asynchronous Fetching}).
20472 Scoring can now be performed with logical operators like @code{and},
20473 @code{or}, @code{not}, and parent redirection (@pxref{Advanced
20477 Article washing status can be displayed in the
20478 article mode line (@pxref{Misc Article}).
20481 @file{gnus.el} has been split into many smaller files.
20484 Suppression of duplicate articles based on Message-ID can be done
20485 (@pxref{Duplicate Suppression}).
20488 (setq gnus-suppress-duplicates t)
20492 New variables for specifying what score and adapt files are to be
20493 considered home score and adapt files (@pxref{Home Score File}) have
20497 @code{nndoc} was rewritten to be easily extendable (@pxref{Document
20498 Server Internals}).
20501 Groups can inherit group parameters from parent topics (@pxref{Topic
20505 Article editing has been revamped and is now actually usable.
20508 Signatures can be recognized in more intelligent fashions
20509 (@pxref{Article Signature}).
20512 Summary pick mode has been made to look more @code{nn}-like. Line
20513 numbers are displayed and the @kbd{.} command can be used to pick
20514 articles (@code{Pick and Read}).
20517 Commands for moving the @file{.newsrc.eld} from one server to
20518 another have been added (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20521 There's a way now to specify that ``uninteresting'' fields be suppressed
20522 when generating lines in buffers (@pxref{Advanced Formatting}).
20525 Several commands in the group buffer can be undone with @kbd{M-C-_}
20529 Scoring can be done on words using the new score type @code{w}
20530 (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20533 Adaptive scoring can be done on a Subject word-by-word basis
20534 (@pxref{Adaptive Scoring}).
20537 (setq gnus-use-adaptive-scoring '(word))
20541 Scores can be decayed (@pxref{Score Decays}).
20544 (setq gnus-decay-scores t)
20548 Scoring can be performed using a regexp on the Date header. The Date is
20549 normalized to compact ISO 8601 format first (@pxref{Score File Format}).
20552 A new command has been added to remove all data on articles from
20553 the native server (@pxref{Changing Servers}).
20556 A new command for reading collections of documents
20557 (@code{nndoc} with @code{nnvirtual} on top) has been added---@kbd{M-C-d}
20558 (@pxref{Really Various Summary Commands}).
20561 Process mark sets can be pushed and popped (@pxref{Setting Process
20565 A new mail-to-news backend makes it possible to post even when the @sc{nntp}
20566 server doesn't allow posting (@pxref{Mail-To-News Gateways}).
20569 A new backend for reading searches from Web search engines
20570 (@dfn{DejaNews}, @dfn{Alta Vista}, @dfn{InReference}) has been added
20571 (@pxref{Web Searches}).
20574 Groups inside topics can now be sorted using the standard sorting
20575 functions, and each topic can be sorted independently (@pxref{Topic
20579 Subsets of the groups can be sorted independently (@code{Sorting
20583 Cached articles can be pulled into the groups (@pxref{Summary Generation
20587 \marginpar[\mbox{}\hfill\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}]{\epsfig{figure=tmp/fred.ps,width=3cm}}
20592 Score files are now applied in a more reliable order (@pxref{Score
20596 Reports on where mail messages end up can be generated (@pxref{Splitting
20600 More hooks and functions have been added to remove junk from incoming
20601 mail before saving the mail (@pxref{Washing Mail}).
20604 Emphasized text can be properly fontisized:
20610 @subsubsection Quassia Gnus
20612 New features in Gnus 5.6:
20617 New functionality for using Gnus as an offline newsreader has been
20618 added. A plethora of new commands and modes have been added. See
20619 @pxref{Gnus Unplugged} for the full story.
20622 The @code{nndraft} backend has returned, but works differently than
20623 before. All Message buffers are now also articles in the @code{nndraft}
20624 group, which is created automatically.
20627 @code{gnus-alter-header-function} can now be used to alter header
20631 @code{gnus-summary-goto-article} now accept Message-ID's.
20634 A new Message command for deleting text in the body of a message
20635 outside the region: @kbd{C-c C-v}.
20638 You can now post to component group in @code{nnvirtual} groups with
20642 @code{nntp-rlogin-program}---new variable to ease customization.
20645 @code{C-u C-c C-c} in @code{gnus-article-edit-mode} will now inhibit
20646 re-highlighting of the article buffer.
20649 New element in @code{gnus-boring-article-headers}---@code{long-to}.
20652 @kbd{M-i} symbolic prefix command. See the section "Symbolic
20653 Prefixes" in the Gnus manual for details.
20656 @kbd{L} and @kbd{I} in the summary buffer now take the symbolic prefix
20657 @kbd{a} to add the score rule to the "all.SCORE" file.
20660 @code{gnus-simplify-subject-functions} variable to allow greater
20661 control over simplification.
20664 @kbd{A T}---new command for fetching the current thread.
20667 @kbd{/ T}---new command for including the current thread in the
20671 @kbd{M-RET} is a new Message command for breaking cited text.
20674 @samp{\\1}-expressions are now valid in @code{nnmail-split-methods}.
20677 The @code{custom-face-lookup} function has been removed.
20678 If you used this function in your initialization files, you must
20679 rewrite them to use @code{face-spec-set} instead.
20682 Canceling now uses the current select method. Symbolic prefix
20683 @kbd{a} forces normal posting method.
20686 New command to translate M******** sm*rtq**t*s into proper
20690 For easier debugging of @code{nntp}, you can set
20691 @code{nntp-record-commands} to a non-@code{nil} value.
20694 @code{nntp} now uses @file{~/.authinfo}, a @file{.netrc}-like file, for
20695 controlling where and how to send @sc{authinfo} to @sc{nntp} servers.
20698 A command for editing group parameters from the summary buffer
20702 A history of where mails have been split is available.
20705 A new article date command has been added---@code{article-date-iso8601}.
20708 Subjects can be simplified when threading by setting
20709 @code{gnus-score-thread-simplify}.
20712 A new function for citing in Message has been
20713 added---@code{message-cite-original-without-signature}.
20716 @code{article-strip-all-blank-lines}---new article command.
20719 A new Message command to kill to the end of the article has
20723 A minimum adaptive score can be specified by using the
20724 @code{gnus-adaptive-word-minimum} variable.
20727 The "lapsed date" article header can be kept continually
20728 updated by the @code{gnus-start-date-timer} command.
20731 Web listserv archives can be read with the @code{nnlistserv} backend.
20734 Old dejanews archives can now be read by @code{nnweb}.
20738 @node Pterodactyl Gnus
20739 @subsubsection Pterodactyl Gnus
20741 New features in Gnus 5.8:
20745 @item The mail-fetching functions have changed. See the manual for the
20746 many details. In particular, all procmail fetching variables are gone.
20748 If you used procmail like in
20751 (setq nnmail-use-procmail t)
20752 (setq nnmail-spool-file 'procmail)
20753 (setq nnmail-procmail-directory "~/mail/incoming/")
20754 (setq nnmail-procmail-suffix "\\.in")
20757 this now has changed to
20761 '((directory :path "~/mail/incoming/"
20765 More information is available in the info doc at Select Methods ->
20766 Getting Mail -> Mail Sources
20768 @item Gnus is now a MIME-capable reader. This affects many parts of
20769 Gnus, and adds a slew of new commands. See the manual for details.
20771 @item Gnus has also been multilingualized. This also affects too
20772 many parts of Gnus to summarize here, and adds many new variables.
20774 @item @code{gnus-auto-select-first} can now be a function to be
20775 called to position point.
20777 @item The user can now decide which extra headers should be included in
20778 summary buffers and NOV files.
20780 @item @code{gnus-article-display-hook} has been removed. Instead, a number
20781 of variables starting with @code{gnus-treat-} have been added.
20783 @item The Gnus posting styles have been redone again and now works in a
20784 subtly different manner.
20786 @item New web-based backends have been added: @code{nnslashdot},
20787 @code{nnwarchive} and @code{nnultimate}. nnweb has been revamped,
20788 again, to keep up with ever-changing layouts.
20790 @item Gnus can now read IMAP mail via @code{nnimap}.
20798 @section The Manual
20802 This manual was generated from a TeXinfo file and then run through
20803 either @code{texi2dvi}
20805 or my own home-brewed TeXinfo to \LaTeX\ transformer,
20806 and then run through @code{latex} and @code{dvips}
20808 to get what you hold in your hands now.
20810 The following conventions have been used:
20815 This is a @samp{string}
20818 This is a @kbd{keystroke}
20821 This is a @file{file}
20824 This is a @code{symbol}
20828 So if I were to say ``set @code{flargnoze} to @samp{yes}'', that would
20832 (setq flargnoze "yes")
20835 If I say ``set @code{flumphel} to @code{yes}'', that would mean:
20838 (setq flumphel 'yes)
20841 @samp{yes} and @code{yes} are two @emph{very} different things---don't
20842 ever get them confused.
20846 Of course, everything in this manual is of vital interest, so you should
20847 read it all. Several times. However, if you feel like skimming the
20848 manual, look for that gnu head you should see in the margin over
20849 there---it means that what's being discussed is of more importance than
20850 the rest of the stuff. (On the other hand, if everything is infinitely
20851 important, how can anything be more important than that? Just one more
20852 of the mysteries of this world, I guess.)
20858 @node On Writing Manuals
20859 @section On Writing Manuals
20861 I guess most manuals are written after-the-fact; documenting a program
20862 that's already there. This is not how this manual is written. When
20863 implementing something, I write the manual entry for that something
20864 straight away. I then see that it's difficult to explain the
20865 functionality, so I write how it's supposed to be, and then I change the
20866 implementation. Writing the documentation and writing the code goes
20869 This, of course, means that this manual has no, or little, flow. It
20870 documents absolutely everything in Gnus, but often not where you're
20871 looking for it. It is a reference manual, and not a guide to how to get
20874 That would be a totally different book, that should be written using the
20875 reference manual as source material. It would look quite differently.
20880 @section Terminology
20882 @cindex terminology
20887 This is what you are supposed to use this thing for---reading news.
20888 News is generally fetched from a nearby @sc{nntp} server, and is
20889 generally publicly available to everybody. If you post news, the entire
20890 world is likely to read just what you have written, and they'll all
20891 snigger mischievously. Behind your back.
20895 Everything that's delivered to you personally is mail. Some news/mail
20896 readers (like Gnus) blur the distinction between mail and news, but
20897 there is a difference. Mail is private. News is public. Mailing is
20898 not posting, and replying is not following up.
20902 Send a mail to the person who has written what you are reading.
20906 Post an article to the current newsgroup responding to the article you
20911 Gnus gets fed articles from a number of backends, both news and mail
20912 backends. Gnus does not handle the underlying media, so to speak---this
20913 is all done by the backends.
20917 Gnus will always use one method (and backend) as the @dfn{native}, or
20918 default, way of getting news.
20922 You can also have any number of foreign groups active at the same time.
20923 These are groups that use non-native non-secondary backends for getting
20928 Secondary backends are somewhere half-way between being native and being
20929 foreign, but they mostly act like they are native.
20933 A message that has been posted as news.
20936 @cindex mail message
20937 A message that has been mailed.
20941 A mail message or news article
20945 The top part of a message, where administrative information (etc.) is
20950 The rest of an article. Everything not in the head is in the
20955 A line from the head of an article.
20959 A collection of such lines, or a collection of heads. Or even a
20960 collection of @sc{nov} lines.
20964 When Gnus enters a group, it asks the backend for the headers of all
20965 unread articles in the group. Most servers support the News OverView
20966 format, which is more compact and much faster to read and parse than the
20967 normal @sc{head} format.
20971 Each group is subscribed at some @dfn{level} or other (1-9). The ones
20972 that have a lower level are ``more'' subscribed than the groups with a
20973 higher level. In fact, groups on levels 1-5 are considered
20974 @dfn{subscribed}; 6-7 are @dfn{unsubscribed}; 8 are @dfn{zombies}; and 9
20975 are @dfn{killed}. Commands for listing groups and scanning for new
20976 articles will all use the numeric prefix as @dfn{working level}.
20978 @item killed groups
20979 @cindex killed groups
20980 No information on killed groups is stored or updated, which makes killed
20981 groups much easier to handle than subscribed groups.
20983 @item zombie groups
20984 @cindex zombie groups
20985 Just like killed groups, only slightly less dead.
20988 @cindex active file
20989 The news server has to keep track of what articles it carries, and what
20990 groups exist. All this information in stored in the active file, which
20991 is rather large, as you might surmise.
20994 @cindex bogus groups
20995 A group that exists in the @file{.newsrc} file, but isn't known to the
20996 server (i.e., it isn't in the active file), is a @emph{bogus group}.
20997 This means that the group probably doesn't exist (any more).
21000 @cindex activating groups
21001 The act of asking the server for info on a group and computing the
21002 number of unread articles is called @dfn{activating the group}.
21003 Un-activated groups are listed with @samp{*} in the group buffer.
21007 A machine one can connect to and get news (or mail) from.
21009 @item select method
21010 @cindex select method
21011 A structure that specifies the backend, the server and the virtual
21014 @item virtual server
21015 @cindex virtual server
21016 A named select method. Since a select method defines all there is to
21017 know about connecting to a (physical) server, taking the thing as a
21018 whole is a virtual server.
21022 Taking a buffer and running it through a filter of some sort. The
21023 result will (more often than not) be cleaner and more pleasing than the
21026 @item ephemeral groups
21027 @cindex ephemeral groups
21028 Most groups store data on what articles you have read. @dfn{Ephemeral}
21029 groups are groups that will have no data stored---when you exit the
21030 group, it'll disappear into the aether.
21033 @cindex solid groups
21034 This is the opposite of ephemeral groups. All groups listed in the
21035 group buffer are solid groups.
21037 @item sparse articles
21038 @cindex sparse articles
21039 These are article placeholders shown in the summary buffer when
21040 @code{gnus-build-sparse-threads} has been switched on.
21044 To put responses to articles directly after the articles they respond
21045 to---in a hierarchical fashion.
21049 @cindex thread root
21050 The first article in a thread is the root. It is the ancestor of all
21051 articles in the thread.
21055 An article that has responses.
21059 An article that responds to a different article---its parent.
21063 A collection of messages in one file. The most common digest format is
21064 specified by RFC 1153.
21070 @node Customization
21071 @section Customization
21072 @cindex general customization
21074 All variables are properly documented elsewhere in this manual. This
21075 section is designed to give general pointers on how to customize Gnus
21076 for some quite common situations.
21079 * Slow/Expensive Connection:: You run a local Emacs and get the news elsewhere.
21080 * Slow Terminal Connection:: You run a remote Emacs.
21081 * Little Disk Space:: You feel that having large setup files is icky.
21082 * Slow Machine:: You feel like buying a faster machine.
21086 @node Slow/Expensive Connection
21087 @subsection Slow/Expensive @sc{nntp} Connection
21089 If you run Emacs on a machine locally, and get your news from a machine
21090 over some very thin strings, you want to cut down on the amount of data
21091 Gnus has to get from the @sc{nntp} server.
21095 @item gnus-read-active-file
21096 Set this to @code{nil}, which will inhibit Gnus from requesting the
21097 entire active file from the server. This file is often v. large. You
21098 also have to set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21099 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make sure that Gnus
21100 doesn't suddenly decide to fetch the active file anyway.
21102 @item gnus-nov-is-evil
21103 This one has to be @code{nil}. If not, grabbing article headers from
21104 the @sc{nntp} server will not be very fast. Not all @sc{nntp} servers
21105 support @sc{xover}; Gnus will detect this by itself.
21109 @node Slow Terminal Connection
21110 @subsection Slow Terminal Connection
21112 Let's say you use your home computer for dialing up the system that runs
21113 Emacs and Gnus. If your modem is slow, you want to reduce (as much as
21114 possible) the amount of data sent over the wires.
21118 @item gnus-auto-center-summary
21119 Set this to @code{nil} to inhibit Gnus from re-centering the summary
21120 buffer all the time. If it is @code{vertical}, do only vertical
21121 re-centering. If it is neither @code{nil} nor @code{vertical}, do both
21122 horizontal and vertical recentering.
21124 @item gnus-visible-headers
21125 Cut down on the headers included in the articles to the
21126 minimum. You can, in fact, make do without them altogether---most of the
21127 useful data is in the summary buffer, anyway. Set this variable to
21128 @samp{^NEVVVVER} or @samp{From:}, or whatever you feel you need.
21130 Set this hook to all the available hiding commands:
21132 (setq gnus-treat-hide-headers 'head
21133 gnus-treat-hide-signature t
21134 gnus-treat-hide-citation t)
21137 @item gnus-use-full-window
21138 By setting this to @code{nil}, you can make all the windows smaller.
21139 While this doesn't really cut down much generally, it means that you
21140 have to see smaller portions of articles before deciding that you didn't
21141 want to read them anyway.
21143 @item gnus-thread-hide-subtree
21144 If this is non-@code{nil}, all threads in the summary buffer will be
21147 @item gnus-updated-mode-lines
21148 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not put information in the buffer mode
21149 lines, which might save some time.
21153 @node Little Disk Space
21154 @subsection Little Disk Space
21157 The startup files can get rather large, so you may want to cut their
21158 sizes a bit if you are running out of space.
21162 @item gnus-save-newsrc-file
21163 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never save @file{.newsrc}---it will
21164 only save @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21165 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21168 @item gnus-read-newsrc-file
21169 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will never read @file{.newsrc}---it will
21170 only read @file{.newsrc.eld}. This means that you will not be able to
21171 use any other newsreaders than Gnus. This variable is @code{t} by
21174 @item gnus-save-killed-list
21175 If this is @code{nil}, Gnus will not save the list of dead groups. You
21176 should also set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} to @code{ask-server}
21177 and @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} if you set this
21178 variable to @code{nil}. This variable is @code{t} by default.
21184 @subsection Slow Machine
21185 @cindex slow machine
21187 If you have a slow machine, or are just really impatient, there are a
21188 few things you can do to make Gnus run faster.
21190 Set @code{gnus-check-new-newsgroups} and
21191 @code{gnus-check-bogus-newsgroups} to @code{nil} to make startup faster.
21193 Set @code{gnus-show-threads}, @code{gnus-use-cross-reference} and
21194 @code{gnus-nov-is-evil} to @code{nil} to make entering and exiting the
21195 summary buffer faster.
21199 @node Troubleshooting
21200 @section Troubleshooting
21201 @cindex troubleshooting
21203 Gnus works @emph{so} well straight out of the box---I can't imagine any
21211 Make sure your computer is switched on.
21214 Make sure that you really load the current Gnus version. If you have
21215 been running @sc{gnus}, you need to exit Emacs and start it up again before
21219 Try doing an @kbd{M-x gnus-version}. If you get something that looks
21220 like @samp{Gnus v5.46; nntp 4.0} you have the right files loaded. If,
21221 on the other hand, you get something like @samp{NNTP 3.x} or @samp{nntp
21222 flee}, you have some old @file{.el} files lying around. Delete these.
21225 Read the help group (@kbd{G h} in the group buffer) for a FAQ and a
21229 @vindex max-lisp-eval-depth
21230 Gnus works on many recursive structures, and in some extreme (and very
21231 rare) cases Gnus may recurse down ``too deeply'' and Emacs will beep at
21232 you. If this happens to you, set @code{max-lisp-eval-depth} to 500 or
21233 something like that.
21236 If all else fails, report the problem as a bug.
21239 @cindex reporting bugs
21241 @kindex M-x gnus-bug
21243 If you find a bug in Gnus, you can report it with the @kbd{M-x gnus-bug}
21244 command. @kbd{M-x set-variable RET debug-on-error RET t RET}, and send
21245 me the backtrace. I will fix bugs, but I can only fix them if you send
21246 me a precise description as to how to reproduce the bug.
21248 You really can never be too detailed in a bug report. Always use the
21249 @kbd{M-x gnus-bug} command when you make bug reports, even if it creates
21250 a 10Kb mail each time you use it, and even if you have sent me your
21251 environment 500 times before. I don't care. I want the full info each
21254 It is also important to remember that I have no memory whatsoever. If
21255 you send a bug report, and I send you a reply, and then you just send
21256 back ``No, it's not! Moron!'', I will have no idea what you are
21257 insulting me about. Always over-explain everything. It's much easier
21258 for all of us---if I don't have all the information I need, I will just
21259 mail you and ask for more info, and everything takes more time.
21261 If the problem you're seeing is very visual, and you can't quite explain
21262 it, copy the Emacs window to a file (with @code{xwd}, for instance), put
21263 it somewhere it can be reached, and include the URL of the picture in
21267 If you would like to contribute a patch to fix bugs or make
21268 improvements, please produce the patch using @samp{diff -u}.
21270 If you just need help, you are better off asking on
21271 @samp{gnu.emacs.gnus}. I'm not very helpful.
21273 @cindex gnu.emacs.gnus
21274 @cindex ding mailing list
21275 You can also ask on the ding mailing list---@samp{ding@@gnus.org}.
21276 Write to @samp{ding-request@@gnus.org} to subscribe.
21280 @node Gnus Reference Guide
21281 @section Gnus Reference Guide
21283 It is my hope that other people will figure out smart stuff that Gnus
21284 can do, and that other people will write those smart things as well. To
21285 facilitate that I thought it would be a good idea to describe the inner
21286 workings of Gnus. And some of the not-so-inner workings, while I'm at
21289 You can never expect the internals of a program not to change, but I
21290 will be defining (in some details) the interface between Gnus and its
21291 backends (this is written in stone), the format of the score files
21292 (ditto), data structures (some are less likely to change than others)
21293 and general methods of operation.
21296 * Gnus Utility Functions:: Common functions and variable to use.
21297 * Backend Interface:: How Gnus communicates with the servers.
21298 * Score File Syntax:: A BNF definition of the score file standard.
21299 * Headers:: How Gnus stores headers internally.
21300 * Ranges:: A handy format for storing mucho numbers.
21301 * Group Info:: The group info format.
21302 * Extended Interactive:: Symbolic prefixes and stuff.
21303 * Emacs/XEmacs Code:: Gnus can be run under all modern Emacsen.
21304 * Various File Formats:: Formats of files that Gnus use.
21308 @node Gnus Utility Functions
21309 @subsection Gnus Utility Functions
21310 @cindex Gnus utility functions
21311 @cindex utility functions
21313 @cindex internal variables
21315 When writing small functions to be run from hooks (and stuff), it's
21316 vital to have access to the Gnus internal functions and variables.
21317 Below is a list of the most common ones.
21321 @item gnus-newsgroup-name
21322 @vindex gnus-newsgroup-name
21323 This variable holds the name of the current newsgroup.
21325 @item gnus-find-method-for-group
21326 @findex gnus-find-method-for-group
21327 A function that returns the select method for @var{group}.
21329 @item gnus-group-real-name
21330 @findex gnus-group-real-name
21331 Takes a full (prefixed) Gnus group name, and returns the unprefixed
21334 @item gnus-group-prefixed-name
21335 @findex gnus-group-prefixed-name
21336 Takes an unprefixed group name and a select method, and returns the full
21337 (prefixed) Gnus group name.
21339 @item gnus-get-info
21340 @findex gnus-get-info
21341 Returns the group info list for @var{group}.
21343 @item gnus-group-unread
21344 @findex gnus-group-unread
21345 The number of unread articles in @var{group}, or @code{t} if that is
21349 @findex gnus-active
21350 The active entry for @var{group}.
21352 @item gnus-set-active
21353 @findex gnus-set-active
21354 Set the active entry for @var{group}.
21356 @item gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21357 @findex gnus-add-current-to-buffer-list
21358 Adds the current buffer to the list of buffers to be killed on Gnus
21361 @item gnus-continuum-version
21362 @findex gnus-continuum-version
21363 Takes a Gnus version string as a parameter and returns a floating point
21364 number. Earlier versions will always get a lower number than later
21367 @item gnus-group-read-only-p
21368 @findex gnus-group-read-only-p
21369 Says whether @var{group} is read-only or not.
21371 @item gnus-news-group-p
21372 @findex gnus-news-group-p
21373 Says whether @var{group} came from a news backend.
21375 @item gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21376 @findex gnus-ephemeral-group-p
21377 Says whether @var{group} is ephemeral or not.
21379 @item gnus-server-to-method
21380 @findex gnus-server-to-method
21381 Returns the select method corresponding to @var{server}.
21383 @item gnus-server-equal
21384 @findex gnus-server-equal
21385 Says whether two virtual servers are equal.
21387 @item gnus-group-native-p
21388 @findex gnus-group-native-p
21389 Says whether @var{group} is native or not.
21391 @item gnus-group-secondary-p
21392 @findex gnus-group-secondary-p
21393 Says whether @var{group} is secondary or not.
21395 @item gnus-group-foreign-p
21396 @findex gnus-group-foreign-p
21397 Says whether @var{group} is foreign or not.
21399 @item group-group-find-parameter
21400 @findex group-group-find-parameter
21401 Returns the parameter list of @var{group}. If given a second parameter,
21402 returns the value of that parameter for @var{group}.
21404 @item gnus-group-set-parameter
21405 @findex gnus-group-set-parameter
21406 Takes three parameters; @var{group}, @var{parameter} and @var{value}.
21408 @item gnus-narrow-to-body
21409 @findex gnus-narrow-to-body
21410 Narrows the current buffer to the body of the article.
21412 @item gnus-check-backend-function
21413 @findex gnus-check-backend-function
21414 Takes two parameters, @var{function} and @var{group}. If the backend
21415 @var{group} comes from supports @var{function}, return non-@code{nil}.
21418 (gnus-check-backend-function "request-scan" "nnml:misc")
21422 @item gnus-read-method
21423 @findex gnus-read-method
21424 Prompts the user for a select method.
21429 @node Backend Interface
21430 @subsection Backend Interface
21432 Gnus doesn't know anything about @sc{nntp}, spools, mail or virtual
21433 groups. It only knows how to talk to @dfn{virtual servers}. A virtual
21434 server is a @dfn{backend} and some @dfn{backend variables}. As examples
21435 of the first, we have @code{nntp}, @code{nnspool} and @code{nnmbox}. As
21436 examples of the latter we have @code{nntp-port-number} and
21437 @code{nnmbox-directory}.
21439 When Gnus asks for information from a backend---say @code{nntp}---on
21440 something, it will normally include a virtual server name in the
21441 function parameters. (If not, the backend should use the ``current''
21442 virtual server.) For instance, @code{nntp-request-list} takes a virtual
21443 server as its only (optional) parameter. If this virtual server hasn't
21444 been opened, the function should fail.
21446 Note that a virtual server name has no relation to some physical server
21447 name. Take this example:
21451 (nntp-address "ifi.uio.no")
21452 (nntp-port-number 4324))
21455 Here the virtual server name is @samp{odd-one} while the name of
21456 the physical server is @samp{ifi.uio.no}.
21458 The backends should be able to switch between several virtual servers.
21459 The standard backends implement this by keeping an alist of virtual
21460 server environments that they pull down/push up when needed.
21462 There are two groups of interface functions: @dfn{required functions},
21463 which must be present, and @dfn{optional functions}, which Gnus will
21464 always check for presence before attempting to call 'em.
21466 All these functions are expected to return data in the buffer
21467 @code{nntp-server-buffer} (@samp{ *nntpd*}), which is somewhat
21468 unfortunately named, but we'll have to live with it. When I talk about
21469 @dfn{resulting data}, I always refer to the data in that buffer. When I
21470 talk about @dfn{return value}, I talk about the function value returned by
21471 the function call. Functions that fail should return @code{nil} as the
21474 Some backends could be said to be @dfn{server-forming} backends, and
21475 some might be said not to be. The latter are backends that generally
21476 only operate on one group at a time, and have no concept of ``server''
21477 -- they have a group, and they deliver info on that group and nothing
21480 Gnus identifies each message by way of group name and article number. A
21481 few remarks about these article numbers might be useful. First of all,
21482 the numbers are positive integers. Secondly, it is normally not
21483 possible for later articles to `re-use' older article numbers without
21484 confusing Gnus. That is, if a group has ever contained a message
21485 numbered 42, then no other message may get that number, or Gnus will get
21486 mightily confused.@footnote{See the function
21487 @code{nnchoke-request-update-info}, @ref{Optional Backend Functions}.}
21488 Third, article numbers must be assigned in order of arrival in the
21489 group; this is not necessarily the same as the date of the message.
21491 The previous paragraph already mentions all the `hard' restrictions that
21492 article numbers must fulfill. But it seems that it might be useful to
21493 assign @emph{consecutive} article numbers, for Gnus gets quite confused
21494 if there are holes in the article numbering sequence. However, due to
21495 the `no-reuse' restriction, holes cannot be avoided altogether. It's
21496 also useful for the article numbers to start at 1 to avoid running out
21497 of numbers as long as possible.
21499 In the examples and definitions I will refer to the imaginary backend
21502 @cindex @code{nnchoke}
21505 * Required Backend Functions:: Functions that must be implemented.
21506 * Optional Backend Functions:: Functions that need not be implemented.
21507 * Error Messaging:: How to get messages and report errors.
21508 * Writing New Backends:: Extending old backends.
21509 * Hooking New Backends Into Gnus:: What has to be done on the Gnus end.
21510 * Mail-like Backends:: Some tips on mail backends.
21514 @node Required Backend Functions
21515 @subsubsection Required Backend Functions
21519 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-headers ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FETCH-OLD)
21521 @var{articles} is either a range of article numbers or a list of
21522 @code{Message-ID}s. Current backends do not fully support either---only
21523 sequences (lists) of article numbers, and most backends do not support
21524 retrieval of @code{Message-ID}s. But they should try for both.
21526 The result data should either be HEADs or NOV lines, and the result
21527 value should either be @code{headers} or @code{nov} to reflect this.
21528 This might later be expanded to @code{various}, which will be a mixture
21529 of HEADs and NOV lines, but this is currently not supported by Gnus.
21531 If @var{fetch-old} is non-@code{nil} it says to try fetching "extra
21532 headers", in some meaning of the word. This is generally done by
21533 fetching (at most) @var{fetch-old} extra headers less than the smallest
21534 article number in @code{articles}, and filling the gaps as well. The
21535 presence of this parameter can be ignored if the backend finds it
21536 cumbersome to follow the request. If this is non-@code{nil} and not a
21537 number, do maximum fetches.
21539 Here's an example HEAD:
21542 221 1056 Article retrieved.
21543 Path: ifi.uio.no!sturles
21544 From: sturles@@ifi.uio.no (Sturle Sunde)
21545 Newsgroups: ifi.discussion
21546 Subject: Re: Something very droll
21547 Date: 27 Oct 1994 14:02:57 +0100
21548 Organization: Dept. of Informatics, University of Oslo, Norway
21550 Message-ID: <38o8e1$a0o@@holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no>
21551 References: <38jdmq$4qu@@visbur.ifi.uio.no>
21552 NNTP-Posting-Host: holmenkollen.ifi.uio.no
21556 So a @code{headers} return value would imply that there's a number of
21557 these in the data buffer.
21559 Here's a BNF definition of such a buffer:
21563 head = error / valid-head
21564 error-message = [ "4" / "5" ] 2number " " <error message> eol
21565 valid-head = valid-message *header "." eol
21566 valid-message = "221 " <number> " Article retrieved." eol
21567 header = <text> eol
21570 If the return value is @code{nov}, the data buffer should contain
21571 @dfn{network overview database} lines. These are basically fields
21575 nov-buffer = *nov-line
21576 nov-line = 8*9 [ field <TAB> ] eol
21577 field = <text except TAB>
21580 For a closer look at what should be in those fields,
21584 @item (nnchoke-open-server SERVER &optional DEFINITIONS)
21586 @var{server} is here the virtual server name. @var{definitions} is a
21587 list of @code{(VARIABLE VALUE)} pairs that define this virtual server.
21589 If the server can't be opened, no error should be signaled. The backend
21590 may then choose to refuse further attempts at connecting to this
21591 server. In fact, it should do so.
21593 If the server is opened already, this function should return a
21594 non-@code{nil} value. There should be no data returned.
21597 @item (nnchoke-close-server &optional SERVER)
21599 Close connection to @var{server} and free all resources connected
21600 to it. Return @code{nil} if the server couldn't be closed for some
21603 There should be no data returned.
21606 @item (nnchoke-request-close)
21608 Close connection to all servers and free all resources that the backend
21609 have reserved. All buffers that have been created by that backend
21610 should be killed. (Not the @code{nntp-server-buffer}, though.) This
21611 function is generally only called when Gnus is shutting down.
21613 There should be no data returned.
21616 @item (nnchoke-server-opened &optional SERVER)
21618 If @var{server} is the current virtual server, and the connection to the
21619 physical server is alive, then this function should return a
21620 non-@code{nil} vlue. This function should under no circumstances
21621 attempt to reconnect to a server we have lost connection to.
21623 There should be no data returned.
21626 @item (nnchoke-status-message &optional SERVER)
21628 This function should return the last error message from @var{server}.
21630 There should be no data returned.
21633 @item (nnchoke-request-article ARTICLE &optional GROUP SERVER TO-BUFFER)
21635 The result data from this function should be the article specified by
21636 @var{article}. This might either be a @code{Message-ID} or a number.
21637 It is optional whether to implement retrieval by @code{Message-ID}, but
21638 it would be nice if that were possible.
21640 If @var{to-buffer} is non-@code{nil}, the result data should be returned
21641 in this buffer instead of the normal data buffer. This is to make it
21642 possible to avoid copying large amounts of data from one buffer to
21643 another, while Gnus mainly requests articles to be inserted directly
21644 into its article buffer.
21646 If it is at all possible, this function should return a cons cell where
21647 the @code{car} is the group name the article was fetched from, and the @code{cdr} is
21648 the article number. This will enable Gnus to find out what the real
21649 group and article numbers are when fetching articles by
21650 @code{Message-ID}. If this isn't possible, @code{t} should be returned
21651 on successful article retrieval.
21654 @item (nnchoke-request-group GROUP &optional SERVER FAST)
21656 Get data on @var{group}. This function also has the side effect of
21657 making @var{group} the current group.
21659 If @var{fast}, don't bother to return useful data, just make @var{group}
21662 Here's an example of some result data and a definition of the same:
21665 211 56 1000 1059 ifi.discussion
21668 The first number is the status, which should be 211. Next is the
21669 total number of articles in the group, the lowest article number, the
21670 highest article number, and finally the group name. Note that the total
21671 number of articles may be less than one might think while just
21672 considering the highest and lowest article numbers, but some articles
21673 may have been canceled. Gnus just discards the total-number, so
21674 whether one should take the bother to generate it properly (if that is a
21675 problem) is left as an exercise to the reader.
21678 group-status = [ error / info ] eol
21679 error = [ "4" / "5" ] 2<number> " " <Error message>
21680 info = "211 " 3* [ <number> " " ] <string>
21684 @item (nnchoke-close-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21686 Close @var{group} and free any resources connected to it. This will be
21687 a no-op on most backends.
21689 There should be no data returned.
21692 @item (nnchoke-request-list &optional SERVER)
21694 Return a list of all groups available on @var{server}. And that means
21697 Here's an example from a server that only carries two groups:
21700 ifi.test 0000002200 0000002000 y
21701 ifi.discussion 3324 3300 n
21704 On each line we have a group name, then the highest article number in
21705 that group, the lowest article number, and finally a flag.
21708 active-file = *active-line
21709 active-line = name " " <number> " " <number> " " flags eol
21711 flags = "n" / "y" / "m" / "x" / "j" / "=" name
21714 The flag says whether the group is read-only (@samp{n}), is moderated
21715 (@samp{m}), is dead (@samp{x}), is aliased to some other group
21716 (@samp{=other-group}) or none of the above (@samp{y}).
21719 @item (nnchoke-request-post &optional SERVER)
21721 This function should post the current buffer. It might return whether
21722 the posting was successful or not, but that's not required. If, for
21723 instance, the posting is done asynchronously, it has generally not been
21724 completed by the time this function concludes. In that case, this
21725 function should set up some kind of sentinel to beep the user loud and
21726 clear if the posting could not be completed.
21728 There should be no result data from this function.
21733 @node Optional Backend Functions
21734 @subsubsection Optional Backend Functions
21738 @item (nnchoke-retrieve-groups GROUPS &optional SERVER)
21740 @var{groups} is a list of groups, and this function should request data
21741 on all those groups. How it does it is of no concern to Gnus, but it
21742 should attempt to do this in a speedy fashion.
21744 The return value of this function can be either @code{active} or
21745 @code{group}, which says what the format of the result data is. The
21746 former is in the same format as the data from
21747 @code{nnchoke-request-list}, while the latter is a buffer full of lines
21748 in the same format as @code{nnchoke-request-group} gives.
21751 group-buffer = *active-line / *group-status
21755 @item (nnchoke-request-update-info GROUP INFO &optional SERVER)
21757 A Gnus group info (@pxref{Group Info}) is handed to the backend for
21758 alterations. This comes in handy if the backend really carries all the
21759 information (as is the case with virtual and imap groups). This
21760 function should destructively alter the info to suit its needs, and
21761 should return the (altered) group info.
21763 There should be no result data from this function.
21766 @item (nnchoke-request-type GROUP &optional ARTICLE)
21768 When the user issues commands for ``sending news'' (@kbd{F} in the
21769 summary buffer, for instance), Gnus has to know whether the article the
21770 user is following up on is news or mail. This function should return
21771 @code{news} if @var{article} in @var{group} is news, @code{mail} if it
21772 is mail and @code{unknown} if the type can't be decided. (The
21773 @var{article} parameter is necessary in @code{nnvirtual} groups which
21774 might very well combine mail groups and news groups.) Both @var{group}
21775 and @var{article} may be @code{nil}.
21777 There should be no result data from this function.
21780 @item (nnchoke-request-set-mark GROUP ACTION &optional SERVER)
21782 Set/remove/add marks on articles. Normally Gnus handles the article
21783 marks (such as read, ticked, expired etc) internally, and store them in
21784 @code{~/.newsrc.eld}. Some backends (such as @sc{imap}) however carry
21785 all information about the articles on the server, so Gnus need to
21786 propagate the mark information to the server.
21788 ACTION is a list of mark setting requests, having this format:
21791 (RANGE ACTION MARK)
21794 RANGE is a range of articles you wish to update marks on. ACTION is
21795 @code{add} or @code{del}, used to add marks or remove marks
21796 (preserving all marks not mentioned). MARK is a list of marks; where
21797 each mark is a symbol. Currently used marks are @code{read},
21798 @code{tick}, @code{reply}, @code{expire}, @code{killed},
21799 @code{dormant}, @code{save}, @code{download}, @code{unsend},
21800 @code{forward} and @code{recent}, but your backend should, if
21801 possible, not limit itself to these.
21803 Given contradictory actions, the last action in the list should be the
21804 effective one. That is, if your action contains a request to add the
21805 @code{tick} mark on article 1 and, later in the list, a request to
21806 remove the mark on the same article, the mark should in fact be removed.
21808 An example action list:
21811 (((5 12 30) 'del '(tick))
21812 ((10 . 90) 'add '(read expire))
21813 ((92 94) 'del '(read)))
21816 The function should return a range of articles it wasn't able to set the
21817 mark on (currently not used for anything).
21819 There should be no result data from this function.
21821 @item (nnchoke-request-update-mark GROUP ARTICLE MARK)
21823 If the user tries to set a mark that the backend doesn't like, this
21824 function may change the mark. Gnus will use whatever this function
21825 returns as the mark for @var{article} instead of the original
21826 @var{mark}. If the backend doesn't care, it must return the original
21827 @var{mark}, and not @code{nil} or any other type of garbage.
21829 The only use for this I can see is what @code{nnvirtual} does with
21830 it---if a component group is auto-expirable, marking an article as read
21831 in the virtual group should result in the article being marked as
21834 There should be no result data from this function.
21837 @item (nnchoke-request-scan &optional GROUP SERVER)
21839 This function may be called at any time (by Gnus or anything else) to
21840 request that the backend check for incoming articles, in one way or
21841 another. A mail backend will typically read the spool file or query the
21842 POP server when this function is invoked. The @var{group} doesn't have
21843 to be heeded---if the backend decides that it is too much work just
21844 scanning for a single group, it may do a total scan of all groups. It
21845 would be nice, however, to keep things local if that's practical.
21847 There should be no result data from this function.
21850 @item (nnchoke-request-group-description GROUP &optional SERVER)
21852 The result data from this function should be a description of
21856 description-line = name <TAB> description eol
21858 description = <text>
21861 @item (nnchoke-request-list-newsgroups &optional SERVER)
21863 The result data from this function should be the description of all
21864 groups available on the server.
21867 description-buffer = *description-line
21871 @item (nnchoke-request-newgroups DATE &optional SERVER)
21873 The result data from this function should be all groups that were
21874 created after @samp{date}, which is in normal human-readable date
21875 format. The data should be in the active buffer format.
21878 @item (nnchoke-request-create-group GROUP &optional SERVER)
21880 This function should create an empty group with name @var{group}.
21882 There should be no return data.
21885 @item (nnchoke-request-expire-articles ARTICLES &optional GROUP SERVER FORCE)
21887 This function should run the expiry process on all articles in the
21888 @var{articles} range (which is currently a simple list of article
21889 numbers.) It is left up to the backend to decide how old articles
21890 should be before they are removed by this function. If @var{force} is
21891 non-@code{nil}, all @var{articles} should be deleted, no matter how new
21894 This function should return a list of articles that it did not/was not
21897 There should be no result data returned.
21900 @item (nnchoke-request-move-article ARTICLE GROUP SERVER ACCEPT-FORM
21903 This function should move @var{article} (which is a number) from
21904 @var{group} by calling @var{accept-form}.
21906 This function should ready the article in question for moving by
21907 removing any header lines it has added to the article, and generally
21908 should ``tidy up'' the article. Then it should @code{eval}
21909 @var{accept-form} in the buffer where the ``tidy'' article is. This
21910 will do the actual copying. If this @code{eval} returns a
21911 non-@code{nil} value, the article should be removed.
21913 If @var{last} is @code{nil}, that means that there is a high likelihood
21914 that there will be more requests issued shortly, so that allows some
21917 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21918 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21920 There should be no data returned.
21923 @item (nnchoke-request-accept-article GROUP &optional SERVER LAST)
21925 This function takes the current buffer and inserts it into @var{group}.
21926 If @var{last} in @code{nil}, that means that there will be more calls to
21927 this function in short order.
21929 The function should return a cons where the @code{car} is the group name and
21930 the @code{cdr} is the article number that the article was entered as.
21932 There should be no data returned.
21935 @item (nnchoke-request-replace-article ARTICLE GROUP BUFFER)
21937 This function should remove @var{article} (which is a number) from
21938 @var{group} and insert @var{buffer} there instead.
21940 There should be no data returned.
21943 @item (nnchoke-request-delete-group GROUP FORCE &optional SERVER)
21945 This function should delete @var{group}. If @var{force}, it should
21946 really delete all the articles in the group, and then delete the group
21947 itself. (If there is such a thing as ``the group itself''.)
21949 There should be no data returned.
21952 @item (nnchoke-request-rename-group GROUP NEW-NAME &optional SERVER)
21954 This function should rename @var{group} into @var{new-name}. All
21955 articles in @var{group} should move to @var{new-name}.
21957 There should be no data returned.
21962 @node Error Messaging
21963 @subsubsection Error Messaging
21965 @findex nnheader-report
21966 @findex nnheader-get-report
21967 The backends should use the function @code{nnheader-report} to report
21968 error conditions---they should not raise errors when they aren't able to
21969 perform a request. The first argument to this function is the backend
21970 symbol, and the rest are interpreted as arguments to @code{format} if
21971 there are multiple of them, or just a string if there is one of them.
21972 This function must always returns @code{nil}.
21975 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "You did something totally bogus")
21977 (nnheader-report 'nnchoke "Could not request group %s" group)
21980 Gnus, in turn, will call @code{nnheader-get-report} when it gets a
21981 @code{nil} back from a server, and this function returns the most
21982 recently reported message for the backend in question. This function
21983 takes one argument---the server symbol.
21985 Internally, these functions access @var{backend}@code{-status-string},
21986 so the @code{nnchoke} backend will have its error message stored in
21987 @code{nnchoke-status-string}.
21990 @node Writing New Backends
21991 @subsubsection Writing New Backends
21993 Many backends are quite similar. @code{nnml} is just like
21994 @code{nnspool}, but it allows you to edit the articles on the server.
21995 @code{nnmh} is just like @code{nnml}, but it doesn't use an active file,
21996 and it doesn't maintain overview databases. @code{nndir} is just like
21997 @code{nnml}, but it has no concept of ``groups'', and it doesn't allow
22000 It would make sense if it were possible to ``inherit'' functions from
22001 backends when writing new backends. And, indeed, you can do that if you
22002 want to. (You don't have to if you don't want to, of course.)
22004 All the backends declare their public variables and functions by using a
22005 package called @code{nnoo}.
22007 To inherit functions from other backends (and allow other backends to
22008 inherit functions from the current backend), you should use the
22014 This macro declares the first parameter to be a child of the subsequent
22015 parameters. For instance:
22018 (nnoo-declare nndir
22022 @code{nndir} has declared here that it intends to inherit functions from
22023 both @code{nnml} and @code{nnmh}.
22026 This macro is equivalent to @code{defvar}, but registers the variable as
22027 a public server variable. Most state-oriented variables should be
22028 declared with @code{defvoo} instead of @code{defvar}.
22030 In addition to the normal @code{defvar} parameters, it takes a list of
22031 variables in the parent backends to map the variable to when executing
22032 a function in those backends.
22035 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22036 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22037 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22040 This means that @code{nnml-current-directory} will be set to
22041 @code{nndir-directory} when an @code{nnml} function is called on behalf
22042 of @code{nndir}. (The same with @code{nnmh}.)
22044 @item nnoo-define-basics
22045 This macro defines some common functions that almost all backends should
22049 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22053 This macro is just like @code{defun} and takes the same parameters. In
22054 addition to doing the normal @code{defun} things, it registers the
22055 function as being public so that other backends can inherit it.
22057 @item nnoo-map-functions
22058 This macro allows mapping of functions from the current backend to
22059 functions from the parent backends.
22062 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22063 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22064 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0))
22067 This means that when @code{nndir-retrieve-headers} is called, the first,
22068 third, and fourth parameters will be passed on to
22069 @code{nnml-retrieve-headers}, while the second parameter is set to the
22070 value of @code{nndir-current-group}.
22073 This macro allows importing functions from backends. It should be the
22074 last thing in the source file, since it will only define functions that
22075 haven't already been defined.
22081 nnmh-request-newgroups)
22085 This means that calls to @code{nndir-request-list} should just be passed
22086 on to @code{nnmh-request-list}, while all public functions from
22087 @code{nnml} that haven't been defined in @code{nndir} yet should be
22092 Below is a slightly shortened version of the @code{nndir} backend.
22095 ;;; nndir.el --- single directory newsgroup access for Gnus
22096 ;; Copyright (C) 1995,96 Free Software Foundation, Inc.
22100 (require 'nnheader)
22104 (eval-when-compile (require 'cl))
22106 (nnoo-declare nndir
22109 (defvoo nndir-directory nil
22110 "Where nndir will look for groups."
22111 nnml-current-directory nnmh-current-directory)
22113 (defvoo nndir-nov-is-evil nil
22114 "*Non-nil means that nndir will never retrieve NOV headers."
22117 (defvoo nndir-current-group ""
22119 nnml-current-group nnmh-current-group)
22120 (defvoo nndir-top-directory nil nil nnml-directory nnmh-directory)
22121 (defvoo nndir-get-new-mail nil nil nnml-get-new-mail nnmh-get-new-mail)
22123 (defvoo nndir-status-string "" nil nnmh-status-string)
22124 (defconst nndir-version "nndir 1.0")
22126 ;;; Interface functions.
22128 (nnoo-define-basics nndir)
22130 (deffoo nndir-open-server (server &optional defs)
22131 (setq nndir-directory
22132 (or (cadr (assq 'nndir-directory defs))
22134 (unless (assq 'nndir-directory defs)
22135 (push `(nndir-directory ,server) defs))
22136 (push `(nndir-current-group
22137 ,(file-name-nondirectory
22138 (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22140 (push `(nndir-top-directory
22141 ,(file-name-directory (directory-file-name nndir-directory)))
22143 (nnoo-change-server 'nndir server defs))
22145 (nnoo-map-functions nndir
22146 (nnml-retrieve-headers 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22147 (nnmh-request-article 0 nndir-current-group 0 0)
22148 (nnmh-request-group nndir-current-group 0 0)
22149 (nnmh-close-group nndir-current-group 0))
22153 nnmh-status-message
22155 nnmh-request-newgroups))
22161 @node Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22162 @subsubsection Hooking New Backends Into Gnus
22164 @vindex gnus-valid-select-methods
22165 Having Gnus start using your new backend is rather easy---you just
22166 declare it with the @code{gnus-declare-backend} functions. This will
22167 enter the backend into the @code{gnus-valid-select-methods} variable.
22169 @code{gnus-declare-backend} takes two parameters---the backend name and
22170 an arbitrary number of @dfn{abilities}.
22175 (gnus-declare-backend "nnchoke" 'mail 'respool 'address)
22178 The abilities can be:
22182 This is a mailish backend---followups should (probably) go via mail.
22184 This is a newsish backend---followups should (probably) go via news.
22186 This backend supports both mail and news.
22188 This is neither a post nor mail backend---it's something completely
22191 It supports respooling---or rather, it is able to modify its source
22192 articles and groups.
22194 The name of the server should be in the virtual server name. This is
22195 true for almost all backends.
22196 @item prompt-address
22197 The user should be prompted for an address when doing commands like
22198 @kbd{B} in the group buffer. This is true for backends like
22199 @code{nntp}, but not @code{nnmbox}, for instance.
22203 @node Mail-like Backends
22204 @subsubsection Mail-like Backends
22206 One of the things that separate the mail backends from the rest of the
22207 backends is the heavy dependence by the mail backends on common
22208 functions in @file{nnmail.el}. For instance, here's the definition of
22209 @code{nnml-request-scan}:
22212 (deffoo nnml-request-scan (&optional group server)
22213 (setq nnml-article-file-alist nil)
22214 (nnmail-get-new-mail 'nnml 'nnml-save-nov nnml-directory group))
22217 It simply calls @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} with a few parameters,
22218 and @code{nnmail} takes care of all the moving and splitting of the
22221 This function takes four parameters.
22225 This should be a symbol to designate which backend is responsible for
22228 @item exit-function
22229 This function should be called after the splitting has been performed.
22231 @item temp-directory
22232 Where the temporary files should be stored.
22235 This optional argument should be a group name if the splitting is to be
22236 performed for one group only.
22239 @code{nnmail-get-new-mail} will call @var{backend}@code{-save-mail} to
22240 save each article. @var{backend}@code{-active-number} will be called to
22241 find the article number assigned to this article.
22243 The function also uses the following variables:
22244 @var{backend}@code{-get-new-mail} (to see whether to get new mail for
22245 this backend); and @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} and
22246 @var{backend}@code{-active-file} to generate the new active file.
22247 @var{backend}@code{-group-alist} should be a group-active alist, like
22251 (("a-group" (1 . 10))
22252 ("some-group" (34 . 39)))
22256 @node Score File Syntax
22257 @subsection Score File Syntax
22259 Score files are meant to be easily parseable, but yet extremely
22260 mallable. It was decided that something that had the same read syntax
22261 as an Emacs Lisp list would fit that spec.
22263 Here's a typical score file:
22267 ("win95" -10000 nil s)
22274 BNF definition of a score file:
22277 score-file = "" / "(" *element ")"
22278 element = rule / atom
22279 rule = string-rule / number-rule / date-rule
22280 string-rule = "(" quote string-header quote space *string-match ")"
22281 number-rule = "(" quote number-header quote space *number-match ")"
22282 date-rule = "(" quote date-header quote space *date-match ")"
22284 string-header = "subject" / "from" / "references" / "message-id" /
22285 "xref" / "body" / "head" / "all" / "followup"
22286 number-header = "lines" / "chars"
22287 date-header = "date"
22288 string-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22289 space date [ "" / [ space string-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22290 score = "nil" / <integer>
22291 date = "nil" / <natural number>
22292 string-match-t = "nil" / "s" / "substring" / "S" / "Substring" /
22293 "r" / "regex" / "R" / "Regex" /
22294 "e" / "exact" / "E" / "Exact" /
22295 "f" / "fuzzy" / "F" / "Fuzzy"
22296 number-match = "(" <integer> [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22297 space date [ "" / [ space number-match-t ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22298 number-match-t = "nil" / "=" / "<" / ">" / ">=" / "<="
22299 date-match = "(" quote <string> quote [ "" / [ space score [ "" /
22300 space date [ "" / [ space date-match-t ] ] ] ] ")"
22301 date-match-t = "nil" / "at" / "before" / "after"
22302 atom = "(" [ required-atom / optional-atom ] ")"
22303 required-atom = mark / expunge / mark-and-expunge / files /
22304 exclude-files / read-only / touched
22305 optional-atom = adapt / local / eval
22306 mark = "mark" space nil-or-number
22307 nil-or-number = "nil" / <integer>
22308 expunge = "expunge" space nil-or-number
22309 mark-and-expunge = "mark-and-expunge" space nil-or-number
22310 files = "files" *[ space <string> ]
22311 exclude-files = "exclude-files" *[ space <string> ]
22312 read-only = "read-only" [ space "nil" / space "t" ]
22313 adapt = "adapt" [ space "ignore" / space "t" / space adapt-rule ]
22314 adapt-rule = "(" *[ <string> *[ "(" <string> <integer> ")" ] ")"
22315 local = "local" *[ space "(" <string> space <form> ")" ]
22316 eval = "eval" space <form>
22317 space = *[ " " / <TAB> / <NEWLINE> ]
22320 Any unrecognized elements in a score file should be ignored, but not
22323 As you can see, white space is needed, but the type and amount of white
22324 space is irrelevant. This means that formatting of the score file is
22325 left up to the programmer---if it's simpler to just spew it all out on
22326 one looong line, then that's ok.
22328 The meaning of the various atoms are explained elsewhere in this
22329 manual (@pxref{Score File Format}).
22333 @subsection Headers
22335 Internally Gnus uses a format for storing article headers that
22336 corresponds to the @sc{nov} format in a mysterious fashion. One could
22337 almost suspect that the author looked at the @sc{nov} specification and
22338 just shamelessly @emph{stole} the entire thing, and one would be right.
22340 @dfn{Header} is a severely overloaded term. ``Header'' is used in
22341 RFC 1036 to talk about lines in the head of an article (e.g.,
22342 @code{From}). It is used by many people as a synonym for
22343 ``head''---``the header and the body''. (That should be avoided, in my
22344 opinion.) And Gnus uses a format internally that it calls ``header'',
22345 which is what I'm talking about here. This is a 9-element vector,
22346 basically, with each header (ouch) having one slot.
22348 These slots are, in order: @code{number}, @code{subject}, @code{from},
22349 @code{date}, @code{id}, @code{references}, @code{chars}, @code{lines},
22350 @code{xref}, and @code{extra}. There are macros for accessing and
22351 setting these slots---they all have predictable names beginning with
22352 @code{mail-header-} and @code{mail-header-set-}, respectively.
22354 All these slots contain strings, except the @code{extra} slot, which
22355 contains an alist of header/value pairs (@pxref{To From Newsgroups}).
22361 @sc{gnus} introduced a concept that I found so useful that I've started
22362 using it a lot and have elaborated on it greatly.
22364 The question is simple: If you have a large amount of objects that are
22365 identified by numbers (say, articles, to take a @emph{wild} example)
22366 that you want to qualify as being ``included'', a normal sequence isn't
22367 very useful. (A 200,000 length sequence is a bit long-winded.)
22369 The solution is as simple as the question: You just collapse the
22373 (1 2 3 4 5 6 10 11 12)
22376 is transformed into
22379 ((1 . 6) (10 . 12))
22382 To avoid having those nasty @samp{(13 . 13)} elements to denote a
22383 lonesome object, a @samp{13} is a valid element:
22386 ((1 . 6) 7 (10 . 12))
22389 This means that comparing two ranges to find out whether they are equal
22390 is slightly tricky:
22393 ((1 . 5) 7 8 (10 . 12))
22399 ((1 . 5) (7 . 8) (10 . 12))
22402 are equal. In fact, any non-descending list is a range:
22408 is a perfectly valid range, although a pretty long-winded one. This is
22415 and is equal to the previous range.
22417 Here's a BNF definition of ranges. Of course, one must remember the
22418 semantic requirement that the numbers are non-descending. (Any number
22419 of repetition of the same number is allowed, but apt to disappear in
22423 range = simple-range / normal-range
22424 simple-range = "(" number " . " number ")"
22425 normal-range = "(" start-contents ")"
22426 contents = "" / simple-range *[ " " contents ] /
22427 number *[ " " contents ]
22430 Gnus currently uses ranges to keep track of read articles and article
22431 marks. I plan on implementing a number of range operators in C if The
22432 Powers That Be are willing to let me. (I haven't asked yet, because I
22433 need to do some more thinking on what operators I need to make life
22434 totally range-based without ever having to convert back to normal
22439 @subsection Group Info
22441 Gnus stores all permanent info on groups in a @dfn{group info} list.
22442 This list is from three to six elements (or more) long and exhaustively
22443 describes the group.
22445 Here are two example group infos; one is a very simple group while the
22446 second is a more complex one:
22449 ("no.group" 5 ((1 . 54324)))
22451 ("nnml:my.mail" 3 ((1 . 5) 9 (20 . 55))
22452 ((tick (15 . 19)) (replied 3 6 (19 . 3)))
22454 ((auto-expire . t) (to-address . "ding@@gnus.org")))
22457 The first element is the @dfn{group name}---as Gnus knows the group,
22458 anyway. The second element is the @dfn{subscription level}, which
22459 normally is a small integer. (It can also be the @dfn{rank}, which is a
22460 cons cell where the @code{car} is the level and the @code{cdr} is the
22461 score.) The third element is a list of ranges of read articles. The
22462 fourth element is a list of lists of article marks of various kinds.
22463 The fifth element is the select method (or virtual server, if you like).
22464 The sixth element is a list of @dfn{group parameters}, which is what
22465 this section is about.
22467 Any of the last three elements may be missing if they are not required.
22468 In fact, the vast majority of groups will normally only have the first
22469 three elements, which saves quite a lot of cons cells.
22471 Here's a BNF definition of the group info format:
22474 info = "(" group space ralevel space read
22475 [ "" / [ space marks-list [ "" / [ space method [ "" /
22476 space parameters ] ] ] ] ] ")"
22477 group = quote <string> quote
22478 ralevel = rank / level
22479 level = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
22480 rank = "(" level "." score ")"
22481 score = <integer in the range of 1 to inf>
22483 marks-lists = nil / "(" *marks ")"
22484 marks = "(" <string> range ")"
22485 method = "(" <string> *elisp-forms ")"
22486 parameters = "(" *elisp-forms ")"
22489 Actually that @samp{marks} rule is a fib. A @samp{marks} is a
22490 @samp{<string>} consed on to a @samp{range}, but that's a bitch to say
22493 If you have a Gnus info and want to access the elements, Gnus offers a
22494 series of macros for getting/setting these elements.
22497 @item gnus-info-group
22498 @itemx gnus-info-set-group
22499 @findex gnus-info-group
22500 @findex gnus-info-set-group
22501 Get/set the group name.
22503 @item gnus-info-rank
22504 @itemx gnus-info-set-rank
22505 @findex gnus-info-rank
22506 @findex gnus-info-set-rank
22507 Get/set the group rank (@pxref{Group Score}).
22509 @item gnus-info-level
22510 @itemx gnus-info-set-level
22511 @findex gnus-info-level
22512 @findex gnus-info-set-level
22513 Get/set the group level.
22515 @item gnus-info-score
22516 @itemx gnus-info-set-score
22517 @findex gnus-info-score
22518 @findex gnus-info-set-score
22519 Get/set the group score (@pxref{Group Score}).
22521 @item gnus-info-read
22522 @itemx gnus-info-set-read
22523 @findex gnus-info-read
22524 @findex gnus-info-set-read
22525 Get/set the ranges of read articles.
22527 @item gnus-info-marks
22528 @itemx gnus-info-set-marks
22529 @findex gnus-info-marks
22530 @findex gnus-info-set-marks
22531 Get/set the lists of ranges of marked articles.
22533 @item gnus-info-method
22534 @itemx gnus-info-set-method
22535 @findex gnus-info-method
22536 @findex gnus-info-set-method
22537 Get/set the group select method.
22539 @item gnus-info-params
22540 @itemx gnus-info-set-params
22541 @findex gnus-info-params
22542 @findex gnus-info-set-params
22543 Get/set the group parameters.
22546 All the getter functions take one parameter---the info list. The setter
22547 functions take two parameters---the info list and the new value.
22549 The last three elements in the group info aren't mandatory, so it may be
22550 necessary to extend the group info before setting the element. If this
22551 is necessary, you can just pass on a non-@code{nil} third parameter to
22552 the three final setter functions to have this happen automatically.
22555 @node Extended Interactive
22556 @subsection Extended Interactive
22557 @cindex interactive
22558 @findex gnus-interactive
22560 Gnus extends the standard Emacs @code{interactive} specification
22561 slightly to allow easy use of the symbolic prefix (@pxref{Symbolic
22562 Prefixes}). Here's an example of how this is used:
22565 (defun gnus-summary-increase-score (&optional score symp)
22566 (interactive (gnus-interactive "P\ny"))
22571 The best thing to do would have been to implement
22572 @code{gnus-interactive} as a macro which would have returned an
22573 @code{interactive} form, but this isn't possible since Emacs checks
22574 whether a function is interactive or not by simply doing an @code{assq}
22575 on the lambda form. So, instead we have @code{gnus-interactive}
22576 function that takes a string and returns values that are usable to
22577 @code{interactive}.
22579 This function accepts (almost) all normal @code{interactive} specs, but
22584 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbol
22585 The current symbolic prefix---the @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol}
22589 @vindex gnus-current-prefix-symbols
22590 A list of the current symbolic prefixes---the
22591 @code{gnus-current-prefix-symbol} variable.
22594 The current article number---the @code{gnus-summary-article-number}
22598 The current article header---the @code{gnus-summary-article-header}
22602 The current group name---the @code{gnus-group-group-name}
22608 @node Emacs/XEmacs Code
22609 @subsection Emacs/XEmacs Code
22613 While Gnus runs under Emacs, XEmacs and Mule, I decided that one of the
22614 platforms must be the primary one. I chose Emacs. Not because I don't
22615 like XEmacs or Mule, but because it comes first alphabetically.
22617 This means that Gnus will byte-compile under Emacs with nary a warning,
22618 while XEmacs will pump out gigabytes of warnings while byte-compiling.
22619 As I use byte-compilation warnings to help me root out trivial errors in
22620 Gnus, that's very useful.
22622 I've also consistently used Emacs function interfaces, but have used
22623 Gnusey aliases for the functions. To take an example: Emacs defines a
22624 @code{run-at-time} function while XEmacs defines a @code{start-itimer}
22625 function. I then define a function called @code{gnus-run-at-time} that
22626 takes the same parameters as the Emacs @code{run-at-time}. When running
22627 Gnus under Emacs, the former function is just an alias for the latter.
22628 However, when running under XEmacs, the former is an alias for the
22629 following function:
22632 (defun gnus-xmas-run-at-time (time repeat function &rest args)
22636 (,function ,@@args))
22640 This sort of thing has been done for bunches of functions. Gnus does
22641 not redefine any native Emacs functions while running under XEmacs---it
22642 does this @code{defalias} thing with Gnus equivalents instead. Cleaner
22645 In the cases where the XEmacs function interface was obviously cleaner,
22646 I used it instead. For example @code{gnus-region-active-p} is an alias
22647 for @code{region-active-p} in XEmacs, whereas in Emacs it is a function.
22649 Of course, I could have chosen XEmacs as my native platform and done
22650 mapping functions the other way around. But I didn't. The performance
22651 hit these indirections impose on Gnus under XEmacs should be slight.
22654 @node Various File Formats
22655 @subsection Various File Formats
22658 * Active File Format:: Information on articles and groups available.
22659 * Newsgroups File Format:: Group descriptions.
22663 @node Active File Format
22664 @subsubsection Active File Format
22666 The active file lists all groups available on the server in
22667 question. It also lists the highest and lowest current article numbers
22670 Here's an excerpt from a typical active file:
22673 soc.motss 296030 293865 y
22674 alt.binaries.pictures.fractals 3922 3913 n
22675 comp.sources.unix 1605 1593 m
22676 comp.binaries.ibm.pc 5097 5089 y
22677 no.general 1000 900 y
22680 Here's a pseudo-BNF definition of this file:
22683 active = *group-line
22684 group-line = group spc high-number spc low-number spc flag <NEWLINE>
22685 group = <non-white-space string>
22687 high-number = <non-negative integer>
22688 low-number = <positive integer>
22689 flag = "y" / "n" / "m" / "j" / "x" / "=" group
22692 For a full description of this file, see the manual pages for
22693 @samp{innd}, in particular @samp{active(5)}.
22696 @node Newsgroups File Format
22697 @subsubsection Newsgroups File Format
22699 The newsgroups file lists groups along with their descriptions. Not all
22700 groups on the server have to be listed, and not all groups in the file
22701 have to exist on the server. The file is meant purely as information to
22704 The format is quite simple; a group name, a tab, and the description.
22705 Here's the definition:
22709 line = group tab description <NEWLINE>
22710 group = <non-white-space string>
22712 description = <string>
22717 @node Emacs for Heathens
22718 @section Emacs for Heathens
22720 Believe it or not, but some people who use Gnus haven't really used
22721 Emacs much before they embarked on their journey on the Gnus Love Boat.
22722 If you are one of those unfortunates whom ``@kbd{M-C-a}'', ``kill the
22723 region'', and ``set @code{gnus-flargblossen} to an alist where the key
22724 is a regexp that is used for matching on the group name'' are magical
22725 phrases with little or no meaning, then this appendix is for you. If
22726 you are already familiar with Emacs, just ignore this and go fondle your
22730 * Keystrokes:: Entering text and executing commands.
22731 * Emacs Lisp:: The built-in Emacs programming language.
22736 @subsection Keystrokes
22740 Q: What is an experienced Emacs user?
22743 A: A person who wishes that the terminal had pedals.
22746 Yes, when you use Emacs, you are apt to use the control key, the shift
22747 key and the meta key a lot. This is very annoying to some people
22748 (notably @code{vi}le users), and the rest of us just love the hell out
22749 of it. Just give up and submit. Emacs really does stand for
22750 ``Escape-Meta-Alt-Control-Shift'', and not ``Editing Macros'', as you
22751 may have heard from other disreputable sources (like the Emacs author).
22753 The shift keys are normally located near your pinky fingers, and are
22754 normally used to get capital letters and stuff. You probably use it all
22755 the time. The control key is normally marked ``CTRL'' or something like
22756 that. The meta key is, funnily enough, never marked as such on any
22757 keyboard. The one I'm currently at has a key that's marked ``Alt'',
22758 which is the meta key on this keyboard. It's usually located somewhere
22759 to the left hand side of the keyboard, usually on the bottom row.
22761 Now, us Emacs people don't say ``press the meta-control-m key'',
22762 because that's just too inconvenient. We say ``press the @kbd{M-C-m}
22763 key''. @kbd{M-} is the prefix that means ``meta'' and ``C-'' is the
22764 prefix that means ``control''. So ``press @kbd{C-k}'' means ``press
22765 down the control key, and hold it down while you press @kbd{k}''.
22766 ``Press @kbd{M-C-k}'' means ``press down and hold down the meta key and
22767 the control key and then press @kbd{k}''. Simple, ay?
22769 This is somewhat complicated by the fact that not all keyboards have a
22770 meta key. In that case you can use the ``escape'' key. Then @kbd{M-k}
22771 means ``press escape, release escape, press @kbd{k}''. That's much more
22772 work than if you have a meta key, so if that's the case, I respectfully
22773 suggest you get a real keyboard with a meta key. You can't live without
22779 @subsection Emacs Lisp
22781 Emacs is the King of Editors because it's really a Lisp interpreter.
22782 Each and every key you tap runs some Emacs Lisp code snippet, and since
22783 Emacs Lisp is an interpreted language, that means that you can configure
22784 any key to run any arbitrary code. You just, like, do it.
22786 Gnus is written in Emacs Lisp, and is run as a bunch of interpreted
22787 functions. (These are byte-compiled for speed, but it's still
22788 interpreted.) If you decide that you don't like the way Gnus does
22789 certain things, it's trivial to have it do something a different way.
22790 (Well, at least if you know how to write Lisp code.) However, that's
22791 beyond the scope of this manual, so we are simply going to talk about
22792 some common constructs that you normally use in your @file{.emacs} file
22795 If you want to set the variable @code{gnus-florgbnize} to four (4), you
22796 write the following:
22799 (setq gnus-florgbnize 4)
22802 This function (really ``special form'') @code{setq} is the one that can
22803 set a variable to some value. This is really all you need to know. Now
22804 you can go and fill your @code{.emacs} file with lots of these to change
22807 If you have put that thing in your @code{.emacs} file, it will be read
22808 and @code{eval}ed (which is lisp-ese for ``run'') the next time you
22809 start Emacs. If you want to change the variable right away, simply say
22810 @kbd{C-x C-e} after the closing parenthesis. That will @code{eval} the
22811 previous ``form'', which is a simple @code{setq} statement here.
22813 Go ahead---just try it, if you're located at your Emacs. After you
22814 @kbd{C-x C-e}, you will see @samp{4} appear in the echo area, which
22815 is the return value of the form you @code{eval}ed.
22819 If the manual says ``set @code{gnus-read-active-file} to @code{some}'',
22823 (setq gnus-read-active-file 'some)
22826 On the other hand, if the manual says ``set @code{gnus-nntp-server} to
22827 @samp{nntp.ifi.uio.no}'', that means:
22830 (setq gnus-nntp-server "nntp.ifi.uio.no")
22833 So be careful not to mix up strings (the latter) with symbols (the
22834 former). The manual is unambiguous, but it can be confusing.
22837 @include gnus-faq.texi
22858 % LocalWords: Backend BNF mucho Backends backends detailmenu cindex kindex kbd
22859 % LocalWords: findex Gnusae vindex dfn dfn samp nntp setq nnspool nntpserver
22860 % LocalWords: nnmbox backend newusers Blllrph NEWGROUPS dingnusdingnusdingnus
22861 % LocalWords: pre fab rec comp nnslashdot regex ga ga sci nnml nnbabyl nnmh
22862 % LocalWords: nnfolder emph looong eld newsreaders defun init elc pxref